The more you’re shoved down, the harder it becomes to keep standing up, let alone shove back at all the invisible forces and visible villains who strive to keep you down. In the words of renowned sociologist Sylvia Webb, patriarchy is a “system of social structure and practices in which men dominate, oppress and exploit women.” In India, these words and the mindsets they perpetuate are an incredibly commonplace reality for too many women--behind almost every case of gender inequality and discrimination in the country. It’s no wonder then that a handful now choose to celebrate women across the nation who break these barriers and make a name for themselves against all odds, especially when faced with physical violence time and time again. Geeta Tandon is one such survivor of gender-based abuse, and today, she stands as an example of determination, strength, courage and inspiration, with a story that is all too common in its beginnings, but a rare happy ending for more reasons than one. As a survivor of relentless physical abuse, today, she stands proud as a mother who made a safe and happy life for herself and her children as one of Bollywood’s only stuntwomen. Not to mention as a voice for all those women across the country who have been oppressed for far too long. This is her story.
When you speak to Geeta, you’d never imagine that this energetic and happy-go-lucky woman has gone through what she has. Inspirational would be an understatement when you hear her story of child marriage, subjugation at the hands her husband with sexual and physical abuse, and almost being duped into becoming a sex worker.
One of four children, she was married off at the tender age of 15, even looking forward to a happy life at her new home. As time went, the violence and abuse continued and worsened; after a really bad beating one night, she went to the cops who advised her to spend a few days at her sister or a relative’s house until her husband cools down--poor advice that is doled out on several occasions which has had terrible, even fatal outcomes in several cases. But Geeta feared for her life and that of her children. She knew that if she stayed on in that house she would die.
Finding her way to her sister’s house for a few days, being cast out from there with her children by her sister’s in-laws, Geeta found temporary shelter in a gurudwara and once again later with the help of a lady she met in a house that had just been constructed but lacked electricity and water. “After 2-3 days she came up to me and asked me what my plans were now. I told her I would find work as a cook in 4-5 houses, I would get about Rs. 4000 out of it, and that would be enough. She began hinting that the man whose house it was, his wife kept very ill and that ‘he had needs,’ so to become his mistress. She said he would even furnish this house so my and my children could continue living here. She said ‘think about your children’s future. But I myself will secure their future, with hard work and not as someone’s mistress,” said Geeta.
Working odd jobs wherever she could find it, she began working in a mess-hall as a cook and befriending neighbours in the locality. Little did she know at the time that these neighbours, who told her they were masseurs, were commercial sex workers. She went with them to their ‘massage parlour’ where she was introduced to the owner. It was only when she overheard a girl talking about a client’s misbehaviour that she caught on to the reality of the situation. Fearing that she may get trapped in the place, she found the first way out of the building and ran.
It was when she became a dancer in a bhangra troupe that she learnt about the possibility of being a stunt-woman. “After my divorce, I really needed work. I didn’t have a degree but I needed to make money. I started dancing in Punjabi weddings and did it in films as well,” Geeta shares with us over the phone. A friend introduced her to the world of stunt performers too, and it was this that ended up being a turning point in her life. “Industry mein daring stunt girls ki kumi thi. Jo cheez kum hoti hai uska value zyada hota hai (the industry lacked daring stunt women, so they had more value). I would take any work that came,” says Geeta. Her first job as a stunt performer took her to Ladakh where she even ended up getting burns on her face, but that didn’t deter her from her new-found passion.
“I cannot lie, I was really scared but I knew I had to power through it,” says Geeta. Without any training or prior experience, she told us that she had a lot of learning opportunities on the job. She was able to put the fear aside but understood that it isn’t for everyone. Her children, however, never saw this fear, all they see is her courage. “I never got the feeling that I don’t have a father, I was never sad because my mother brought us up so well. She’s been both a mother and father,” says her 16-year-old daughter, Harsha.
Geeta has come a long way from being a cook and bhangra dancer to today being one of Bollywood’s only stunt women. She worked her way out of poverty and is the subject of Culture Machine’s latest documentary for their ‘Blush Original’ series, an honest telling of Geeta’s phenomenal journey. “I read an interview Geeta had given for an online site. When I read her story I thought this was just 10 percent of it, and I wanted to make a video of her entire journey and get it out there,” says the maker of the documentary, Joyna Mukherjee. “When I first met her, I called her in, she was just so bubbly and happy. I read her story and I thought I had to be so sensitive, but when I saw her I realised that she’s a badass, she’s out there and she’s accepted herself beautifully with no qualms about talking about her past. It hit me that if she can talk about it so easily after all her experiences, then what are our problems with talking about a situation like this?”
To Joyna, Geeta is tough and a go-getter, and after our conversation with Geeta we couldn’t agree more. “Through the platform of Blush we want women to talk about their stories and get them out there. There are no judgements passed no matter who you are and what you do,” shared Joyna. “Geeta is someone who didn’t give in to prostitution, dealt with it bravely and talks about it openly. Blush Originals is getting stories of real women like Geeta who people don’t know about out there.”
The film will mean different things for different people, and as Joyna says, “the audience when they watch it will feel a lot of different things.” What she took away after filming and editing was “Geeta’s roaring courage--to never give up and always move forward no matter what is coming your way. It’s not just for women. Everyone has something they can take away from her strength.” Having body-doubled for a long list of actresses, including Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor and Konkona Sen, Geeta now aspires to be the industry’s first female action director, and we have no doubt she will get there, either. Here’s to the courage and determination of a young woman who uncompromisingly overcame numerous trials and tribulations without letting it ever break her spirit.
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