Yes Madame, Sir (Megan Doneman, 2008): Australia/India

Reviewed by Anna Bewe. Viewed at the Santa Barbara Film Festival.

Yes Madame, Sir is a convincing documentary about the legendary Kiran Bedi who is struggling as the first woman in the Indian Police Force. The film is narrated by the Academy award winning actress Helen Mirren, and the film is directed by Megan Doneman, who is an editor of many blockbuster movies such as Mission Impossible II and the Lord of the Rings.  As I expected, the editing in the film is of high quality.

Yes Madame, Sir is a documentary about the strong woman Kiran Bedi. She is the first female police officer in India, and her career hasn’t been easy. The documentary shows her reformation of the notorious Tihar jail, where she established a new practice of rehabilitating prisoners with yoga and meditation, also giving the prisoners a opportunity to have their voices heard through the use of a suggestion box. She also struggled with the Indian Police Service, where she wanted to become a manager, but the Police Service did everything it could to get rid of her by giving her challenges that they thought she couldn’t meet.  However, nothing was a too big challenge for Kiran.

The documentary also includes interviews with people who worked with Kiran and provides their views of her her, which were various: some thought positively of her and some just thought that she wanted to be in the center of everything. The documentary also shows Kiran at home, interacting with her daughter and her sweet dad, who both support Kiran greatly. In these moments, we are able to see a more relaxed and fun Kiran, as she makes jokes and teases her daughter. Later she is offered work at the UN’s head quarter in USA. This film shows her different challenges and struggles throughout her career, and we hear different opinions about this strong woman, Kiran Bedhi.

This was a good documentary that provided many sides to its subject. I didn’t know much about Kiran Bedhi before I saw this documentary, so the film gave me a good picture about this fascinating woman. It was good that the film includes scenes from her challenges at work, but also shows her as a mother, daughter and a wife, which gave a broader view of her as a person. The documentary is shot over a period of six years and Megan Doneman had succeeded in telling an interesting story about Kiran’s struggles to become a manager of the Indian Police Service. This was an incredible documentary and is well worth seeing.