Reading Notes: Sita Sings The Blues

Sita Sings the Blues (Part A)

The Poster for Sita Sings the Blues
Source: Blogspot

General Opinions

I LOVE this movie so far. I was really not planning on liking it, and I thought it was going to drag, but I was completely wrong. I found it super funny and easy to follow along and it even connected gaps I had when I read Narayan's version. Having the modern day commentators there was like having my own personal reading guide along the way and having most of the stories be depicted through song allowed for the movie to show the most important battles without being boring. I think the artwork is absolutely phenomenal and a large part of why I was attracted to the movie to begin with. I really like that I read the story before and am fairly familiar with the Ramayana because it adds a personal touch to the movie. I am excited for Part B! 

Characters

I think I like Sita and Rama much more in Narayan's version of Ramayana. In this version, Sita comes off as so unbelievable insecure and clingy it makes me cringe watching most her parts. For instance, after Rama saves her he says he doesn't want her anymore and basically only saved her to prove that he could. Instead of walking away from him and living her own life with someone who will appreciate her and everything she has been through, this woman goes through literal fire to prove that she is still worthy. Personally, I think this sends a terrible message to women that they are only worth as much as a man tells them they are and being single is the worst thing a woman could be. I would love to look into how this story affected young women growing up in India. If constantly being fed stories that depicted the importance of marriage and virginity influenced the way these girls were socialized. I might have to include this in my project since the sociologist in me is starting to get really excited!

Bibliography: Nina Paley's Sita Sings the Blues, 2008