Reading Notes: Sita Sings the Blues

Sita Sings the Blues, Vimeo

The film Sita Sings the Blues was such an entertaining retelling of the Ramayana. There were elements of humor in it, which made the film more enjoyable to watch. It is told in three different ways. First, there is a group of characters that are independent from the story discussing it, then there's the modern day story with Nina and Dave, and finally the animated Ramayana. The director switches back and forth between the three perspectives, which is great for modernizing the stories. It started with Rama's exile into the jungle, and they discussed Sita's unwavering devotion to Rama. It gives a pretty condensed version of Rama's time in the forest, depicting Rama killing various demon-looking things (the whole time, Sita's singing). When Sita sings and dances in the forest, the film seems similar to Disney princess films where the princesses do the same thing. I like the funny parts, like when Ravana's sister is describing to him how Sita looks, she compares her hands, her eyes, everything to lotus flowers. All this time, a picture of Sita is being populated by random lotus flowers. I also liked the animation style a lot. It looks like they took classic pictures of the Ramayana and then updated them by adding modern accents to the figures. It's also funny because the figures move like a little kid is playing with them, since their legs aren't separate from their bodies when they walk. What's nice about the film is that it continues where my version of the Ramayana left off. My version ended when Rama takes Sita back from Ravana, but the film goes on into the part where Sita is pregnant. 

Sita Sings the Blues, a film by Nina Paley, Link to Reading Guide.