1947: earth Cast: Aamir Khan, Nandita Das, Rahul Khanna, Kitu Gidwani, Arif Zakaria, Kulbhushan Kharbanda Director: Deepa Mehta Music: A.R. Rahman Rating: * * * * |
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The traumatic event of India's independence is the
Partition. Many films have been made on this backdrop --
Shaheed-e-Mohabaat Bhuta Singh, Train To Pakistan,
Mamoo and Garam Hawa. Now it is Deepa Mehta's 1947
Earth. The film is based on Bapsi Sidhwa's famous novel
The Cracking India seen through the eyes of a Parsi girl.
Though the film is not a masterpiece, it is a well made film
with the editing, screenplay and performances being the
highlights of the film. It is a story of a Parsi family comprising of Rustom (Arif Zakhari), his wife Bunty (Kitu Gidwani) and the 8-year daughter Lenny (Maia Sethna) who is polio-afflicted. Shanta (Nandita Das) is Lenny's aaaya (maid). Lenny always goes with Shanta to the parks and other place and absorbs the conversations going around. Shanta has many admirers which include a masseur Hassan (Rahul Khanna) and an Ice-Candy Man Dil Navaz (Aamir Khan). Shanta however loves the gentle Hassan inspite of Dil Nawaz trying all the tricks to woo her. Lenny is the keen observer of the trio's romance. The situation changes when religious clashes make Dil Nawaz a maniac. A train from Gurdaspur arrives to Lahore which has nothing but only Muslim corpses killed by the Hindus. The bodies also include that of Dil Nawaz's sister. He becomes restless and more agitated when he discovers his love, the maid, has betrayed him. He now hates Hindus and starts committing barbaric acts. There are stirring moments in the film. But the film would not be that powerful if it did not have Aamir Khan. He is just fabulous in the film. His body language, facial expression, style are just too good. He just gets into the character. Another highlight is the performance of little Maia Shetna. She is very natural and charming in front of the camera. Nandita Das lives up the role and gives a competent performance. Rahul Khanna is impressive in his debut film. He needs to work on his accent. All the supporting cast have given able support. There are a few drawbacks in the film. However, it is a film which makes you sit back and think. |
