Moral Dilemmas of an Immoral Nation: Gender, Sexuality, and Journalism in Page 3
Radhika Parameswaran
Abstract
Venturing into the uncharted territory of journalism�s representations in India, this paper examines portrayals of the soft news beat�s woman reporter in Madhur Bhandarkar�s award-winning 2005 film Page 3: The Inside Story. The paper begins by situating the film within the economic contexts of Indian journalism�s aggressive embrace of market models of news readership and the rise of the multiplex genre in the Indian film industry. Taking a deconstructive approach that draws from postcolonial and feminist studies, as well as research on journalism�s images in popular culture in the United States, the paper then analyzes the symbolic meanings of gender, nation, journalism, and sexuality that arise in relation to reporter Madhavi Sharma�s personal and professional identities. Although Page 3 offers a compelling critique of both upwardly mobile readers� shallow consumerism and the Indian newspaper industry�s misguided market priorities, its patriarchal subtext of middle class morality, female sexuality, and male superiority undermines its progressive potential.
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