Earth's and Symbolism

Earth

Although I wished that the entire film was in English, I totally understood why the Hindi language and English were both spoken in the movie. This was symbolic of status and transformation as with the Pasari’s, who were very distinguishable from the Hindu and Muslims. The film had symbolism throughout. My personal favorite was when Lenny tore off the dolls extremities after witnessing the live act on a human being during the conflict in the streets. Her reaction was symbolic of how the conflict affected everyone from all social classes. The symbolism continued when the doll was being sewed back together. This suggested that Lenny could not let the conflict force her to act as the people committing the awful acts of violence. Lastly, Lenny herself was a symbol of civility for those who could obtain her level of status, but still she to could escape the atrocities she was witnessing.
The film did an excellent job of illustrating what was the demise of many nations, separation in quest of independence. Three groups, the Sikhs, Hindu, and Muslims who were once one, created a civil war between themselves that saw over one million people killed. Additionally, seven million Muslims along with five million Hindus and Sikhs were uprooted from their homes, all for India and Pakistan. As Lenny stated, “A British Empire lasted for 250 years, and for what?”
Again, in this film we witness another nation and its culture influenced by outsiders. Lenny’s dad even jokes about how the British brought syphilis to their country. India like other nations was westernized as evident by upper-classes driving cars, the one character playing with the telephone, Lenny’s dolls having a western appearance, and lastly, Lenny’s family speaking the English language almost exclusively.