Arth

My Rating : 9/10

I've seen this movie twice now and thoroughly enjoyed it both times. 'Arth' is one of Mahesh Bhatt's finest and captivated me from the start.

If you don't mind slow-burning drama, certainly seek this out, it is semi-autobiographical (about Mahesh Bhatt's extramarital relationship with Parveen Babi) and with great performances from everyone.

Moving, riveting and simply a classic of parallel Indian cinema. Absolute Must-See.

Mahesh Bhatt was one of the finest filmmakers of the 1980s in the Hindi film industry. Most of his films of that period, whether it's Arth, Saaransh or Kaash, dealt with subjects most people have to deal with in their lives. Arth is one of his finest works and is perhaps the most famous of his films of that time. The movie is mainly about marriage, infidelity and divorce, but it also deals with other relevant issues through some of its minor characters. These issues are handled exceptionally well by Bhatt, who keeps everything genuinely life-like and pays attention to details. Arth depicts a world which is real and authentic and it captures the urban lifestyle of that time with complete precision. The dialogues, the characters and the situations are very simple and realistic. That may be the main reason Arth is so moving and riveting. It has the ability to captivate and enthrall simply because it is very easy to relate to.

Arth may particularly inspire women to fight for their rights, but it can equally hearten any individual to never give up, showing that there always is a way of starting everything afresh. The story shows consistent development and is very interesting to see, particularly because its realism allows the viewer connect to the story. The film's main protagonist, Pooja Malhotra, is a true example of that. She is first a dependent wife who cannot even imagine her life without her husband, then a broken woman who mourns his betrayal and abandonment, still hoping to get him back. And finally, after coming to terms with herself, she understands the meaning of life and realises her own strength and ability to stand on her own and do it her way without anyone else's support or mercy. Pooja is a brilliantly written character which is well developed and the viewers highly anticipate the moment she makes a place in the sun.

There's one person who owns Arth and makes it the memorable picture it is today. It is of course Shabana Azmi, who delivers one of the finest performances of Indian cinema. The power of her portrayal seems to come in equal parts from her understanding of the character, and of course from the fact that she does not just act, but becomes. With ease and conviction she transforms into a simple woman who deals with problems in her life. Despite her heartbreak, Pooja never loses her sense of optimism and is brave enough to summon up the courage and fight for her dignity and for her right to find new happiness in life. Pooja's pain, suffering, honesty, growth and ultimately her coming of age, are very real and involving, and that's simply because they are portrayed with rare subtlety, depth and sincerity by Azmi, who, by the way, looks absolutely beautiful, authentic and graceful throughout the movie.

Azmi utterly dominates her scenes, and some of them are unforgettable. Just see Pooja's phone call to Kavita, when she begs the latter to give her husband back to her as she has nothing without him; just see Pooja's devastation and the astonishing pain in her tearful eyes upon seeing her husband with his lover at a party during the poignant Ghazal "Koi Yeh Kaise Bataye"; just see the subsequent scene in which she gets completely inebriated, attacks Kavita and publicly calls her a whore. These scenes show emotional conditions few actresses could master. Apart from other scenes between Pooja and her husband post their separation, another great scene is the one when Pooja goes to meet Kavita. The scene, devoid of clichés, shows both Kavita's conscience and Pooja's forgiving nature, and at the same time we see that Pooja has finally overcome her divorce from her husband and does not hold any grudge.

An equally great actress, Smita Patil delivers an incredibly convincing performance as the mentally unstable actress Kavita Senyal, a role that is smaller but even more complex than that of Azmi. Patil is amazing, performing the most difficult of scenes with unsettling intensity. She displays something very disturbing within her, and yet balances it with naturally played feelings of guilt and moments of sanity. While watching Azmi and Patil share the screen, one can see a competition between the two, a healthy one I mean, not the sort of childish rivalry between the young actresses of today. They were true actresses and unlike the new girls in the industry who may fight over who's had more hits, they competed to enhance the quality of their performances, and this extracted the best out of them. Kulbhushan Kharbanda is excellent as Inder, the infidel husband whose own weakness and confusion lead him to self-ruin.

