also the home of many destitute widows shunned from society. The four women in the movie – Priya, Roop, Deepti and Mala – join forces and try to change the way widows are regarded in Indian society. The title of the movie was inspired by Priya’s observation that the diverse group of women dressed in white looked like a “white rainbow.” The film is a fictional yet realistic portrayal of life in India for women who have lost their husbands.
The main character, Priya, is based on a real life hero, Dr. Mohini Giri, who is helping widows today in India as a prominent women’s rights activist. On the day the movie was shown, Dr. Giri was the guest speaker at the Asia Society.
At the viewing Dr. Giri said passionately, "Women can no longer be subjugated. We have found our voices, we have found our wings. And we are going to fly."
The movie begins with Priya mourning the death of her husband and suffering through a difficult miscarriage. In India, widows are often treated poorly by others and abandoned by their own families because it is believed that they bring bad luck. As a result many widows are shunned and avoided. Even though she is wealthy, Priya suffers from this offensive discrimination and, after pressure from her family, she makes a pilgrimage to Vrindavan.
In Vrindavan she meets Roop, a widow forced to work at the hotel where Priya is staying because she was rejected by her own children. Roop reveals the oppressive and harsh conditions in which the widows often live. They are pressured to wear only white and driven to beg for scraps of food, while many are robbed of their pensions, sexually exploited, or physically brutalized.
Roop shows Priya a monastery run by Pramod Panda. Contrary to the type of treatment expected from a religious organization, at this monastery widows have to sing for eight uninterrupted hours to pay for their food and shelter. Roop introduces Priya to Deepti, who was widowed at fifteen and forced into prostitution by Pramod Panda. Priya and Deepti instantly become friends.
The main characters next meet Mala in the streets of Vrindavan. Mala was set on fire by her mother-in-law because she wanted to leave her husband. The incident left her scarred and disfigured, and she ran away to Vrindavan where she became a servant. Priya, Roop, Deepti and Mala agree to use all their energy to find a way to help widows.
With the help of Dr. Vikram, the brave women open a school and health clinic for widows. Unfortunately Mala dies after being force-fed medicine to kill her fetus. Then Roop passes away as a result of other health conditions. In the face of this adversity, Priya continues her mission. Soon, the clinic is filled with people working to help widows and improve conditions in Vrindavan.
The story detailed in the movie reflects the lives of many widows in India. India’s ancient customs dictate that widows be seen as inauspicious and demoralized. The war with Pakistan, which ended in 1971, left tens of thousands of women without husbands. Many widows could not fend for themselves and were forced to move to Vrindavan where they faced a grim life. Now the city is known as the “City of Widows.”
After watching White Rainbow at the Asia Society there was a panel discussion with Martha Chen, Mohini Giri and Veena Oldenburg. Martha Chen wrote many books on women and widows in India and is the coordinator of Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing, a global research policy network. Veena Oldenburg wrote a book on women’s issues in India and is a history professor at Baruch College and a member of the Social Science Research Council on the Ford Foundation project South Asian Political Economy.
The main speaker was Dr. Mohini Giri, a leader in the women’s movement in India and voice for widows. Giri is a native of India, speaks nine languages and is the daughter-in-law of a former Indian President, Shri V.V. Giri. She established the War Widows Association in 1971, and the Guild of Service a year later that created almost 60 centers for widows to live, learn. and work. She has dedicated her life to helping widows, giving “voice to voiceless.”
Hopefully, the film, directed and written by Dharan Mandrayar, will reveal the plight of widows in India to the world and create a better life for them. Throughout the world women are often treated poorly and denied basic human rights only because of their gender. The only way to overcome the prejudices and discrimination is to expose them and focus attention to the issue. Although the problems of Indian widows may seem like a local issue, success against prejudice anywhere can be a victory for women everywhere to stand up and fight for their dignity.
Copyright 2007 |
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by Sarah from Staten Island, NY 
