The Square Circle

An unnamed woman (Kulkarni) is kidnapped into prostitution by a madam and her henchmen, then gang raped by a three louts when she's plucky enough to escape. Salvation is at hand, however, in Pandey, a wandering entertainer. Having found his own identity through dressing as a woman, he puts the girl in men's clothes so they can pass as a 'straight' couple and travel in relative safety back to her home village. The direction is restrained for Bollywood (the dance number has been cut for the UK print), but pretty rough and ready to Western eyes, though once you adjust, it's easy to get swept up in the way every emotion is played to the hilt. The film's thematic daring is exceptional: the exploration of the tension between sexual identity and social circumstane in a staunchly traditional society.