Reproductive trauma, vulnerable mothers, and disenfranchised grief: reflecting on the affective dimensions of surrogacy practice in Indian literary and film narratives

Drawing on an interdisciplinary approach, this study adopts and appropriates critical cultural theories such as Julia Kristeva's abjection and Pierre Bourdieu's social theories to examine the entangled and affective complexities of intending mothers, their reproductive trauma, and disenfranchised grief through the lens of Indian films such as <i>Filhaal</i> (2002) and works of fiction such as <i>Baby Makers: A Story of Indian Surrogacy</i> (2014) and <i>Kartikeya: The Destroyer's Son</i> (2017). Ample research has examined surrogate mothers' precarious position in the context of a surrogacy arrangement. However, not much has been discussed to reflect on the vulnerable status of the intending mothers who resort to surrogacy to fulfil their desire for motherhood. Thus, this study aims to highlight the significance of the selected fictional accounts to unfold the vulnerable and marginalised status of the intending mothers in a patriarchal society like India, where they find acceptance for their womanhood and earn respect and autonomy only through the power of their womb. The paper adopts generic fluidity and intersectionality as a methodology to critically analyse how the selected literature and film narratives can aid in instilling in us sensitivity towards the complex sociocultural positionality of the intending mothers who are normatively represented in popular discourses as immoral and monstrous. Emphasising the significance of the human rights-based approach to sexual and reproductive health, this research advocates for developing a non-discriminatory attitude towards intending mothers whose reproductive decision-making, privacy, and confidentiality related to the use of reproductive technology should be treated with respect and dignity.