It was quite a revelation for me, having only seen Aishwarya Rai as a martial arts wizard in "The Lost Legion", to see her submissive downtrodden performance in this film. Tragically, this meek, submissive, totally male dominated female behaviour is still, in the 21stC, considered to be the normal and even honourable role of a dutiful wife or girlfriend in far too many 'cultures'.
It needs to be pointed out to those males how pathetic their insecurity is, that they need to oppress and beat and mistreat their womenfolk in order to assert their masculinity - that is no path to gaining respect and it is shameful that so many women (especially the mothers-in-law who consider their daughters-in-law their slaves) and religious practices are willing participants in this farce. This film marks a valiant attempt to point out the absurdity.
Kiranjit is increasingly mistreated by her husband, whose own failings drive him ever more to drink and other women, using money that should be paying to put food on the plates of his wife and children. He is distraut the first time he lashes out at her, is sorry for pushing her down the stairs when pregnant, but increasingly uses unregretted violence to compensate for his own inadequacy. It would've helped to have shown that the real Kiranjit had tried fleeing the home, but had been dragged back and severely beaten. It would have illustrated her sense of isolation and desperation, with noone to turn to, and shown that violence wasn't her first recourse. Indeed it appears she was only trying to burn his legs so he couldn't chase her so easily, as well as to give him a warning. But in the film he wakes and kicks the candle out of her hands as he turns, thereby igniting himself and the bed. He doesn't resist the severity of his burns.
The religious and humble Kiranjit doesn't command English well enough to defend herself and the legal system conspires to ensure that a woman who sets her husband alight goes down for life.
It is only in prison, inspired and assisted by the marvelous Miranda Richardson character, that Kiranjit learns English, human rights and to stand up for herself - who knew that a prison could be so inspiring (as reform seems to have been abandoned long ago for simple containment)?
And help also comes from outside, led by the Nandita Das character. Between the two influences, Kiranjit's sentence is reconsidered and in the end she walks free. Furthermore, her case led to some landmark changes in British Law.
And yet so much still needs to be done! Near the end of the year Me Too hit the headlines, we have young women in NZ and Costa Rica who died because men wanted to have sex with them and wouldn't take no for an answer!
