EntertainmentPosted at: Nov 10 2025 1:26AM


Women characters in Guru Dutt's films were very strong and beautiful: Film scholar Soma A. Chatterjee

Kolkata, Nov 9 (UNI) Legendary filmmaker Guru Dutt created female characters that were "both very strong and beautiful, a rare combination in Indian cinema", according to film scholar and journalist Soma A. Chatterjee.
Reflecting on the complex portrayal of women in Guru Dutt's cinema, during a session at the 31st Kolkata International Film Festival, Chatterjee said her interest stemmed from observing the emotional depth and individuality of his heroines.
Chatterjee, who has authored an article on the women in Guru Dutt's acclaimed - "Pyaasa", "Kagaaz Ke Phool" and "Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam", said: "I found it a very learning process and an enlightening experience to find out that his women were very strong, except for the one which I have not detailed too much: the Muslim social drama 'Chaudhvin Ka Chand'."
Citing "Pyaasa" as a key example, Chatterjee noted that the character of Gulabo, played by Waheeda Rehman, redefined the cinematic image of a courtesan. "Gulabo played by Waheeda Rehman, a sex worker, is portrayed with rare sensitivity. But you never see her practicing her trade, except once when she has a fight with the customer who has not paid her. Other than that, she is dressed very nicely, she is sitting near the window and all that, but you don't really see her advertising her trade; you just know that she is a sex worker. And she is very strong, that's why she walks into the sunset in the last scene with this man who is a lost man."
She contrasted this with "Kaagaz Ke Phool", where the female protagonist asserts her agency through separation and motherhood.
"I will look upon him (Guru Dutt) as a great director because he was a behind-the-scenes director. He monitored every single recording – music recording, sound, everything in his film. He was very upset when 'Kaagaz Ke Phool' flopped. And there is a paper which I found out from the internet, where the author has written that probably 'Kaagaz Ke Phool' flopped because he included the technicians within the film as it breaks the secrecy. He was very heartbroken."
She also reflected on how his perception of women evolved through his films. "Even in earlier films, except 'Mr. and Mrs. 55', which is a very patriarchal film, in the other films, the women, especially you see in Geeta Dutt's films, 'Baazi' and all. Even when she is playing the side role, she is very strong. She is not really a vamp, and her dance and her songs are beautiful."
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