Para and Protima: A tête-à-tête1

Abstract

This short speculative text explores the relationship between the corporeality of a screenwriter and the materiality of a physical space, including its imaginary losses and effects on women’s creative collaborations. In this text, I draw from the information that Begum Para and Protima Dasgupta were spending a lot of time together in Bombay, living under the same roof, when their creative partnership blossomed and gave the industry a production house, a director-producer, a screen star and more than a few films. Although this text takes the form of creative writing, it is based on historical and archival research.