Namkeen (1982)

What would be the worst part of living a nomad’s life? The lack of a settled dwelling? Or the felling of constant disengagement with the society?

Human beings are not meant to live alone. People, who try to fool themselves into believing that they need no one else in their lives, are usually the ones who get the worst out of this unforgiving world.  One can never stop having attachments in the world around us, and one cannot really leave everything behind and move to another location taking everything away with him. This is because while moving from one place to the other, some small part of one’s heart always does get left behind. One cannot really escape this, however hard one tries. And that’s the reason people find it so hard to say goodbye.

Gulzar’s ‘Namkeen’ is a simple film about simple people who have to work very hard to make a decent living. It is a story of a nomadic truck driver Gerulal (Sanjeev Kumar in one of the last significant roles of his illustrious career) who picks up contractual work that requires him to travel to various towns, and that does not allow him to settle down at one place for long. For his latest assignment, he has to live in a small hilly village for a few days, and he picks up residence as a paying guest with a family of four ladies- one mother (Waheeda Rehman) and her three young daughters (Sharmila Tagore, Shabana Azmi, and Kiran Vairale). Soon, he gets sucked into their world- their problems, their hopes, and their day to day living. But before he can truly make them a part of his life (although at one level that happens just days into his stay with them), he has to leave the village and move on.

This is one movie where the drama is understated, and a lot of time is given to the building up of the relationship between the three girls and Gerulal. How he becomes so important to them and how manages to win the trust of them all, including their mother, is shown with the help of a series of bitter-sweet exchanges between them, most of which leave a smile of the face of the viewer. There are subtle references to the hardships that a household, composed entirely of women, has to face in a rural setting. The bonding between the three sisters, their respect for their senile mother, and their warm acceptance of a complete stranger in their lives- all of this reflects the rootedness and simplicity of the people of our villages. On the other hand Gerulal, the foul mouthed-large hearted truck driver, is equally respectful and warm towards his hosts and he demonstrates this warmth through his genuine concern for the ladies and his efforts to alleviate the challenges they face.

Gulzar mounts the story (written by Samresh Basu who had collaborated with Gulzar previously for Kitaab) on a very realistic canvas. The proceedings gradually transport you to the quaint little world of a small hill-station, and therein lay the magical Gulzar touch that makes make-believe believable. The dialogues are crisp and witty- another of the man’s hallmark. The performances are quite good, which is somewhat needless to say for Gulzar could have made even logs act, and this movie boasted of few of the most celebrated performers of that time. Sanjeev Kumar is Sanjeev Kumar- restrained, believable, and completely natural. Sharmila Tagore pitches in with a much more polished act than her previous attempt in a Gulzar movie- Mausam. Shabana Azmi is saddled with one of her rare supporting roles. 
The scene stealer however is the youngest sister, played by Kiran Vairale. Hers is a fiery character with a streak of rebellion, and she manages to hold her own in front of the best actors of those times. Waheeda Rehman, the veteran, in the role of the mother is effective, but hers does seem to be a labored performance.

The music by RD Burman doesn’t boast of a truly memorable song, but all songs are melodious and go with the texture of the narrative. The best one is ‘Raah pe Rahte hain’, a song in the same philosophical mode as ‘Musafir Hoon Yaaron’ from Parichay.

Parting Note: Namkeen is another good movie from Gulzar’s stable; I guess there isn’t really any below the mark movie made by the maestro (just a few left for me to catch up on). I guess a thoughtful and articulate man as Gulzar who was primarily a writer (and a superb one at that) would have found it hard to make a movie which was not at least above average.  

Sparsh (1980)

The subject of disability on celluloid has its share of fans but I am certainly not one amongst them. I, for one, could not comprehend Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Black’ and found it quite tedious to sit through. His ‘Guzaarish’ was no masterpiece for me either. So when I decided to watch Sai Paranjpai’s ‘Sparsh’, I was a little apprehensive despite being a great fan of her other noted works- ‘Katha’ and ‘Chashme Buddoor’. It stars Naseeruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi- two of the most celebrated actors in Hindi cinema- and after you finish viewing this little gem- you would have no doubts remaining as to why these two are so highly rated. Naseeruddin Shah plays Anirudh, a blind man, who runs an institute for blind children. Shabhana Azmi plays Kavita, a widow, who has not recovered from the death of her husband even three years hence.

