Mother’s Day: How far has the reel mother come?

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day. We bring you here the iconic Lata Mangeshkar reminiscing about that one influence in her life that she could never outgrow. Several other iconic actresses too weigh in on the changing shades of the mother in Hindi cinema, and how she has emerged from behind the curtain to create a narrative around her in meaningful films. Has she been successful?

Lata Mangeshkar: “My mother was both a mother and a father to me. My mother is my greatest influence. My mother became a widow at a very young age. She was five years younger to my father. My father was only 41 when he passed away. From then onwards, my mother took full responsibility of my brother and my sisters. I started working five months after my father passed away. My first earning was 300 rupees for three months’ work. My mother taught me everything I know about conducting myself in public. She took care of us like birds in a nest. We had just one faithful servant to help mother. My brother had trouble with his leg. I’d leave early in the morning and my mother would look after everything at home. She always told me to follow my father’s example in singing. She taught us the right values. Till she passed away, we all looked towards her for support. We were very scared of her -- not that she had a temper or hit us. But we could never say no to her. She was a wonderful cook and taught us all how to cook. My mother gave me the strength to go out in the world and be a working girl at an age when other girls played with dolls. She always said, “Never cry over the fact that you’ve to work at an age when you should play.” I remember our sleeping arrangement. Mom used to be in the middle. My brother Hridayanath and youngest sister Usha used to be on both sides of her. I got the corner of the bed. She looked after all of us. She passed away in 1995 and I miss her terribly. Her room was right in front of mine. And even today, I keep forgetting she’s no longer there. If I need to look up any detail about my father’s career, I still head for her room forgetting she’s gone. Just last night when I was unwell I wanted the comfort of my mother’s lap. Then I remembered she was no more.”

Zarina Wahab: "I lately played Shah Rukh Khan's and Hrithik Roshan's mother in My Name Is Khan and Agneepath, respectively. I had more to do than mothers do in films these days. Screen mothers have been completely marginalised. Nowadays, children don't need their mothers to guide them beyond a point. And if the mother tries to make her presence felt the children say, 'Mom, give us space'. Movies are doing just that. They are letting mothers be. There isn't much for them to do. Earlier there used to be a strong emotional track with mothers. Nowadays, moms are too cool, if they're there at all. In Shristi Behl's I Me Aur Main and Anant Mahadevan's Dil Maange More, I played John Abraham and Shahid Kapoor's mother. It's a different kind of mother-son equation now. When she visits her son, he feels crowded. Moms are no longer indispensable."

Lilette Dubey: "There's a sea change in the way mothers are portrayed today. We at least recognise to some extent that a mother is an individual with her own needs and identity. They are no longer the long-suffering martyrs. They are more real today. The mother I played in Gadar was a far cry from Monsoon Wedding or even My Brother Nikhil. But they are nonetheless mothers with their own strong individual characters."