On Rain...
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
"The usual season for romance [in Hindi film] are spring and the rainy season, which are employed as settings for two different types of romance: spring for love in union and the rainy season for love in separation. These two categories of love are found in Sanskrit theories of aesthetics and throughout Sanskrit literature, where love in union is celebrated in spring, while the category of separation is closely associated with the rainy season...The rainy season is associated with the happy return of the traveller or with his absence, which creates the mode of love in separation. These associations are found not only in Sanskrit literature but throughout many medieval traditions and modern folk songs, while a range of ragas (loosely translated as 'melodies') is specifically linked to the rainy season."
Quote from Cinema India, The Visual Culture of Indian Film by Rachel Dwyer and Divia Patel. pp 60-61.