The supporting cast--from Raj Kiran who plays the aspiring singer who falls for Pooja to Mazhar Khan, Dina Pathak and Kiran Vairale who play minor parts--is superb. But the one who stands out is Rohini Hattangadi, who plays Pooja's nameless housemaid. People often overlook Hattangandi's role, but she is pretty much a reflection of Pooja. Given a role of very minimal screen time, she plays a lower-middle class woman who herself is married to a drunkard who abuses and cheats on her. And she does it with great skill, getting the mannerisms, the dialect and the hopes of people of her region and class exceedingly well. She manages to convey so much of her character's essence, whether it's her way of accepting her fate, her dreams of building a future for her daughter, or her compassion towards Pooja's state (despite having pretty much the same problems and even worse), that it's hard to believe she is there for only 20 minutes. Truly a remarkable feat.

Arth is a fascinating picture about realisation, relationships, and the power of the overcoming human spirit. It proves the talent of all those who were associated with it, and the ending is terrific. A classic gem which deserves the highest of praise, that's it.

Arth is a pleasantly surprising movie, a great cinematic experience. It's one of those few movies that makes us live the journey of the main character, and make us believe the decisions and path of the cast. It's a well acted, edited and directed movie with a powerful screenplay. It will be unfair to not appreciate the cast especially Sabhana Azmi. It's a philosophically satisfying conclusion. A strong ending and a feel good vibe. It's a must watch movie. Highly recommended.

Arth (1982) : Brief Review -

Arth explains real Meaning of Woman Empowerment and Inherence. Woman oriented films have always been special and important for Bollywood cinema and there have been at least one or two such films made in every decade since 50s. Bimal Roy's cinema was far ahead of time while others took right time to make such films and Mahesh Bhatt got his achievement in early 80s. Arth is a story of a married Woman whose husband leaves for other woman and the wife tries to find the meaning and cause of her existence. The topic is extremely important and worthy for Social change as it happens with so many women in real world but they endure such husbands for the sake of old school traditions of naive wife. Here, Arth teaches them a lesson to live thier life on thier own and maintain self-respect. What Arth lacks is excessive nature and poignant take on this issue. Every conflict in the film is small and that's how a realistic content should be so it works perfectly. The problem is, the motive comes into light too late, almost at the ending scene which was quite unfair from my point of view. Despite being so confident in married life, as she herself says to the lady servant about leaving such nasty husband, the wife takes soft stand when it comes to her life. She should have left him with confidence and then try to find her own path but she seems quite soft cause she's still hoping that her husband will be back one day. By the end she denies herself though, just like I said too late. It's effective for sure so don't make any opinion. The husband's character is perfectly written i don't see anything that can be improved and same goes the 2nd woman's role. She was looking little contradictory to her own views but it's okay to have at least one lose character so that the Main character will look effective. The climax is filled with intelligent sentiments which have rarely been seen in Bollywood cinema. Shabana Azmi is sublime in the film and deservingly won Filmfare and National Award. Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Raj Kiran are impressive whereas Smita Patil looks hot. Music is fulsomely situational so don't expect much. Dialogues are worthy and sharp, it lacks excessiveness though. Mahesh Bhatt's direction is fantastic. If am not wrong then Arth was First Ever Classic in his career and guess what? It lives forever. I don't care how many films were made on Woman Empowerment after Arth, it still works and it still feels special. So don't miss.

RATING - 8/10*

By - #samthebestest

I am mortally afraid of works of art which are proclaimed as classics by critics and the public. My bullshit antenna goes up and I end up avoiding such mainstream crap most of the time.

The name of the file which I downloaded from the net was "Arth- A Mahesh Bhatt Classic". The nomenclature got my hackles up and I was all ready to tear this apart with my words. I wasn't prepared for the emotions which were about to be unleashed by this cinematic piece of art.

This is a semi autobiographical movie. Mahesh Bhatt casts Kulbushan Kharbanda as himself, a director of advertisements and movies, who falls in love with an actress. Smita Patil plays the role of Parveen Babi. He decides to move in with the actress and leave behind his wife, essayed here by Shabana Azmi.

The dialogues ring true. It seems as if Mr. Bhatt had a small recording device with him when he was having huge rows with his wife and mistress. The direction is excellent. Mr. Bhatt never allows the drama to go over the top and become mawkish. He has a feel for the feminine mentality and the women characters come across as strong and not cardboard caricatures.

The music was composed by the late Jagjeet Singh and the songs include "Tum itna jo... ', lines which have since become immortal.

The acting is the strongest forte of this seminal classic. Azmi gives the performance of a life time as a woman who sees her world go up in smoke. She is vulnerable,teary eyed and then graceful.

This is a must watch for lovers of great drama. You would be blown away by what has increasingly become a rarity these days, an ultimate Hindi movie.