Women in Oppressive Societies as Portrayed in Kollywood Movies

The three films discussed in this article describe the cultural and living conditions of women who are socially oppressed in Tamil Nadu, in southern India. Each film exposes a different method of oppression used to subjugate these women: oppression by caste discrimination, honor killings, and modern‐day slavery. Paradesi [Vagabond] examines the misery of tea plantation workers. It describes the slavery system that extorts poor women who are lured into working on tea plantations, and shows how they are forced to live their entire lives as slaves without a shred of hope or freedom. Madha Yaanai Koottam [Herd of Mad Elephants] dramatizes the story of the two wives of a wealthy and respected landowner. The hostile and increasingly violent conflict between the families of the wives puts a spotlight on the realities of caste‐ism and honor killings. Jai Bhim [Victory to Bhim] exposes the struggles of women who belong to the Irula tribe. It shows how a member of the Irula tribe was falsely framed in a theft case. The film addresses the indirect struggles of women who belong to a tribal community. The public outcry sparked by these realistic films has garnered public awareness of the social oppression of women.