In India, most women oriented films have not been able to portray women in situations that are not “filmy”. One of the very few films to put women in a light that is far away from the mainstream role of mother sister or lover is Deepa Mehta’s “Fire”.

The film is set in the capital city of India, Delhi. The film focuses on the household of a joint family. The family runs a video business and a fast-food restaurant that they run from the ground floor of their two-storey home.

The protagonists of the film are the two daughters-in-law married into the family by marriage. Sita (Nandita Das) is the younger daughter in law, who is newly wed to the younger son Jatin (Javed Jaffrey); and Radha (Shabana Azmi), is the elder daughter in law, married to the elder son Ashok (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) for 15 years.

Both the daughter in laws is unhappy in their marriages. Jatin, neglects Sita and continues to see his Chinese girlfriend. Ashok has chosen to become an ascetic after he discovered that Radha is infertile. Under such scenarios the two women turn to each other to find solace and become lovers. One day their servant tips off, Ashok who discovers them in bed together. After this Sita leaves the home, while Radha wishes to explain matters to Ashok who promises to meet her at the Nizamuddin Dargah by promising her a chance to start a new life together. In the situations following the meeting Radha’s sari catches fire from the kitchen stove and she is abandoned by Ashok in flames. In the end the two women are reunited.

Fire is a film that talks about the freedom for women to choose the way of life as they see fit. it also brings forth the plight of women who have been pushed into loveless marriages in the name of happiness.