A FILM / MOVIE I HAVE RECENTLY ENJOYED
Of all the emotions the matter relating to the heart is perhaps the most potent. Unarguably this is also the most complex of all feelings. Love may be a four letter word but reverberations of this can transcend age and time. Since the chronicling of time began, love has featured prominently in historical records. Litterateurs, historians, poets have eulogised it, sang hymns about it and damned its inexplicable clutch. This is the feeling that launched a thousand ships against Troy, this is the feeling that humbled a powerful man like Caesar and this is again the emotion that compelled Mughal emperor Shahjahan to create the Taj Mahal, one of the seven wonders of the medieval ages. Treated by the pen of the writer this definition - defying emotion has given us Romeo and Juliet, Shiri and Farhad.
Most of us must be familiar with the famous novel by Sarat Chandra Chattapadhay based on which the film ‘Devdas’ has been made. I have recently had the scope of enjoying the film. Of course, the film does not conform exactly to the novel. But that again is only natural as film and literature are two different mediums and the director has certain independence.
In this film, set somewhere in the middle of the previous century, Devdas is the son of an affluent ‘zamindar’. Wealth and aristocracy dominates his existence. He falls in love with Parbati or Paru, but at that stage it is merely a sort of calf love, on his side and on Paru’s, it is her whole existence. However, the reverie is broken when his elders, sent Devdas to London for education. When Devdas returned, Paru’s mother (Kiron Kher) proposed Devdas and Paru’s marriage. But it was met with condescension. But by that time Devdas realised he was deeply in love with Paru.
Heart-broken Paru entered into a chaste marriage with a wealthy, much older man, Zamindar Bhuvan (Vijayendra Ghatge), while a shattered Devdas took refuge in anguish, alcohol and Chandramukhi, introduced to him by a profligate friend Chunilal, a stunning courtesan.
Devdas, as shown in the film and also in the novel, was intensely loved by two women, who were never meant to be his. One, whom he could never love and the other, whom he could never stop loving.
However, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the director is a master craftsman and has a way with telling a story through celluloid. Also the magnificent set, the superb locale and the grandiose look all goes to make the film a great one to watch.
Films, great ones at that, are defined by certain scenes. There are fiery confrontations and, in particular, the scene where Parbati confronts Chandramukhi is enthralling.
However, one can find no fault with the choice of Ashwariya Roy. She really steals the limelight. The former beauty pageant winner is easily the best in the film, when it comes to acting. Her doe eyes and long hair are exploited to full effect, but she also seems the most committed to the story and creates the most believable character.
Ismail Darbar’s music goes well with the mood of the film. Nusrat Badr’s lyrics are lyrical gems. The film is colourful, to say the least, with some stunning photography and beautifully choreographed song and dance pieces.
“Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought”- to poet Shelly, the “sweetest” feeling is synonymous of the “saddest” feeling. The power of intense grief is always stronger than that of deep joy. The same is the case with fiction as well as real life. Yes, towards many, love is sweet, being in love is sweeter and the pain derived from it is the sweetest feeling. Any extremely pathetic or tragic tale touches many hearts with extraordinary feelings that are cathartic and unique in every sense. That is why Sarat Chandra’s Devdas, even today, has not lost its appeal to the people of this millennium. And in the film I have found that the passionate and tragic love stories remain ever new. The film has indeed, profoundly impressed upon my mind.
Certainly, love is an indispensable part of human life, a driving force with magical effect, and, above all, the promise to live with love in order to overcome all hindrances for happiness and peace. Many lovers made history on Earth, became immortal for their epoch making passion or for their heavenly wealth of soul-love. Romantic love begins with a mingled feeling of thrill and pain. So, loving hearts can feel all love’s beauth, can introduce us to the heavenly pleasure of romantic agony. That state of mind is the most desired element which we find in Devdas.
