Haider Response--The Necessity of the Oedipus Complex

Haider Response

            In the film Haider, director Vishal Bhardwaj artfully depicts the Indo-Pakistani conflict over Kashmir immediately following the mass Kashmiri exodus of the mid 1980’s. Haider is a film loosely based on Shakespeare’s Hamlet, with several parallels between the two works’ story arcs and character development. Haider pushes the boundary of Indian cinema in every way: its artful camera angles/directing, its unashamedly accurate depiction of violence and conflict, its thinly veiled sociopolitical commentary. Despite being a non-traditional Bollywood film (and certainly not a traditional masala-film) Haider was a critical and commercial success, receiving general acclaim for its complexity, artistry, and power as a political film.

In my response, I will analyze another controversial aspect of the film: the clear Oedipus complex between Haider and his mother, Ghazala. I will analyze particular scenes where this Oedipus complex is made strikingly clear. It is also interesting to note that the interpretation of an Oedipus complex in Hamlet was first broached in as late as 1890. Indeed, it is not entirely obvious that an Oedipus complex in the play truly exists—scholars in large part agree it is open to interpretation. I will explain why, then, I think Bhardwaj chose to integrate an ostensibly unnecessary theme throughout the movie when it seemingly could only lead to controversy.

In Haider, there are several scenes where the Oedipus complex between Haider and his mother is made apparent. The first such instance is during a flashback, where Haider is shown saying goodbye to his mom and sensually kissing her on the neck. Such a scene could easily be overlooked; however, it recurs throughout the movie. In the wedding scene, where Ghazala weds Khurram, Haider is again seen tenderly kissing his mother on the neck. Such kisses are usually reserved for lovers, so it is telling that Haider kisses his mother in this manner. In the same scene, Haider also tells his mother that her beauty is venomous, a strange thing to say in a platonic relationship.

The scene also shows Ghazala recounting a how Haider was in his childhood years; she says that Haider hated to see his father touch Ghazala, and would even sleep between the two at night to keep them separated. Haider does not deny this; in fact, he confirms his continuing jealousy by asking his mother how he would “tolerate his [uncle] touching her” and lamenting that she chose to remarry so soon. Finally, at the end of the movie, the Oedipus complex is essentially confirmed when Ghazala, right before her death, is shown kissing Haider on the lips.

It is interesting to note that the idea of an Oedipus complex in Hamelt, while certainly a possibility, is simply just that—one interpretation of Hamlet’s character that is not universally held. When I first read and discussed Hamlet in my 12^th grade English class, that interpretation was not even discussed by my teacher, nor picked up by me. Not noticing the Oedipus complex in Hamlet does little to hamper the overall message of the story; similarly, not including the Oedipus complex in Haider would likely not hamper the political commentary or complexity of the film. Why, then, did Bhardwaj make the conscious decision to make this a recurring motif throughout the film? My guess is that Bhardwaj simply wanted to add an extra layer of complexity to a film that was already rich in it. By throwing a wrench in the family dynamics, Bhardwaj is able to simultaneously push the boundaries of what is acceptable to show in Bollywood as well as explore a topic that has not previously been broached in Indian film.