Patriarchy in Assamese Cinema

Cinema is said to be one of the most important and influential social institutions of our time. The Indian film industry, for instance, is the biggest in the world, churning out dozens of films belonging to different genres every year. A good movie is always characterised by a well-written script, right direction, brilliant acting, and use of mind-blowing visual effects whenever necessary. Very often, the protagonist of the films would be essayed by a male artist while the woman would play second fiddle. However, times are changing and women have come to occupy an important place as far as the depictions of such issues are concerned. In this chapter, the study concentrates on the portrayal of women in some of the prominent films of two prolific filmmakers of Assam: Dr Bhabendranath Saikia and Mr Jahnu Barua. Both these filmmakers' cinematic oeuvres portray the plight of women functioning within various incarnations of patriarchy in different historical temporalities.