Between Tradition and Transgression: A Feminist Rewriting of Vijaydan Detha’s “Duvidha” in the Cinematic Spectacle of Amol Palekar’s Paheli

Abstract

This paper attempts to examine how Amol Palekar’s Paheli adapts Vijaydan Detha’s folktale “Duvidha” from a feminist perspective. Detha, while collecting oral narratives from women in rural Rajasthan, often reworked them. Among his most renowned stories, “Duvidha”, is a reworking of an original tale that he heard from oral tradition and transformed with his distinctive narrative style. This tale is further reimagined in the cinematic world of Amol Palekar’s film Paheli, which offers yet another creative reinterpretation of the original folktale. The film retains the original spirit of the tale while giving it a fantastical twist at the end. Through a close reading of both the original story and the film, this paper considers how Paheli creates a different kind of resolution, where personal desire and emotional connection are given more weight than social expectations. This will also reflect on how each retelling carries the imprint of its context—whether oral, written, or visual—and how such stories continue to evolve across time and form. In tracing this journey from Detha to Palekar, the paper reflects on the space folktales create for both keeping tradition and stepping beyond it.