Lucy Mangan’s review (27 December) of the BBC adaptation of Black Narcissus made the point that this empire-era tale is very much of its time. As she pointed out, the right ingredients were there, but somehow it didn’t hit the mark. I would like to suggest why.
Somehow, in a post-colonial world, in 2020, we still ended up being told a story entirely from the perspective of the white European characters (in this case, nuns). There was a whole village of indigenous locals that we learned virtually nothing about. Why couldn’t we get to know the family of the baby who was taken ill, so that we could empathise with the resentment they felt towards the interference from a well-meaning Sister? Who spoke up for the local holy man when the nuns called him “godless”? And why wasn’t Kanchi, the orphan girl, portrayed as a more three-dimensional character, so that her sexual exploitation rang true as a universal yet deeply personal theme? Instead, we were asked to view these storylines through a white British lens only. To take a more holistic, decolonised approach would have changed the original story, for sure, but it would also have enriched it beyond imagination.
Rachel Stone
Sheffield