Anirudh is shown to be self-reliant man who scorns at any efforts made to help him lead his life. He hates it when blind people are referred to as ‘Bechaaras’. His is a really strong persona that commands respect from his students and staff alike. One, however, wonders whether this show of strength and courage an effort made by him to conceal the pain and incompleteness he feels within himself. Kavita on the other hand makes no attempt to hide her dolefulness and lack of purpose in life. She spends all her time in singing and gardening.

The story starts off really slowly with hardly any movement in the first twenty minutes. However things pick up considerably when Kavita joins Anirudh’s institute as a mentor, guide, and friend to the children. They warm up to her immediately and start reveling in her presence. Even she is thrilled to receive so much love and respect from them. She starts coming to the institute on a regular basis and starts devoting her entire time and energies completely to the happiness and benefit of the children. She tells them stories, helps them prepare for dramas, but more than all this, she gives them the motherly love they were devoid of earlier. Meanwhile, the bond between Kavita and Anirudh starts getting stronger with each passing day. Regular meeting and interactions slowly gets translated into mutual liking. So much so that after some time they realize that they both need each other in their lives and decide to get married. However complications arise in the form of Anirudh’s self doubts that get elevated by a few stray remarks made by his acquaintances. He starts to feel that Kavita is making a sacrifice by marrying him and is forcing herself into lifelong misery and compromise.

The running of the blind school is shown remarkably well. It looks like considerable research went into the whole thing and the results are just amazing. All the kids perform naturally, so much so that one is forced to wonder whether they were actually blind or just acting. There is one kid ‘Paploo’ who stands out, and incidentally he is the only kid in the school with the gift of sight. There is a small track about him feeling jealous of the blind kids as they managed get more attention from their aunty Kavita. There are a lot of moments between the kids and Kavita that are so endearing that you can’t help smiling. The drama between Anirudh and Kavita too is very engaging. Same is the case with the interactions between Anirudh and his sighted assistant to whom acts as a ‘love guru’ (borrowing a modern lingo).

The strength of this movie lies in its dialogues. Unlike many other movies from the 1970s and 80s that looked like they were made without prior written material, this one looks like it was made after meticulous planning. The story is set in the suburbs of South Delhi- and even the locations are devoid of any misery or darkness just like the content. The music is soothing and works well for the film, however it boasts of no songs that are popular even today.

Parting note- Sparsh is a happy movie about life and learning to cope with its losses. Never once is a kid shown crying over his lack of sight, or feeling depressed about it. And that, for me, is film’s greatest victory. Sai Paranjpye more than deserves all the plaudits she got for making this, so did Naseeruddin Shah (who got the National Award) and Shabana Azmi. Sanjay Leela Bhansali needs to take a cue from this movie and reflect on how he could have treated his earlier movies better. 

Khamosh (1985)

Though the title hints at it, Shatrughan Sinha is not a part of this supremely well-crafted suspense thriller by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Instead this movie stars a host of other well-known actors like Naseeruddin Shah, Shabhana Azmi, Amol Palekar, Pankaj Kapoor among others. The story takes place in the pristine locales of Pahalgaam and is about a murder that takes place while a film crew is shooting their new venture in an outdoor schedule. The premise of a film shoot within the film is certainly novel for that time. Revealing the exact plot would spoil the fun and therefore I resist the temptation to do so.

For a suspense genre fan like I am, this movie is a must watch. The script is full of twists and turns and it is hard to guess what will happen in the next frame. The mood, setting, and treatment are ideal for a murder mystery. Also, this is one rare Hindi movie that has no songs. The narrative, however, is peppered with instances of satirical humor. The performances are natural and Shabhana Azmi leads the way in that department. Naseeruddin Shah is top-notch. Now that I am watching more of his work, I am fully able to appreciate why he is known as one of the finest actors in the history of Indian cinema.

Parting note- if you like Agatha Christie and don’t mind a bit of violence Khamosh is a must watch.

PS: There are no loose ends in the plot and everything fits together perfectly. However there is a small thing that is left unexplained, although it doesn’t matter as it is not a part of the jigsaw. I won’t mention it right now. If you spot it then please do comment.