Psychologically, human beings tend, and love, to experience incisive heartache, pain, and shock because there is lasting pleasure. So, like other romantic tragedies, the story of the Bangla classic novel Devdas by Sarat Chandra Chattapadhay as well as the film has always won the admiration of the viewers. It is a story about a doomed lover and his two women. Devdas appears as a tragic hero who meets his death due to his physical ailment caused by his unrequited love.
Sarat Chandra’s Devdas has been filmed several times in this region including the latest Bangla as well as Hindi version both released very recently. In fact, not only in Bangla and Hindi, it has also been filmed in Urdu and Telegu. K.L.Saigal, Prometheus movie versions of Devdas. It was first filmed in 1929. Later K. L. Saigal filmed the classic, Devdas in 1935 and it was directed by P C Barua. Later Barua himself played the role of Devdas in the Bangla version. And, in 1955 another Hindi version of Devdas was released with Dilip Kumar in the role of Devdas a role that won him the Filmfare Award for best acting. The recent Hindi Devdas presentation is a glamorous and exquisite version.
Sarat Chandra writing in novel, Devdas, first in 1901 could not come up with any conclusion. The book was finally published .Noted a critic, “Technically, the film is a superior product. The shot execution, the sound quality and the cinematography bowl; your mind as you embark on a journey that promises the world as far as entertainment is concerned.”
However, personally speaking, the scenes between Devdas and Paru did not feel really magical compared with the early Devdas films. The scenes involving Pramathesh Barua and Jamuna Sinha and Dilip Kumar and Shuchitra Sen were pure magic on screen. But then again the audience seems to have accepted the present duo as perfect and in ultimate analysis it is the verdict of the cinegoers that counts.
As far as Indian films are concerned, the audience flock because they love the songs and the soundtrack.
The storyline is not anything really unusual. We have seen numerous films, in the sub-continent, dealing with the story of two childhood lovers facing parental opposition, going separate ways, yet loving each other. So the novelty factor is missing.
YOUR FAVOURITE MOVIE
If I am asked to name my favourite movie, without hesitation, I shall vote for ‘Pather Panchali’. This movie was produced by Government of West Bengal in 1956. From the very first show it created a stir among the movie lovers. It ushered in a new trend in the movie making based on neo-realism. This movie is based on a novel of Bibhuti Bhusan Bandopadhya, the literary genius and it was directed by the late Satyajit Roy. Only after seeing the movie I could understand why it is acclaimed universally as one of the greatest masterpieces in the movie history.
‘Pather Panchali’ means something like ‘Saga of life’. It is not a novel in the conventional sense. It is a narration of the day-to-day life of a poor family living in a small village in Bengal. The story evolves round a poor Brahmin family headed by Harihar, his octogenarian sister Indira Thakrun, wife Sarvajaya and their children Durga and Apu. While the poor brahmin fights hard for survival, the two children Apu and Durga, full of life, live in their own world of sublime innocence and roam about merging completely with Nature.
The story is simple and from this simple story Satyajit Roy created a superb movie. One of the greatest qualities of the director is that he presented the movie in such a way that one never feels that one was seeing a movie and witnessing a world of make----belief. Everything looked so natural. He did not neglect any detail. And the minutest details like rain drops falling on a bald head, the butterflies swinging about, Apu and Durga looking in a amazement at the train for the first time in their life made this movie a wonderful one. As for acting----it did never appear to me that they were acting in a movie; they looked natural----they just fitted in their respective roles. The scenario, photographs, location shooting----everything looked classic and flawless. I can never forget the scenes which ultimately signalled the deaths of Durga and Indira Thakrun. I think they are the best shots ever taken on celluloid. Last but not the least, the music composed by Ravi Shankar was superb. The background music of the vendor hawking by the side of a pond closely followed by a stray dog and the children was simply charming. The music gave a strange poignancy to the movie.
The movie reflects the life of the millions of rural population of Bengal. It has a universal appeal and that is why the movie has won the hearts of its viewers and critics in different international movie festivals. Even in the U.S.A. some critics expressed that it was an experience of a lifetime to see such a movie. No wonder, it has won laurels all over the word. To me it is not a movie, it is a classic poem on celluloid.
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