Med 5 Cw Task 14

How has Race and Gender been seen in British Asian Films, in particular reference to ‘Provoked’?

‘For 10 years I lived a life of beating and degradation’

‘Provoked’ by Jag Mundhra is a hard hitting Asian British film that tells the true story of Kiranjeet Ahuluwalia that had suffered violence and abuse by her husband. This essay will deeply be examining how race and gender is seen to in the British society we are living in and how it has been represented in British Asian films. Such areas will include looking at how the males are seen to be dominant and superior ‘masculinity…a privileged position of power and authority’ Gender Studies, Terms and Debates by Anne Cranny-Francis. This quotation simply explains to us how the males are perceived to have a god-like image and retain both physical and mental powers. In addition to this we will also be focusing on the role of females and how they have been seen in British Asian films. Mainly females have always been seen to be sex symbols and/or seen to be inferior towards the men’s as Laura Mulvey quotes: ‘ Women are simultaneously looked at…with their appearance’ Media, gender and Identity by David Gauntlett. This essay will examine how male dominance still does exist in today’s generation and how females are perceived to be inferior towards the men, due to them being a ‘female’.