Santoshi Ma, a goddess created from a combination of a rough hewn oral tradition and the polish of bollywood became a fully fledged and legitimately revered member of the Hindu Pantheon prayed to sincerely by countless women throughout india and the diaspora.
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Here are a few of the early film posters and promotional images.pic.twitter.com/F1vivuhC1v
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And the way they filmed the movie, it was incredibly deliberate. they used shots and framing techniques so that the goddess would stare at the audience offering Darshan, the way one might see at a temple.
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Darshan means prayer, but it more specifically refers to the act of seeing and being seen by the deity. The eyes are considered powerful, which is why an idol is not complete until the eyes have been carved open, and why spiritual teachers wear shades and sunglasses
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getting direct eye contact with a guru or deity is incredibly auspicious and powerful. consider what it feels like when you're at a concert and the musician stares right at you. think about the twitter/tumblr phrase of Being Seen.
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This film offered the women of india that power, to be Seen by a goddess who was herself a woman, who went through all the troubles and trials they did, who was born, married, and grew up into old age in the film, living a life of satisfaction and fulfillment.
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the value of that is unbelievable. It is entirely unsurprising that the worship of Santoshi took off like a rocket. For the first time, women all over the subcontinent felt Seen.
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And the film heavily implies that the heroine Satyavati was Santoshi Ma herself, allowing the women watching to see their own wish fulfillment heroes journey through their own stand in. Bella from Twilight.
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And thus, the cult of Santoshi Ma was born, and this thread comes to an end. I leave you with this, the traditional end of any religious service, the aarti, from the film Jai Santoshi Maa. Jai Ma! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZ8VKSh3rL0 …
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i hope y'all enjoyed this trek through history. i forgot how long winded i can get, and i'm suddenly sitting by myself in an empty office =)
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Amazing thread. Thanks for taking the time time to share!
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