Shaktima No Veh

Synopsis

The Goddess Shaktima is the most popular goddess in the region of Saurashtra (Western India) known as Jhalavad. This documentary presents the story of Shaktima as performed by the traditional muslim Bhavai troupe led by Amrit Kalu Radatla of Kankavati village.

Shaktima is beloved of all castes and her story is sung, recited, painted and performed in the many towns and villages. Known as the maker of Jhalavad, as the powerful mother and the protector of children, she rides the great lion, is the subduer of the demon Babrabhoot and weds the warrior hero Harpal, himself an incarnation of the God Shiv. Large and small temples to her all over the land celebrate her glory.

The play presents Hindu notions of time: cosmic time, legendary time, historical time and contemporary time. The Goddess is presented in many apsects, as demoness, as queen, as maker of policy, as mother and protector of children, and finally as the earth mother herself. The hero Harpal demonstrates his ability to contest the will of the divine, subdue demonic foes and establish a royal lineage that gives order, security, and stablity to the multicaste and multi-religious society of this land.

Shot in accordance with local norms, the film presents the play in its entirety with the viewer positioned frontally as a Hindu worshipper before a puja shrine. It shows the use of song, prayer, poetry and speech to show the variety of speech acts and to illustrate that Gujarati, Sanskrit and Dingal langauages are locally understood, underlining that even peasants are multilingual in this area.

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Language

English

Year of release

2006

Year of production

2006

Uses

Students of film, theatre, music, religion and anthropology

Subjects

Anthropology; Drama; Religious studies

Keywords

Hinduism; Indian drama; multicultural communities; performing arts; religious belief and practice; time

Online availability

URI

http://www.der.org/films/shaktiMa-no-veh.html

Price

$19.95 (download) $9.95 (day pass)

Delivery

Streamed/Download

Credits

Director

Jayasinhji Jhala

Distribution Formats

Type

DVD

Format

Region 1

Price

$195.00

Availability

Sale

Duration/Size

60 minutes

Year

2006

Distributor

Name

Documentary Educational Resources

Email

docued@der.org

Web

http://der.org/ External site opens in new window

Phone

+1 617 926 0491

Fax

+1 617 926 9519

Address

101 Morse Street
Watertown
MA 02472
USA

Notes

American company with an extensive catalogue of documentary films from around the world in the areas of ethnology, anthropology, world cultures, religion, women’s studies and human rights. Supplied on PAL/NTSC video and multi-region DVD, or download via the Reframe Collection (qv).