Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa

This much acclaimed film is a narrate of Sujata Chatterji's (Jaya Bhaduri) discovery of her son's (Brati Chatterji played by Joy Sengupta) life. Made in the backdrop of the Naxalite uprising in Bengal's Naxalbari, the film mostly deals with Sujata's quest for understanding her deceased son's ideologies and outlook to life. Starting off with a mere corpse number '1084' (which lends the film its name), she establishes her son's true identity, despite the social barriers surrounding her.

What appealed to me the most was Sujata's character defined as a simple minded mother whose love for her son gave her the strength to not only discover his pursuit in life, but also, find meaning in her own. That apart, Govind Nihalani brings out a nice diagnosis of the varying ideologies of an entire generation - how a protected and almost shrouded environment can co-exist with an uprising that seeks to change the very foundation of society. The movie explodes at a point where Sujata questions this very oddity, thus marking a moment of change in her own life.

The film has some rather intense moments in Nandita Das's portrayal of the character Nandini . In almost a monologue, Nandini converses with Sujata where she not only brings to light a revolutionary and romantic episode of Brati's life but also rescues a mother dwelling amidst ignorance and compromises. A stark contrast to the dignified and contained Sujata, is Somu's mother (Seema Biswas) who despite her troubles, has has seen more meaning and truth in her motherhood.

The film has tremendous talent in its actors like Anupum Kher, Seema Biswas, Nandita Das, Joy Sengupta, Milind Gunaji and of course Jaya Bachhan making a comeback in 1998 after a long gap in her cinema career. On a slight con side, I think the cinematography on occasions could do better. Overall, a very good film to watch.

I did not come away thinking that the director wanted to preach Marxism (like some comments indicated), but told a story about some that strongly believed in it. He told the story of those that embrace a movement and by doing so, they have involved their entire family one way or other. The shadows of their sacrifices are long; character Nandini talks about it. The survivors deal with differently -- here the mother is running around her sons memories. She is reaching out to the places that he ever touched. This kind of intelligent film making, simple story lines, characters with depth are not everybody's cup of tea.

I'm not going to say I agree with the story premise but I loved the film, characterization. No actor went for a grandiose performance; dialogues were simple, no punch lines. Hence a very simple film. I would suggest people watch the DVD; the film does a wake some emotions in you.

Performances: What can I say? I have not seen one actor that performed better or worse. Every one lived in their roles, hence the credit goes to the Director. But, I just have to say this... I loved Jaya Bhaduri in Guddi, Uphar, Kora Kagaj ... the lady is natural. She never acts - Amitabh acts -- Jaya just lives in her roles (even in KKKG in few scenes that were not artificial).

Corpse number 1084 is lying in the govt. mortuary, a life-less body which is reduced to a mere four digit number by the authorities and the mainstream. Nobody wants to claim the body, or accept his association with it, except his mother. But why is he so neglected, why do people want to forget him, why was he killed and what sort of a man was he, when alive? The film is the journey of his mother to give, and find answers to these questions and through this, the film tries to capture the story of those thousands youth of Naxalite Movement who dared to dream, and fight for a better alternative, and who were butchered by the the nexus of state, right wing parties, and betrayers and saboteurs present in the left movement itself.

Based on a novel with the same title by eminent Bengali writer Mahashweta Devi, this film tries to capture the Kolkata of Stormy-seventies, when Naxalite Movement was penetrating among the urban, educated middle-class youth.

Sujata(Jaya Bachchan) is the mother of Brati(Joy Sengupta), a brilliant and honest-to-self upper-middle class student, who chooses to dedicate his life to the cause of proletarian revolution and is murdered by state supported goons. Sujata goes through an epistemological journey in search of the reasons for this, and finally, realizing the relationship between her own oppression(in the household) and that of the poor (outside), she decides to resist, alike her son. In the end, the mother feels that each time she offers a resistance to injustice, she gives re-birth to her deceased son again, and gets more closer to him as a mother, a friend, and a comrade.

The film captures everything, and that too perfectly, be it the decadence of Bengali well-off society and artists, the tortures inflicted by police on the naxalites, the ideological deviations of the movement, the betrayals by insiders, the beauty and honesty of the dreams of the naxal youth, and the brutality and ugliness of their cold-blooded genocide by the state,the weaknesses of the movement at that time and its capacity to learn from mistakes; and all this added by masterly performances by Nandita Das(Nandini),Seema Biswas(Somu's mother), Jaya Bachchan, Joy and other actors. Govind Nihlani's direction is excellent and the film surely is one of his Masterpieces.

Above all, it shows that Naxalism is not about some splashes of blood or some crime oriented or mindless killings, but it is about a dream nurtured by a whole generation of 16 to 40, which sacrificed itself for the same and whose dream carries audience and relevance till now. Best Hindi film on Naxalism. 8 out of 10.

The film not only portrays the dark days in the history of Bengal when human rights were strangled under the boots of power, it also essays the journey of a middle aged lady that led her to discover her dignity as a human being and reassess her own goals in life as she delves deeper into the life and ideology of her deceased son.

A beautiful story of struggle, realization and hope.

Anyone who has 'lived' thru the tense moments of any religious riot in India, can immediately identify with the bus scene in "Mr & Mrs Iyer". Likewise, the actual experience of living in a Calcutta, firmly in the vicious grip of the Naxalite movement, can color your perceptions about the reading of this movie, whether intentional or not.

The movement, which primarily found host in the predominantly communist states of Kerala and W. Bengal, later morphed into various factions and sowed the seeds of separatist tendencies in places like Andhra Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland. Results have been mixed and less than spectacular mainly posing a big security risk for state governments.

But this film is not about extremism or the violence it ensues. Instead it tries to diagnose the ideological underpinnings at work, individual and collective psychologies of various proponent groups, as well as the impact on families involved and their relationships with each other. It asks in effect: what is the point of fighting for unity, equal rights, justice, etc when the price to be paid is your own family and the very foundations of civil society, regardless if the fight is just or not? Does the end justify the means?

Nihalani has chosen to use family as a metaphor, to essay the sense of guilt, betrayal, resignation and subordination all captured brilliantly in one time and place. The cast is excellent and has delivered well. In one of her best performances so far, Jaya Bachchan is reflective, yet quietly indignant. Anupam Kher, Seema Biswas, Joy Sengupta and Nandita Das in an introductory role form the remaining cast. Though the editing isn't as slick as "Ardhsatya" and the pace slows down several times, the direction is superb as is the cinematography in capturing the prevalent mood of the time.

Indeed, a very good must-see film.