#don't cry for salim the lame

[masalafilmsrevival]

Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro (1989)

[starblazerm31]

Hey there lovely! 🖤 First of all, your blog and your headcanons/fan fictions are amazing and I enjoy reading every new one every time! I don't know if you still take requests, but how about the main 6 with an MC who's water suddenly broke. Like, how would they react? How would the MC react (this one sounds stupid I know and I'm sorry. ;-;) Well, hope you're gonna have a lovely day/night! ❤🖤

*cries happy tears*  Thank you so much, @xxshyxxx!!  Folks like you are the reason I keep on doing this! 💖💖💖  *hugz*  YOU guys are my inspiration, and I love everything you all send to me. 💓

Main 6 with MC whose Water Suddenly Breaks

Asra

The two of you are at Selasi’s, buying some bread and talking about your pregnancy.  You’re due at any time.

You’re munching on your pumpkin bread with Asra rubbing your achy back when you suddenly feel a warm trickle between your legs.  For a moment you think you accidentally wet yourself (hey, it’s common during pregnancy), but quickly realize that isn’t the case.

“Um…Asra?  I think my water just broke.”

Asra and Selasi explode in chatter.  Selasi tells Asra to get you home immediately, and he will go and fetch Julian.

Asra gets you situated on the bed with a ton of pillows at your back.  He is gathering together everything you need for delivery.

He contacts Aisha and Salim through water, and you can hear them talking excitedly.

Much sooner than you expected, you hear the door to the shop open and lots of voices fill the air.  Julian comes up to the loft followed by Aisha and Salim.

Aisha sits next to you and coaches you through the contractions.  Julian examines you periodically for when you’re ready to give birth.

When the time comes, Asra is right next to you holding your hand.  It’s rough going, but Julian withdraws a healthy beautiful baby.

Aisha and Salim clean the baby off before handing it to you.  You and Asra gaze down upon your new child with love and pride.

Nadia

Your pregnancy has been well monitored and your every need tended to.  It hasn’t been all that rough.

You’re in the garden taking a nice stroll when you feel a sudden weight followed by wetness.

Oh no.

You start to shuffle back towards the palace, and you call out for help.  Almost instantly a palace guard appears.

“Tell the Countess that my water just broke!!”

The guard goes pale.  He shouts out for another guard to escort you back while he dashes off to find Nadia.

The guard at your side doesn’t leave you.  As you are taken to your room, he calls for the midwife to be summoned.

Only when the midwife dismisses him and Nadia sweeps into the room does the guard finally leave.  But he stations himself outside your door.

Your room becomes a bustle of activity as servants bring all the supplies the midwife calls for.

Nadia remains by your side and holds your hand.  She makes sure you are comfortable and that you have everything you need.

The midwife delivers your baby with expert precision and speed.  You and Nadia gaze upon your baby with great joy and the guard who refused to leave you receives a special commendation from Nadia.

Julian

You two are enjoying a quiet night at home.

Julian made dinner for you, insisting that you stay off of your feet.  You’re due any day now, and he wants to make sure that his beloved and their child are comfy and safe.

He’s sitting behind you on the bed, rubbing your back and shoulders.

You suddenly feel the urge to go to the bathroom.  Julian helps you up, but as soon as you are erect, you feel a sudden splash.

The two of you look at each other, and your eyes grow wide.

Shit!  Shit, shit, shit shit shit!!

Julian takes off like a rocket, gathering towels and heating water on the stove.  You contact Mazelinka through water and tell her that it’s happening.

With astonishing speed, both she and Portia arrive at your home.

Julian had thought he was going to deliver his own baby.  Mazelinka isn’t having that.  His job is to stay next to you and keep you focused and calm.

He sucks at it.  He’s so nervous his hand is trembling in yours.

Portia and Mazelinka are like a well-oiled machine.  When you start to give birth, they calmly talk you through it.

When your baby arrives, Julian breaks down crying (even more than the baby).  It takes both Mazelinka and Portia to keep him from bursting out into the street right then to show it off.

Muriel

He’s been a nervous wreck throughout your entire pregnancy.   He knows precisely dick about pregnancy and babies.

If he wasn’t glued to your side, Inanna was.

While you were pouring yourself some water, you spilled some on the floor.  You swear to yourself, but when you catch Muriel’s suddenly terrified gaze you realize that you actually hadn’t spilled a drop.

He scoops you up and puts you on the bed, his hands gripping his hair in fright.  He has absolutely no idea what to do.

He sends Inanna to go get Asra.

