
The Criterion: An International Journal in English
Comparative Literature
The Cinematic Gaze and the Disabled Body: A Comparative Study with Select Autobiographical Narratives
Abstract
This research investigates how disability is represented in Indian cinema by analysing movies like Sitaare Zameen Par and Margarita with a Straw. These movies are compared with autobiographical self -representational work of Malini Chib, One Little Finger. Indian films often romanticize, simplify and tries to aestheticize disability. They frame it through sentimental narratives, inspirational tropes and visual stylization which is shaped by the non-disabled gaze. Such portrayals frequently overlook the factors like structural barriers, embodied struggle and the everyday negotiations that shape disabled lives. In contrast, Chib’s memoir foregrounds lived experience, detailing the physical, emotional and social realities of cerebral palsy while asserting narrative agency and political selfhood. Drawing on the Social Model of Disability, Ato Quayson’s concept of aesthetic nervousness and narratives & visual analysis, the study compares how films and autobiographical forms presents and construct disability differently. The findings reveal that cinema tends to contain disability within celebratory or motivational framework, but autobiographical writing offers a more authentic and complex representation. The study also analyses how first-hand stories from disabled people question the oversimplified way films often show disability, and why these insider voices are important for creating more honest and respectful representations.
Keywords
Disability Representation, Aesthetic Nervousness, Social Model of Disability, Autobiographical Self-Representation, Non-Disabled Gaze, Indian Cinema and Disability
How to Cite
Dr Deepika Tiwari, Raheba Rahman, Priyambada, Ganga Kashyap. “The Cinematic Gaze and the Disabled Body: A Comparative Study with Select Autobiographical Narratives.” The Criterion: An International Journal in English, vol. 17, no. 1, Feb. 2026, pp. 617-630. ISSN: 0976-8165.
