In a society obsessed with stereotypes, it is difficult to slot the storytellers, especially when it comes to film directors who had a vison like Shyam Benegal. 

The Seventies were a politically charged time for India, and Shyam Benegal’s name had increasingly gained currency, as a socially conscious film maker who seemed to understand better than most the power of storytelling, especially when it came to raising social consciousness amongst people with regards to social evils. It wasn’t as if there had been no socially conscious films before the Seventies or before Benegal’s advent in the scene. There was of course, Do Bigha Zamin (1953) or a Mother India (1957), and yet Benegal stormed the scene with film after film that not only spoke about social consciousness, but did the unthinkable of telling a story, more often than not, from the woman’s viewpoint. Writing this in 2025, one cannot but admire the gender fluidity with which Benegal approached his characters. One wonders then, whether such things are instinctive, for social consciousness too is limited without an instinctive and openly passionate approach to love, life and films. Which is why film makers like Benegal will forever remain the renaissance man- the one who showed others how it’s done.  

Satyajit Ray had once said, “Can a serious filmmaker, working in India, afford to shut his eyes to the reality around him, the reality that is so poignant, and so urgently in need of interpretation in terms of the cinema? I do not think so.”

There have been many film makers like Ghatak, Mrinal Sen, and Ray himself, who took on the responsibility of bringing to celluloid a certain social responsibility, and Benegal was one of the first to jump in with this flow. Interestingly enough, the Seventies was experimental enough in terms of showcasing some very big commercial films like Sholay or Deewar, along with the release of Benegal’s Nishant (1975), which brought together some of the biggest and best names from parallel cinema. 

Benegal, debuted in 1974 with his first feature film Ankur, an amazing film that almost made one disbelief that it was his first. There are many film makers who mature with time and films, Benegal felt like a rare case of a film maker, who was ready to showcase brilliance from the word go. 

Starring Anant Nag and Shabana Azmi in lead roles, Ankur is seemingly yet another tale of a landlord taking on a helpless woman as a mistress. However, Benegal’s sharp story telling poignantly traces the gaze over the socio-economic order of things, without ever making it sound didactic. 

In fact, in films like Mandi (1983), where one finds a tough Rukmini Bai (played by Shabana Azmi), taking care of all the prostitutes in her brothel, chiding them as and when necessary- the very dismal and serious topic of the politicking and power structures within a brothel, are actually dealt in a light hearted manner, with a stellar and diverse cast. 

In recent times, much has been written about the ‘feminine gaze’ that permeates through a film maker’s narration of the script. Rituporno Ghosh is a film director whose name has often been cited when it comes to wielding both dialogues and script, highlighting the minutest matters relating to women. 

In this regard, one remembers Benegal's films like Bhumika (1977), or Manthan (1976), both starring the talented Smita Patil, lending a sensitive gaze on the portrayal of a woman, her little joys, sorrows, her ability to transcend polite society and fight for her own rights. 

Bhumika is the story of a girl who is enamoured by the film world, and carried away by the brashness of youth, decides to marry a man who changes the course of her life. Bhumika’s trials are constant, and yet every time, she seems to find new and courageous ways to tackle it. Her decision in the end to leave her lover’s house by calling the police, and deciding to stay alone, in spite of her daughter’s pleas to the contrary are remarkable in showcasing the trajectory of a woman who can effectively change the course of her life because of her awareness and inner strength.

Manthan is remarkable on many counts. The first crowd funded Indian film; it is a fictionalised narrative of Verghese Kurien who began India’s dairy cooperative movement that transformed India’s fate from being a milk-deficient nation to one of the world's leading milk producers. Smita plays the role of a feisty Harijan (low caste woman) Bindu, who leads a revolt against the milk mafia. One of Patil’s iconic roles, she defied cinematic stereotypes to etch the character of a woman who while being oppressed by a drunk husband, doesn’t lose courage, while also retaining her vulnerability as a woman- a hard juggle this, and brilliantly essayed by Smita. 

While, one understands that Benegal employed some of the finest female actresses in Indian cinema, it must also be acknowledged that Benegal’s films gave space to women who were complicated, curious and unapologetic about looking out for themselves. These are women who took on patriarchy head on, while understanding their own interiority like no one else could. And why this is so remarkable is because of the timing. Until recently, even some of the most well-made films, had female characters, who would somehow convince herself and the viewers that adjusting and compromising is the ultimate Indian virtue that led us to less divorce rates, and more ‘happy families’.

In this very milieu, Benegal seemed to stand out, because he took a special pride in presenting women who were outliers. Feminism wasn’t an alien concept to Benegal or his peers, in fact the Seventies was perhaps one of the most experimental age for Indian cinema, which led to not only great stars and films, but nuanced storytelling that truly helped film makers like Benegal become flag bearers of the Indian cultural renaissance.

In many ways, the outspokenness of these films and the fluidity of these remarkable characters leaves a body of work that can be inspiration for film makers and viewers worldwide.