He’s standing at the end of the bed, wondering if he should get ready to catch or something.  He keeps peering in between your legs, expecting something really scary to happen.

When Asra finally arrives, Muriel is sitting on the floor at your feet, rocking back and forth.  Asra comforts him briefly, explaining that this is going to take some time.  Babies don’t just jump out when the water breaks.

Asra lights some calming incense and gets everything set up.  He actually made the effort to learn how to midwife for his two best friends in the entire world.

Inanna curls up at your side, protective and comforting as always.  You pet her as your contractions get stronger.  Muriel is trying to keep calm.

You suddenly feel strong pressure.  Asra takes position between your legs and tells you what to do.  Muriel looks like he is about to pass out.

Before you know it, the baby is here.  Asra cleans it off and hands it to you.  Muriel approaches the two of you and for the first time in his life feels amazed and proud of something he did.  When you hand the baby to him, he stares at it in absolute wonder.

Portia

She has been so freaking excited to be a mom!  She’s been checking up on you every five minutes for nine long months and has been having Mazelinka instruct her on what she will need to do when you give birth.

She’s been very strict with your diet, but she’s also been really good with your cravings.  She’s not going to deny you ice cream when THE BABY WANTS ICE CREAM, PASHA!!!

You were knitting booties and she was working in her garden one lovely day when suddenly you felt the wetness and your face went beet red.

Portia’s spade clatters to the ground.  Her time has come!!!

She sets you up with some pain relief tea and sends a courier to fetch Julian and Mazelinka.

When they arrive, Julian is already coming up with lame uncle jokes.  Mazelinka gives him a list of things to get from the palace, mainly to shut him up.

Maz gives you some of her famous soup to keep you calm and ease the pain some more.  Portia rubs your legs and feet, and the two of you chatter excitedly about what the baby’s name will be.

When Julian returns, the entire kitchen staff is with him.  They wanted to give their support and see the baby.

You’re not thrilled about being a spectacle, but these are your friends.  And it’s not like they will all be in the cottage getting a full view of the event.

When it’s time, Portia is at your knees cheering you on and encouraging you.  You damn well bet she wants to deliver her own baby!!

When the baby is born, she is struck mute.  She washes it off and coos at it adoringly.  When she places the child in your arms, she is giving you all the praise in the world for doing such an amazing job.

Lucio

He’s been so PROUD that he’s going to be a father.  He’s been telling every foreign dignitary and every royal that has passed through the palace that the two of you are expecting.

If you thought he spoiled you rotten before, you were not prepared for the spoiling of upcoming father Lucio.  And he has been so supportive of you and your needs; you have wanted for nothing (and he thinks you’re the sexiest you’ve ever been).

Secretly, he’s been a nervous mess.  He doesn’t know if he’ll be a good dad and Morga has not been very supportive of him.  She’s been blatant about how she hopes his child will turn out better than he.

One evening, the two of you sat at the organ in the parlor; he was enthusiastically listening to you practice.  Suddenly, you stopped.

“Umm…Lucio?”  You look between your legs and see that the bench is soaked.

Lucio is on his feet, his face pale as death.  "Is it time?  Oh shit, it’s time, isn’t it!!“  He’s bolting into the hallway bellowing “THE BABY’S COMING!  FUCK SHIT, THE BABY IS COMING!”

The midwives have been awaiting this moment for weeks now, so they are in the parlor with you in an instant.  You are gently ushered into your room where you are made comfortable.  Lucio is pacing back and forth, practically knawing dents into his golden hand.

He gets to be rather irritating to those who are trying to tend to you.  The head midwife sternly tells him to calm down or leave the room.  He isn’t helping you right now.

He sits down in a chair on the other side of the room, tapping his feet anxiously.  His knuckles go white when you really go into labor.

He stands up to watch his child be born…and promptly passes out on the floor.

Some fanning and smelling salts later, he is sitting next to you, staring at his newborn child.  Forgetting everything his mother ever said to him, he takes the baby’s hand and swears that they will grow up happy and loved.

