Lajja is a 2001 Hindi film directed by Rajkumar Santoshi. The film is based on the plight of women in India. The movie recounts the story of four women, and stars some of the best known names in Hindi cinema, including Rekha, Madhuri Dixit, Manisha Koirala, Mahima Chaudhry, Jackie Shroff, Anil Kapoor, Samir Soni and Ajay Devgan. Urmila Matondkar and Sonali Bendre perform item numbers.[1]
The movie satirizes the honor with which women are placed in society and the restrictions on them. The fact that the four women's names (Maithali, Janaki, Ramdulhari, and Vaidehi) are all versions of Sita, the ideal Hindu woman's name, is a message in itself. Manisha Koirala is the protagonist of this film.
Rekha and Madhuri Dixit were nominated for the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award,[4] while Madhuri Dixit won the Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Female for her performance.
Plot
Vaidehi lives with her husband Raghu. On the outside, she lives a sophisticated life, but behind closed doors, her husband is abusive and has extramarital affairs. When she takes a stand for herself, she is banished from the household. She goes back to her parents' house in but they too reject her. Vaidehi soon finds out that she is pregnant.
Raghu gets into a car accident, which results in him being unable to father a child. When he discovers that Vaidehi is pregnant, he calls her, faking remorse, and asks for her to return. Vaidehi agrees, thinking Raghu has amended himself. Raghu and his father plot for the child to become their heir and if Vaidehi intervenes, she will be killed. Meanwhile,Vaidehi is informed by a friend about Raghu's true intentions, and so,she escapes from his henchmen. She is helped by Raju, a petty, but, kindhearted thief. He hears Vaidehi's story and gives her money from his heist to help. To hide from Raghu and his henchmen, Vaidehi gatecrashes a wedding procession.
At the wedding, she meets Maithili, a bride-to-be from a middle-class family. Maithili is marrying a man who hails from a rich background. The two women witness Maithili's father being hassled by demands for an opulent wedding,which he cannot afford, and is forced to pay dowry. Vaidehi tries to convince Raju to give his money from the heist. He initially refuses but changing his mind, he returns to give his heist money to Vaidehi. The groom's friend attempts rape on Mythili. Having tolerated enough, she degrades the groom's family and they flee from the wedding.
Meanwhile, Vaidehi is found by Raghu, and forced into going with him. On the way, they encounter a protest mob. Raghu gets out of the car, which gives Vaidehi the chance to escape. She arrives in Haripur, a small town, where she meets Janki, a theatre actress in love with her colleague. Janki is pregnant, but not married. She doesn't care for society's norms. She is lusted after by the theatre director, Puroshottam, an older man who keeps his wife, Lata, confined to their house. Puroshottam talks against janaki to her lover, which creates a rift between them. Janki is outraged messes up a scene, during a performance of the Ramayan. This leads to an outcry from the audience, and she is assaulted by the audience, leading her to have a miscarriage. Vaidehi confronts Puroshottam, who threatens to call her husband. However, Lata intervenes and takes Vaidehi to the station and puts her on a train.
The train is robbed by bandits but the passengers are saved by Bhulva, a local dacoit. Vaidehi faints at the sight of blood, and Bulwa takes her to the local midwife, Ramdulaari. Ramdulaari bravely opposes the village leaders Virendra and Gajendra who exploit innocent women, young and old. When her educated son, who is trying to educate the villagers against the wishes of virendra and gajendra, falls in love with Gajendra's daughter, all hell breaks loose. Gajendra, slyly, locks Ramdulaari in her house and sets out to find her son. When her son runs away with Sushma, Virendra and Gajendra, along with their goons, rape Ramdulaari and burn her alive. In a fit of rage, Bhulva and his goons, kill virendra and his goons. Vaidehi escapes with Sushma and Ramdulaari's son.
Gajendra is making a move into politics, so when he is applauded by the local authorities, Vaidehi intervenes and exposes Gajendra as a rapist and fraud through a heart-wrenching speech, which drives all the woman in the audience to assault Gajendra, who is later killed by Bhulva. the speech changes Raghu's attitude towards Vaidehi and he decides to mend his ways. The two return to New York as a proper married couple. Vaidehi gives birth to a daughter who is named Ramdulaari. She meets Raju again, who is now a taxi driver and married to Maithili. She invites him to a charity dance show with Janki in the main role, wherein, all the money from her shows goes to fund women's organizations in India.
