Film review: ‘Lipstick Under My Burkha’- Bold and Beautiful

Review By: Mayur Patel

The movie picked interest of many since the release of the trailer. Then happened the big issue when the censor board refused to certify it citing it’s too explicit to be released in India. The makers fought and got the movie released. In between, ‘Lipstick Under My Burkha’ got screened in 35 international film festivals and won 11 awards, not to forget the nomination at the Golden Globe Awards. Because of all the brouhaha, expectations and curiosity were high, and when I watched this most controversial film of this year, the only word that came out of my mouth was- WOW..!   

From time to time, Bollywood has produced movies based on women-centric issues such as Sexual Harassment and Rape--PINK and MOM being the latest examples—but when it comes to ‘sexual rights of women’, there hardly has been anything except Tabu starrer ‘Astitva’.(correct me if there has been any such movie.) So producer Prakash Jha brings to us ‘Lipstick Under My Burkha’, a unique flick with a hardcore theme of women ‘sexual’ liberation.

It’s a story of four women whose rights and aspirations have been denied by the male dominant Indian society. There is a teenager Rihanna (Plabita Borthakur) who wants to become like the American pop-star Miley Cyrus but can’t reach her dreams because of her family’s poor financial condition. There is Leela (Aahana Kumra) who runs a beauty-parlor and seeks an escape from the middleclass mentality of Bhopal but can’t because of her indebted mother. There is shirin (Konkana Sen Sharma) who wants to be a helping hand to her family by working as a salesgirl, but can’t because of an orthodox husband. And there is a 55-year-old widow Bua-ji (Ratna Pathak Shah) who wants to rekindle her life but can’t because of the social pressure of living a limited life for the rest of her life. The Four Women eventually dare to step out of the circle drawn by the society. What happens to them is the rest of ‘Lipstick Under My Burkha’.

Everything about LUMB is believable, be it the characters, the dialogues, the art designing, the costumes and the turn of events. The casting is perfect and all the actors are awesomely natural. While Ratnaji, as an aged woman getting attracted to a young swimming-instructor, gives one of her career-best performances, the other three girls, too, are extremely effective. Ratnaji’s voiceover has been used so nicely throughout the film. Ahana’s character is the boldest, and she did fine justice to the demand of her role. Konkana and Plabita are equally intense. Though a women-oriented movie, we have got some really interesting male characters, too. Of the guys, Vikrant Massey as the tapori-type photographer is the best. Sushant Singh as an orthodox Indian husband, Vaibbhav Tatwawdi as the over-enthusiastic groom and the young man as the swimming instructor (comment his name if you know it) are also fine.

No idea what the censor board has censored, but whatever has been left is also shocking. It’s a treat to watch the Dabang Heroines here. LUMB has got a girl who likes to make her own MMS while having the intimate time with her boyfriend, and an elderly lady who reaches climax with the help of Phone-Sex..! There is a scene in which the angry boy starts leaving the girl in the middle of the ‘encounter’, and the girl says urgently, ‘sex to khatam kar le.’ The same girl unabashedly demands sex from her fiancé before marriage. And believe me, these are just a few of the many OMG scenes. Wonder what the movie would be like prior censoring..!

However explicit the scenes are, they have been picturised fantastically and don’t seem vulgar. The credit goes to the Director Alankrita Shrivastava, who, being a woman, has handled the sexual aspect of a woman so deftly. While ‘Burkha’ represents the Rigorous Rules set by the society for women, ‘Lipstic’ is the symbol of the tiny-little Rebellious Moves that women dare to take in everyday life. The good thing is that the director has not let the film slip into typical Rona-Dhona, and kept the tone light and humorous throughout the film.

LUMB doesn’t boast on sexual content only, it talks about other issues too, such as, a woman must have the right of saying ‘No’ to her husband when he compels her for sex, and a woman must not sacrifice her aspirations for the sake of her family.

Putting the raunchy scenes aside, which is hard to do for they are so engaging, there are scenes which hit hard to one’s sensitivity. I particularly loved the scene when Konkana goes to the beauty-parlor for waxing and talks to Leela about the hidden secrets of her marriage life. The chat between Leela and her mother, who poses nude in an art gallery to earn for her family, and the lines exchanged by the ladies in the climactic scene are also nice.

All in all, ‘Lipstick Under My Burkha’ is a fabulous film which must not be missed by those who are adult, not only physically, but mentally, too. I would give it 4 Lipsticks out of 5.