Just another feminist movie showing how women are treated unequally in society? No, it's not just that. If you feel that Mrs. is like any other feminist movie, then you are wrong.
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| Source - Zee5 |
About the Movie
“Mrs.” is an official Hindi remake of Malayalam movie “The Great Indian Kitchen”(2021), released on February 7, 2025 on the OTT platform Zee5. Directed by Arati Kadav, this movie shows how drastically a woman's life changes after marriage. She is controlled by the misogynistic society and she has to navigate regressive patriarchal traditions.
Major Plotline of the Movie
A woman is welcomed with beautiful ceremonies during the wedding but once the celebrations are over, she is handed over the household responsibilities and her life gets limited to kitchen and cleaning. The same happens with the movie’s protagonist Richa, starring Sanya Malhotra. She is busy with household chores throughout the day. Forget about any help from any men of the house, they don't even have consideration for their work. Even basic things like taking out shoes and clothes are also done by women in the house.
Direction and Acting
Arati Kadav has done a commendable job showing us the reality of the Indian household by keeping it real and authentic. The dialogues are simple yet powerful. The difference between “Beta” and “Beti” makes us think how subtly gender discrimination prevails in society. All the actors have done a great role especially, Sanya Malhotra as Richa, who showed how a woman feels in a marriage.
Patriarchal Structures around a Woman
There is no particular Villain in the movie but the system is the main Villain. There are mulitple characters in the movie who are flag holders of patriarchy. Like men of the house showing their kitchen intelligence and superiority by telling the difference between pulao and biryani, roti and phulka, asking for chatni from a silbatta and not a mixer grinder. Her cousin brother-in-law telling her how to make perfect shikanji. Even a relative aunty reminiding her not to eat while cooking which she puts in words as “chugne ki aadat”.
Controlling Women and Making them Adjust
Women are controlled and made to adjust as per men. Richa’s husband Diwakar , even after being a gynaecologist, doesn't let her enter the kitchen while she is on her periods. When she says that she wants to do a job, he mocks her passion for dancing and asks “What can you teach?”. Her father in law also does not allow her to work and gives an example of her mother-in-law.
A woman has to always adjust according to what others want out of her. Her father-in-law takes pride in how his wife also has a PhD but she has always given priority to family and devoted full time to it. Richa’s own mother tells her to compromise and adjust according to them. Even when she visits her parents, her mother tells her to bring water for her brother.
The Cycle of Patriarchy
Her mother and mother-in-law serve as metaphors of women in the movie whose minds are conditioned to serve men and sacrifice their own dreams. This is what society taught them and they are teaching their daughters the same. This cycle of patriarchy continues generation after generation; until a woman tries to break this chain and sets out to pursue her dreams.
This cycle can be noticed in yet another example from the movie where Diwakar married another woman and she is now busy with household chores. This shows how women who are not able to voice out their opinion and pursue their dreams, fall victims to this vicious cycle.
Emotional Violence
Violence doesn't necessarily need to be abusive and physical, but it's emotions which get hurt the most. The same Diwakar who found it pleasing that Richa smells of Kitchen and shared his tea with her initially, now he doesn't have time for it and says with disgust ,”Kitchen ka baas aata hai tumse”. He is emotionally unavailable at all times, doesn't in any way help her and has sex with her even when she doesn't want to.
He completely disregards her when she asks “what about my desires”. As a woman is not supposed to have desires, she has to serve what her husband wants.
Where Lies the Main Problem?
The problem lies in the continuous cycle which has given Men the idea that they are the masters of the house who are running the family, and Women are servants as per their command. This patriarchal notion has established a very base in society for generations and the upcoming generations also continue doing the same believing it is their “Duty” to comply with this.
Viewers Response Towards the Movie
In addition to its enormous audience, Mrs. has become the most searched-for film, receiving a 4.6/5 Google user rating and a 7.3 IMDb score. Audiences have responded strongly to the film's gripping story, which has generated a lot of praise and discussions on social media.
Prominent actors like Ali Fazal, Wamiqa Gabbi, Radhika Madan, Pulkit Samrat, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Saqib Saleem, Tillotama Shome, Akshay Oberoi, and Amol Parashar, as well as filmmakers Vikramaditya Motwane, Vasan Bala, Sonam Nair, and Sumit Purohit, have all praised the movie.
Final Verdict
Mrs., a bold female led and female directed narrative is a must watch for every individual. You have to see how subtly we are bearers of this patriarchy and how this chain keeps continuing. The movie shows the reality where the environment at home feels like men are masters while women are their servants. If we continue to ignore this situation, we are never going to break free of this vicious chain and this cycle of discrimination will keep on continuing.
Written By - Diya Sehrawat
Disclaimer - This article has been authored exclusively by the writer and is being presented on Eat My News, which serves as a platform for the community to voice their perspectives. As an entity, Eat My News cannot be held liable for the content or its accuracy. The views expressed in this article solely pertain to the author or writer. For further queries about the article or its content you can contact on this email address - diyasehrawat03@gmail.com
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