Here’s a nice evening read that looks at Smita Patil’s contributions to ‘parallel cinema’ and Bollywood. A retrospective on her work and influence.
What today’s women can learn from Smita Patil’s roles in parallel cinema
When mainstream cinema of the 1970s and 1980s was unwilling to place a woman at the heart of the story, she transformed into an irresistible magnetic presence that every actor strives hard for. She was a decorative character, a victim to be avenged by a male hero, or the quintessential mother making enormous sacrifices for the ‘ladla beta’… Smita Patil was the living antithesis.
Portraying strong women characters, she ruled parallel cinema with commanding performances. In any milieu, in any part of the country, her roles essayed the reality of societal norms.
The Perpendicular Cinema 