This is in continuation of Part I of this post which can be read here.
The Second Story
Babita Singh Reporting is a Hindi crime thriller set in Reva, a small town in Central India.
Babita or Baby, as she is fondly called, is a woman in her thirties. She is ordinary – obese and nothing much to look at.
Posted at Bhopal Police Station as Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) she is not at all the dreaded super cop. The job has been given to her on compassionate grounds after her father’s in-service death. She is an out and out novice. Inexperienced. Untrained. Relegated to desk job. Her immediate superior Sethi is a cunning person with political connection.
At the home front, Babita routinely performs her wifely duties. She cooks, washes clothes and does the daily shopping. Her husband runs a small electronics shop. The couple is looking forward to having a child which is delayed due to Babita’s ongoing treatment for thyroid. Babita is also under pressure to take leave at least for a fortnight to pay a visit to her mother-in-law on the occasion of her sister-in-law’s (husband’s sister) baby shower. But her leave application is perpetually ‘under consideration’ on Sethi’s desk.
However, Babita is a learner too. She educates herself by reading books on police procedurals during her (mostly) free time in the office. She has applied for field posting too. But her boss’s (un) enthusiastic question “what will you be doing in a field job” poorly disguises his derision for her capabilities for the post. Yet, Babita remains persuasive.
In the meantime, there is a media leak in a high profile case. The SHO (Station Head Officer) wants to know who is behind it. Sethi, the actual culprit, persuades Babita to take the blame on his behalf. As per procedure, the punishment for the leak is two weeks’ suspension from the job. Sethi reasons with her that it is equivalent to the leave that she has been asking for which otherwise is never going to get sanctioned. Babita agrees to take the blame and gets suspended.
The couple leaves for Reva. The husband does not know that Babita is under suspension. On reaching, they unexpectedly meet Babita’s childhood buddy, a local artist, at the railway station. He requests Babita to meet him in the evening to discuss something urgent. But Babita is not able to keep that appointment. The next day the man is found stabbed to death. It is when Babita sees the dead body that her curiosity to unearth the truth is piqued.
As Babita doggedly pursues the case her naivety gets exposed at every step. Every question she asks to every suspect is taken as a personal slight. The local police station refuses to share the forensic report with her. Her dead buddy’s childhood sweetheart, who is now married to a formidable police officer, does not want to co-operate with her. Her husband accuses her of giving undue priority to a self initiated investigation at the cost of peace and harmony at the home front. The deceased’s elder brother, a no good , teases her for getting suspended from her job which she has managed to get not on merit but on compassionate grounds. He demeaningly addresses her as Anukampa meaning pitiable. The widowed wife has her own grudges against the dead man for not fulfilling the role of a “good husband” and a “dutiful father”. Also she has her reasons for not telling Babita what exactly happened on that fateful night of the suspected murder.
Babita, the subservient bahu (daughter-in-law) dutifully plays the role of a referee as in a football match, at her in-law’s to maintain the facade of a balance in her marital life. She apologises when she doesn’t need to. She battles with fear as she accosts druggies, chases suspects and in the process endangers her own life. She is also the sponge board for her husband who teeters under the burden of social expectations of being the only son of the family having married late to a girl of his choice but now unable to father a child.
(To he continued)
Part 2, I am much more relate than part 1 since it is more appropriate to my setting! 🙂! when men put down women it is due to ego and nothing else!
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Yes, I get you Ganga. But think of honour killing, dowry death , bonded labour, sati pratha which are still prevalent like swara and then discrimination against women at work place, sexual harassment, deliberate social derogation and expected subservience as the daughter in law are all reflections of the same – societal expectations from women.
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It is sad the dowry death still exists! Just remember US is yet to elect a female President! The male ego is huge. Education is not going to change the attitude, it needs to come from within!
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Babita is such a compelling protagonist precisely because she’s ordinary and underestimated — the contrast between her quiet domestic obligations and her stubborn pursuit of the truth makes her persistence feel earned rather than heroic in a flashy way. Looking forward to seeing how the investigation unfolds.
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Watch it on Amazon Prime. The movie is streaming.
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Thanks for the tip! I’ll definitely check it out on Prime.
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Part II was fascinating and I think the character of Babita is wonderfully relatable. We’ve all been in her predicament at some point in our lives – not fitting in, overwhelmed, exhausted from trying to meet everyone’s expectations. This was a good read. 🙂
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You are right. I have faced some of it in my work-life too.
Thank you for your kind appreciation.
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Babita’s story sounds really intriguing to me, Geeta ji. I’m definitely curious to know what happens next! 😊📚
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The movie is streaming on Amazon Prime. It’s not a flawless narrative but definitely makes the audience think.
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हमारे समाज में न जाने कितनी बबीता हे ,चुप चाप सब सहती हे,ससुराल वालों की उम्मीदों पर पूरा उतरने की कोशिश करती हुवी,office में होने वाले ज़ुल्म को सहती हुई और इस सब पर भारी वो पति जो इसको दस बातें सुनाये.
दुनिया तो चाँद सितारों पर गई पर औरत पर होने वाला ज़ुल्म किसी न किसी रूप में जिंदा हे.
आप ने बबीता और उस से पहले जंजीरें की कहानी लिखी जो पढ़ने वालों से कह रही हे ई-शायद कि उतर जाए तेरे दिल में मेरी बात.
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नुसरत, आपने बड़ी खूबसूरती से दोनों कहानियों का सार बताया। इतनी गहराई से जब कोई पोस्ट पढ़ता है तो लिखना सार्थक हो जाता है।
पुरुष शासित समाज में मर्द ओर औरत दोनों पीड़ित और शोषित हैं। जहाँ औरतों पे कई सामाजिक पहचान व दायित्व थोप दिये जाते हैं उसी तरह पुरुषों पर भी ऐसी जिम्मेदारियां लादी जाती है जिनके लिए वे तैयार नहीं होते हैं। इस विषय पर अगले पोस्ट पे चर्चा करेंगे।
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हम आपके अगले पोस्ट का इंतजार करें गे.
सदा खुश रहें
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आप भी। शुक्रिया नुसरत।
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This one seems to be more interesting than the Pakistani serial.
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I found the Pakistani Serial more interesting. 😂
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Lol. 😂
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Accepting the suspension is a big mistake. Complex and thought-provoking story!
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Thank you very much Hazel. But sometimes wrong decisions are taken for right reasons.
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[…] heartfelt thanks to all my esteemed readers who read Part I and Part II and expressed their views. The discussion was most […]
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Thanks Didi
For liking my post ‘Traffic’🌹 🙏
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You are more than welcome Professor Sahab
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