Ko-Fi ☕

[smoldest]

[dhrupad]

Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro, Don’t Cry for Salim the Lame (1989)

[masalafilmsrevival]

Hello! I'm writing a final Essay about Indian parallel cinema or new Indian cinema and I kinda got lost, there are so many movies and themes to explore! since the deadline is pushing me, I don't have much time to explore it deeply, i've watched Charulata and Apu's trilogy but couldn't move forward from there. (all of them mind-blowingly amazing btw) Could you please please please give me some direction on which way should i keep looking/researching or any of your favorite themes that are recurring in 50's-70's Indian "new wave" films ? anything would be really helpful. Thank you in advance, hope you have an amazing day!!

oh my god, i did not see this until now as i typically only see notifications for this blog when i'm on desktop, i'm so sorry!! i really hope this isnt too late to respond. okay so i'm no expert but just some thoughts:

so obviously its a film movement that originated in bengal, a lot of parallel cinema is bengali indian OR bangladeshi, i'm not sure if theres a specific reason you're focusing on indian parallel cinema for your essay but thats something to keep into consideration especially because it spans past the 70s well into the 80s and somewhat 90s so after the independence of bangladesh. and that does impact and put context to the narrative of many films

the themes that are recurring tend to be class consciousness and disillusionment, religious and racial discrimination, casteism, more frank portrayals of the topic of sex, marxist thought, the burden of patriarchal society and expectation, to some extent borderline nihilism in my opinion, essentially the polar opposite of bollywoods pristine glamorized and polished portrayal of life and society that borders on science fiction from how removed from reality it is. in spite of it often.

if you want an outline of some filmmakers, actors, and films that can give you a decent idea of the movement, off the top of my head:

films i can think of that will give you a decent understanding of the tone and themes of the movement at least:

mirch masala

a river called titas and cloud capped star

donkey in a brahmin village

the apu trilogy and charulata as you said as well as devi and shatranj ke khilari. (the coward is also one of my personal favorites but not a necessary watch)

mammo, mandi, and bhumika

dont cry for salim the lame, the strange fate of arvind desai

arth

rat trap

maya darpan

duvidha, nazar, uski roti

quintessential filmmakers to at least get a decently rounded understanding (in my opinion):

saeed akhtar mirza

mani kaul

satyajit ray

ritwik ghatak

shyam benegal

mrinal sen

actors whose work or work during the period of early parallel cinema to look to:

smita patil (!) (probably the most important to look into if youre interested in this movement)

shabana azmi (early work)

madhabi mukherjee

soumitra chatterjee

 naseeruddin shah (early work)

om puri (early work)

all of this is really just what came to mind immediately, i had planned on writing up a comprehensive summary of parallel cinema and what i considered essential viewing and themes and i will do that eventually, but i wanted to answer this as quickly as possible so i could easily be leaving out an insane amount of things. also i primarily used the english translations for these films unless i couldnt remember them. if youre in the usa (and maybe outside of it as well im not sure) MANY of these works or works made by these directors are on youtube or archive.org. i hope this is of some help and eventually i will post more comprehensive detail + scans of books i have about this. hope this helps someone and you have a good day!

[masalafilmsrevival]

Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro/Don’t Cry For Salim, the Lame (1989)

[dhrupad]

Something I didn’t realize before was that the amazing Saeed Akhtar Mirza dedicated his 1989 film Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro (Don’t Cry for Salim the Lame) to the late leftist theatre activist and critic Safdar Hashmi of Jana Natya Manch (JANAM) in the opening credits! In January of the same year Hashmi was killed by members of the Congress Party in the middle of his play.

Safdar Hashmi (12 April 1954-2 January 1989) was the embodiment of those communist values which shaped his craft -- that of cultural activist and street theatre artist. Although he wrote books for children and criticism of the Indian stage, he will be remembered best for his work with Jan Natya Manch (People's Theatre Front) which was formed in 1973 as an outgrowth of the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) and which became closely linked to the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPM] during the 1970s. Janam (which means 'Rebirth' and works as an acronym for the troupe's name) came into its own with the production of Machine to a trade union meeting of over 200,000 workers on 20 November 1978, but went from strength to strength after that with plays on the distress of small peasants (Gaon Se Shahar Tak), on clerical fascism (Hatyare & Apharan Bhaichare Ke), on unemployment (Teen Crore), on violence against women (Aurat) and on inflation (DTC ki Dhandhli). Safdar saw these plays as "the manifestation of protest against the bourgeois concept of theatre, against the bourgeois appropriation of the proscenium theatre."

