Abstract
This paper argues for the significance of sex work as a figurative and affective reference point in the production of ideas of romance, risk and respectability in public culture through a reading of contemporary Hindi cinema. Reading the films Jab We Met (2007) and Pink (2016), I ask what the sex worker does in the films’ narratives when she herself is absented from it but brought up suggestively. I propose suggestion as a figurative technique deployed in the films to mediate a tension about knowing and identifying sex work as well as to produce an ideology of romance, personhood and injury, critical to assemblages of femininity in these films. This paper argues that such a reading of films that privileges the figuration of sex work through what may otherwise be seen as a minor invocation, presents the opportunity to critically examine naturalised ideas of romance, risk and respectability that find expression in them. It makes the case for the figure of the sex worker as an important node of affective intensification in the larger sphere of public sexuality.
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
