Begum Jaan is unmoving and brave in her epic stand-off with the authorities in the film, but she is no angel, and far from being a saviour. Played by Vidya Balan in the film, Begum Jaan is a multi-layered character we rarely find in Hindi films that have clear 'good person-bad person' definitions. A character that convinces us that a person in the position of power, regardless of gender, could be dictatorial and exploitative, and still be fiercely protective.

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As for the film directed by Srijit Mukherji, the messages are mixed. 'Khoob ladi mardaani wo toh Jhansi wali Rani thi' (The one who fought so bravely, was Rani of Jhansi). Heavy dialogues can only go so far when the word for brave has 'mard' in it. Gauahar Khan declaring her secondary sexual characters as pieces of meat, fails to hit home exactly at what the movie is trying to say. Are we talking about dehumanization of female bodies, or denying that sexuality is associated with breasts? Once again, dialoguebaazi trumps clarity and Begum Jaan's not-so-subliminal messages go undeciphered.

Begum Jaan's character, on one hand, is a symbol of empowerment when she declares 'My body, My rules'. But on the other hand, she does not shy away from exploiting young girls for her ends, or pressurising an 'employee' to take on a client even though she does not want to, underlining the servitude she expects for 'saving' the women. One of the sex workers puts it bluntly, "Kasayi ki dukaan mein bakre ko pyar se ghaas khilana sirf ghaas khilana hota hai, pyar nahi" (In a butcher's shop, feeding grass to a lamb lovingly, is just feeding, not love), and we find ourselves nodding in agreement, despite the tragic background music trying to make one feel sorry for Begum Jaan.

The weakness of the male characters comes through despite their stern attitudes, their ruthlessness or just plain selfishness. A sex worker's lover functions as her pimp as well, and on being made fun of for expressing his feelings towards her, quickly becomes violent and shoves her to the ground. Hey, but all in the name of love right? The most real reaction from any of the men in the movie was from Vivek Mushran, alleging that Begum tried to seduce him instead of the other way round, and covering up his anger at rejection, by being petty and trying to exact revenge. There's also an eerie hit man played by Chunky Pandey.

As for the shock value of an old woman stripping to protect a woman from harassment, the proof of the pudding was undoubtedly in the audience reaction, with sniggers and giggles from men and women alike, and a comment from the darkness "Arre camera thoda aur niche karne ka na" (Hey, lower the camera a bit more). If defending oneself against rape was so simple, there would soon be an app for hiring wrinkly old women who are supposedly so disgusting that it will turn the aggressors off. If only we understood that rape is never entirely about lust at all, that it is in fact used to exercise power, an instrument to show someone their place (refer to usage of terms like one cricket team 'raped' the other).

All the chinks in the script aside, Begum Jaan is a story of defiance in dire times, a story of not giving up, a story of denying your aggressors the satisfaction of defeating you. It is heartening to see a mainstream Bollywood movie rely on groups of women as its protagonists, and make a statement about living on their own terms, with no regard to what their profession might be.