The movie Iratta left us all shaken for various reasons. The movie’s ending left us feeling shocked, bewildered and uncomfortable. Issues like childhood trauma, sexual abuse, separated parents and more are explored directly and subtly in the movie.
Psychologists like Carl Jung and Erik Erikson have focussed on how the first few years of a child’s life help shape their attitude and ideals about the world around them. The child becomes desensitised if this period is filled with hardships, abuse and pain. They become troubled adults with multiple unresolved childhood conflicts and mental issues.
Iratta explores the Nature vs Nurture debate which depicts that even if the twins are brought up in different situations or “natures”, they can grow up to become different individuals. Pramod and Vinod though twins, choose two different ways of life, both professionally and attitude-wise. However, childhood trauma has affected the twins and their adult loves in different ways.
Iratta is a movie you can’t miss. In this article, we analyse the characters’ childhood trauma through the following markers:
(SPOILERS AHEAD!)
Abuse
In Iratta, the twins grow up seeing their father abuse their mother physically and sexually. The twins also face physical abuse as they are dragged and thrown about by their father. They cower in fear with their mother. Vinod, the twin who the father chooses, sits on the verandah watching his father sexually abuse girls as well as mistreat him. This leads him to watch his father’s death unflinchingly. This childhood trauma lays the basis for his treatment and eventual rape of his niece, and it’s knowledge which fills him with intense guilt, leading to suicide. The twin with the mother, Pramod, doesn’t fare very well as he mistreats his wife just like his mother had been mistreated. The duo also deal with alcohol and substance abuse but cannot change their ways.
Neglect
The children are neglected by their parents, who constantly conflict with each other. Pramod’s life is not depicted much in the movie, but we know that Vinod faces intense neglect as his parents have no time for him. This neglect is heightened after his father’s death, as he is clueless about his future. The pain of neglect from a primary caregiver instils fear and hate in a child’s heart which grows with them as they become adults. The twin projects this neglect onto his job, neglecting everything in his life. Yet, he fosters a soft spot for children because he may have wished to be cared for similarly while younger. This neglect has further led to Vinod’s attention-seeking behaviour, picking brawls and following corrupt ways without fear of reprimands. Pramod neglects his duty as a husband and father and cannot take up that responsibility.
Abandonment
The pain of abandonment on Vinod’s face when his mother leaves the house with Pramod shapes the rest of his life. The fear of abandonment leaves him broken enough to be unable to forge a relationship with any woman beyond a night. However, his relationship with Malini is an exception because he identifies himself and his pain with Malini, who was abused and abandoned similarly. Insecurities like he’s not good enough or worthy to be chosen by his mother fill him in with a drive to prove himself, and he ultimately does so when he rapes the minor abandoned girl in the hotel. On the other hand, Pramod fears abandonment and abandons his family before they can abandon him, distancing himself from the situation.
Resentment
Vinod’s resentment towards his mother and brother is depicted in various instances in Iratta. He sneers at this resentment and confuses it for attention, forming the basis of his troubled relationships with his colleagues, who also begin to resent him for his behaviour and conduct. Resentment begins to drive his life so much that when the young girl tries to attack him, his resentment rises into anger which he expresses by raping her. This resentment he feels toward himself and the guilt of his actions ultimately leads him to take his own life. Pramod resents family life and has no problem letting his wife and young child leave home. Vinod’s resentment of structure causes him to take his job for granted and abuse his Power as a police.
Projection
The pain and struggle of their childhood days are projected onto those in their lives during their adult years. Vinod bears a strong sense of hate towards men who are fathers or those men who try to reprimand him. He goes on into a physical fight with them, considering them as father figures. The same aggressiveness towards them is lightened into soft care and comfort in the presence of Malini, who becomes a mother figure to him, thus unable to consummate with her. When his niece tries attacking him, too, he attacks back in the only way he has learnt from his father – by projecting and exerting sexual and physical violence. On the other hand, Pramod projects the treatment of indifference towards his wife and his inability to maintain his family. Pramod’s anger towards his parents, who separated the twins, is projected onto his wife and child. The twins’ hate, aggressiveness and anger are projected onto those around them, trapping them in an infinite loop.
Transgenerational Trauma
This type of trauma crosses generations, leads to a single generation’s trauma, and passes on. Though the parents’ childhood is not depicted, it is fair to assume that their father faced similar treatment. He carried on that trauma to his family and his children. The then-traumatized twins carry it on in their life, and Pramod, who grew up without a father, passes on this trauma to his child, who also grows up without a father. The sexual abuse faced by the mother of the twins is then faced by her granddaughter when her uncle rapes her. The pain of abandonment and neglected children bound by childhood trauma stared before them and extends ahead of them.
Must Read: Ways To Prevent Transgenerational Trauma From Affecting Your Child
Childhood trauma manifests itself in various ways, and the suicide of Vinod will leave his twin to deal with a whole other trauma of losing his brother. The adverse psychological experiences leave the children in a shell of their feelings during adulthood. The twins’ dangerous, violent, and threatening life bind them to their fear and chaotic lifestyle. And that’s beautifully portrayed in Iratta.
