Prajakta Koli’s Short Film ‘Khayali Pulao’ Beautifully Depicts The Oft Ignored Dreams Of Small-Town Girls

YouTuber Prajakta Koli’s short film ‘Khayali Pulao’ asks, why are girls’ dreams ignored as khayali pulao even today. Just how long will this go on? 

This post originally appeared on Women’s Web’s Hindi page and is translated by Nishtha Pandey.

‘Lakshman rekhae khichne se pehle khud se puchiye kya aap lakshman hai?” (before making boundaries for people see if you are entitled to do that) Khayali Pulav, a 26-minute short film, starts with these lines and is directed by Manoj Muntashir. In this very short film, every moment you are exposed to the ‘Lakshman Rekha’ that society draws in the lives of girls.

https://t.co/yxxY5CBI56 – do watch the film and let us know how you like it. ❤️

— Prajakta Koli (@iamMostlySane) July 9, 2020

Khayali Pulav – A story of dreams and ambitions 

Khayali Pulao is the story of a Haryanvi teen Asha. Asha is super smart and great in academics while also being interested in the game of handball. She has to work hard and deal with conservative thinkers to get in the handball team at her government school in a small Harayanvi village. 

Does Asha manage to break all the barrier and get onto the team? For that, you ought to watch this amazing short film, right here!

Never miss real stories from India's women.

Register Now

Khayali Pulava asks the right questions

Khayali Pulav is a successful attempt to target the backward thinking of the society. Every dialogue in the film will make you wonder if girls only have to excel in academics? Can’t they excel in extracurricular activities as well? Shouldn’t they be familiar with the internet world of today?

Can’t they still wear jeans, t-shirts and shorts? Are they still not allowed to play sports so they don’t lose their virginity? These questions don’t just end here. And the answers to these questions are given only through quotations on walls of the village by the daughters of the village in the film!

A well written script with amazing performances 

Geeta Agarwal Sharma as Asha’s mother has done a commendable job. She becomes the mother who makes her daughter happy with little efforts to fulfil her dreams.

Yashpal Sharma plays the role of a strict sports teacher who asks his students to work hard and move forward. In the beginning of the film, he asks Asha why the sports news comes on the last page of the newspaper. He, then, answers this question at the very turning point of the film. And with this, the patriarchy in our society was slapped.

What does real freedom mean?

Written and directed by Tarun Dudeja, the film, opens many conservative layers of our society in a short period. It has been directed well and has talked about the issue of taboo and stereotypes directly without beating around the bush. Khayali Pulao gives us the meaning of real freedom. The selection of all the actors and the location of the film makes this film even better.

Manoj Muntashir’s song and voice has added the essence to the film. These songs written in Haryanvi do justice to the film perfectly. Every word talks about the freedom of girls. Because of the songs of this film, you will want to watch it again and again.

Prajakta Koli the gem we deserve 

Prajakta Koli, who plays the lead character, proves that girls can achieve everything on their own. As the biggest female YouTuber in India, she has always believed in empowering girls.

Her song ‘Shameless’ breaks stereotypes of sexism, colourism and ageism. With more than five million subscribers, she has earned her fame not just in the country but worldwide with her YouTube channel.

And this is not the first time Prajakta has raised her voice about girls. Even earlier, Prajakta took several steps towards empowering girls. She has once again proven to be a great role model.

Even in Khayali Pulao, she speaks eloquently with her expressions. Every girl whose dreams were squashed by the society as ‘khayali pulao’ will relate to Asha.

Just take 26 minutes of your day and watch the movie. Maybe by the time it ends, your thoughts will change. 

Picture credits: Still from the short film Khayali Pulao. 

Comments