On 1 January 1989, Safdar and Janam performed one of their plays, Halla Bol (Raise Hell!), to offer solidarity to industrial workers on strike as well as to the CPM election campaign in the hinterland of Delhi. The play was about the government's role in the repression of the workers' organs for the economic struggle. During the show, Mukesh Sharma, supported by the Congress Party, as well as a crowd of Congress supporters arrived at the scene, armed with guns and bamboo poles. They began a confrontation which led to the murder of Safdar; a terrified bourgeoisie enacts its fear, once more, through terror. The shallowness of liberal democracy was made evident by the death of Safdar, which inaugurated a series of important massacres of the Indian left: the police murder of striking CPM industrial workers at a Cement Factory at Dalla on 2 June 1991, the murder of Shankar Guha Niyogi, leader of the Chattisgarh Mukti Morcha, on 28 September 1991 and more recently, the murder of Datta Samant, maverick hero of the 1982 Bombay Textile Strike and leader of Kamgarh Aghadi, on 17 January 1997. Safdar's death led to the formation of the Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust (SAHMAT) which attempts to further progressive values.

via

[dhrupad]

I honestly believe Saeed Akhtar Mirza is a master at representing the urbanscape through the vision and assessments of his lead characters, especially when it comes to those characters who hold historically marginalized identities. Thee of his early and most well known films Arvind Desai ki Ajeeb Dastaan (1978), Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyon Aata Hai? (1980), and Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro (1989) all take place in Mumbai (or Bombay as all these films were before the 1995 Shiv Sena led name change) and have their respective titular characters occupying various positions in society.

Arvind Desai is a straggling & disaffected upper-class, upper-caste Hindu, young businessman from a well-to-do family who spends a lot of time loitering the city in a nice car (Mirza’s trademark passing car shots of Bombay are quite amazing and becomes a repeated motif in many of his films) as he visits various people who occupy different places in the city due to their identities. For example, Alice, his Christian secretary, whose family he visits often, lives in a middle-class household and neighborhood which contrasts vastly with his own posh neighborhood and background. They often go on dates in nice restaurants in the very developed part of the city (Alice herself is a “loiterer”). He also visits his married sister who lives in a very polished yet lonely flat. He’s friends with a Marxist professor who is renting a modest room near the university he works at and the train is also very close to it. We are also shown the night route to even poorer neighborhoods where he visits a sex worker. Akhtar shows us the city’s street performers, the laborers, the working class, the middle class, the neighborhood divisions between different religious groups, the elite world of Bombay, etc. all through the window shield of Arvind’s car which serves as a reminder that his gaze and our own are outsiders. 

On the other hand  Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyon Aata Hai? (1980) & and Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro (1989) have us deep within the personal cities that the respective characters live in. Albert Pinto I would say is a lower-middle class Christian mechanic who, if Arvind was comfortably indifferent, is imbued with a rage that is the culmination of belonging to the oppressed working-class and having an identity that is devalued in an increasingly tepid environment. Albert also internalizes the classism prevalent in a capitalist society which leads him to alienate himself from his fellow workers down to his own neighbors and friends. His girlfriend Stella also works at an office and he visits often her somewhat better-off family and frequently gives her rides where we really see the urbanscape as being a deeply personal part of the lives of the characters, rather than something to gaze at. Akhtar also provides us with the sociopolitical happenings of the city through posters on walls to strikes being shown as encompassing the city until Albert himself can’t ignore or pretend to not understand their legitimacy.

In Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro, we extend from class tensions to the include fears and troubles of marginalized groups. Salim is another young man who is Muslim and belongs to a lower-class family. Here the city and the shots Akhtar takes, show the segregation and increasing marginalization of Muslims in Bombay as communal conflict is promoted by the rise of right-wing Hindu nationalist groups in such a diverse city. Salim is a “small-time goonda” who spends his days with family, hangs out wih his similar friends, and takes up various jobs. Akhtar showcases the Muslim neighborhoods lively and bustling with the day-to-day grind of the people in it with Salim being the guiding figure who weaves in and out of the crowds and neighborhoods.  Akhtar completely fleshes out the various individuals Salim is acquainted with and in turn turns this part of the city into something that doesn’t fall into the 2-dimensional, stereotypical, and villainizing portrayals of Muslims in Bombay in popular media at the time (and even now), in fact I think I read this was his response to Bollywood’s portrayal of the Muslim villain vs. the righteous Hindu man. We see how oppressive the city has become for the lower-class Muslims in these neighborhood as every street has police offers on guard and poverty is inescapable, which is contrasted with the “other” Mumbai that is polished, clean, gentrified, and which accepts only certain identities.

(Tl;dr - Saeed Akhtar Mirza has provided truly some of the most defining work on exploring the identities of people in India who have been historically marginalized members of society through narratives that do not cheapen or simplify their experiences and the attention he pays to the city as a silent narrator of those experiences are amazing)

[dhrupad]

Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro, Don't Cry for Salim the Lame (1989)