Folklore in Cinema (study)
by Meghna Choudhury | 2022 | 64,583 words
This essay studies the relationship between folklore and cinema by placing Special emphasis on the films by Assamese filmmaker Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia. The research focuses on the impact of of folklore on audience engagement and exposes Assamese folktales and cinema as a cultural mirror by showing how it preserves oral literature, material cultur...
Part 3.4 - Occupation (as constituents of urban folk culture)
[Full title: Aspects of Material Culture (4) Occupation]
Throughout his film career, the filmmaker has explored a series of occupations which are constituents of rural as well as urban folk culture. For example, Sandhyarag and Itihaas are tales of those people, who opt to work as domestic helps, owing to extreme poverty. In the later part of the film Sandhyarag, Putali is seen piercing holes in babies� ears for an earning (Image 14). In fact, Saru and Toru, who move back to their village, are seen doing rural works like grinding paddy seeds with the dheki, using saloni to clean the rice and cutting paddy bunches in the field with sickles. On the other hand, occupations like that of a horse cart rider (Character’s name: Somoru) and a midwife (Character’s name: Irin Baidew) are used to depict changing socio-economic patterns pertaining to a period of pre-independent India. Madan, who is seen helping Menoka in taking her revenge over Mohikanta, is actually a thief.
The changing urban economic landscape with temporary dwellings like slums, and the advent of harmful products through advertising have been depicted in Kolahol. An old man in the film works in a bidi factory as a singer who sings promotional songs for the company. Meanwhile a female character is shown selling homemade liquor, to depict the societal strata to which the characters in the film belong.