Discover the ‘exceptional’ mothers of Bollywood, showcasing their unique and powerful portrayals on screen. Bollywood usually restricts mother characters to sober, self-sacrificing ladies. However, Indian Film History (IFH) has selected a few exceptional and powerful mother characters, such as Nargis in Mother India, Nirupa Roy in Deewaar, and Rakhee in Ram Lakhan.
Ramya Krishnan- The Ideal Mother In Bollywood
The character that tops the list is unarguably the most authoritative character, Queen Sivagami in Baahubali, played effectively by South Indian actress Ramya Krishnan. The beauty of the character is an equal balance that Sivagami maintains as a queen and mother. As a queen, she is astute and valiant, while as a mother, she is poignant and loving. She has no bias for her sons, one her own and the other her stepson. They both face a fair challenge for the throne. Sivagami, as a woman, emphasizes that motherhood means loving and respecting each child, while ruling demands intelligence and courage.
Sridevi – A Dedicated Mother
Sridevi, the most gorgeous and talented actress, played a variety of women-centric roles in her entire career, but her last film, Mom, presented her in the role of an exceptional mother. In the film, she played a stepmom with a difference. Unlike the traditional cruel stepmom, Sridevi in Mom is a caring and loving mother. Her love for her stepdaughter is so compassionate that she kills the rapist who rapes her daughter using her brilliance and her shrewdness. The film also hints at our helpless judicial system and the need to make our country safer for the ladies.
Rekha – The Conventional Mother
Stylish icon and beauty personified Rekha played the role of a mother with a difference. Unlike the tear-shedding mother, she takes the image of Goddess Kali and avenges her killer in Rakesh Roshan‘s hit film Khoon Bhari Maang (1988). In this film, Rekha played a wealthy widow with two children. However, she is conned by a handsome and dashing youth. He dupes her by wedding her, and later he cunningly kills her by throwing her in a lake filled with crocodiles. Later he tries to inherit her wealth, but Rekha is rescued, and how she takes revenge and takes care of her children forms an intense climax. Rekha’s dialogue in the film -“Tune Maryam ka daaman aur Sita ki gaud dekhi hai… Durga aur Kali ka roop nahi dekha… encapsulates the other side of a mother who can go wild to protect her children.
Vidya Balan is indeed one of the best actresses of Bollywood. She proved her versatility in many films like The Dirty Picture, Parineeta, Paa, etc. She gave another power-packed performance in Kahaani 2 (2017). In this film she played a mother who faces a number of hurdles to give a new life to her paralyzed teenage daughter. The beauty of Vidya Balan’s role in the film is that her daughter is adopted, yet she fights all out to make her life a bed of roses.
Few other films that treated mother’s role differently include Jaya Prada in Maa, Zohra Sehgal in Cheeni Kum, Ratna Pathak Shah in Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, Tabu in Haider, Rekha in Koi Mil Gaya, etc.
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