Towards mature manhood: the representation of neoliberal boyhood in Bollywood cinema

Abstract

In India, social, economic and cultural barriers shape boyhood as a precursor to masculine authority in a traditional patriarchal sense. This paper examines how the radicalness of rebellious boyhood challenges the dominant discourses of traditional masculinity and constructs a reconfigured masculine ideal in a world defined by the pressures of modern values. Through a close textual analysis of the 2010 Hindi film Udaan, this article explores the tensions between societal norms and individual aspirations in the construction of Indian boyhood. The film portrays boyhood as a rebellious category that attempts to subvert traditional Indian patriarchal notions of manhood and family structure, replacing them with a new masculine ideal aligned with modern concepts of freedom, self-reliance, and cooperative engagement. Interpreted within the context of neoliberalism in India, the paper illustrates how the boy protagonist detaches himself from conventional patriarchal constraints and rebuilds his identity, gaining agency in a liberal society that values freedom and choice. The exclusion or devaluation of female characters in the film further suggests that while neoliberal boyhood reconfigures traditional patriarchal masculinity, it simultaneously perpetuates male freedom to perform heteronormative identities within a transformed patriarchal framework.