Zubeidaa

Zubeida, is a classic film. In fact one of the best films to come out of the Hindi Film industry in recent times. All the aspects of the film, whether be it the taut and intelligent Direction (vintage Benegal ji), the music (the re-incarnation of R.D.Burman as modern age A.R. Rehman giving very popular and ever lasting amazing numbers, the haunting lyrics, the very original storyline, the entire canvass, was a cinematic treat. Of course the histrionic talents of Surekha Sikri, Amrish Puri, MAnoj Bajpai, Rajat Kapoor, Lillette Dubey amongst others combined with the deadly combination duo of my all time favourite actresses REkha and KArisma KApoor was deadly! In fact i can't thank Mr. Benegal enough for bringing these two great actresses in the same canvas and the result was there for everyone to see. KArisma, i would say, excelled is a low word, she just was as good as Smita Patil or Shabana Azmi would have been in the same role. The kind of Depth, the look, the innocence, the beauty, the charisma, the fear, the strength, the naivety, the revolt, the love - all these expressions and more that she displayed in this film were worth a NAtional Award at least if not the Oscar! Well, the Filmfare critics award made up for it. All in all a collector's item, a great always-to-be-remembered film.

In 2000, Khalid Mohammed, a famous film critic, directed a movie called Fiza. Fiza is one of my favourite films, and I particularly loved the great performance of its leading lady, Karisma Kapoor. In this film, Khalid Mohammed assumes a part as a writer. The one who directs this movie is none other than Shyam Benegal, one of India's all-time best filmmakers, and the one who plays the title role is Karisma Kapoor. This is the third movie in the unofficial trilogy of Benegal movies scripted by Mohammed, all of which are partly fictionalised true stories centred around Indian Muslim women who made a lasting impact on Mohammed's life. The first movie in the trilogy is the brilliant Mammo, which was based on Mohammed's beloved grandaunt, and the second is Sardari Begum, titled after a popular Thumari singer of his mother's era. Both characters actually appear in this movie. But here Mohammed tells the story of Zubeidaa Begum, who was his real mother.

Zubeidaa Begum was the daughter of a famous filmmaker and an aspiring actress. When her father, who disapproved of her dreams to pursue an acting career, found out she was acting secretly in films, he arranged her marriage to Mehboob Alam. However, right after Zubeidaa gave birth to a baby boy, they divorced. Zubeidaa was a charming, high-spirited, incredibly honest and rebellious woman who refused to live her life according to traditional mores and was constantly in search of happiness. One such opportunity presents itself in the form of Maharaja Vijayendra Singh, the prince of Fatehpur, who is already married to a much older Mandira Devi. Vijayendra instantly falls for Zubeidaa, and she leaves everything behind her, including her little son whom her father does not allow to take, to enter his house as his second wife. The story relates Zubeidaa's trials and tribulations in the big house, her loneliness and yearning for her son and for her husband, who has very little time for her.

The story of Zubeidaa is convincingly narrated and is efficiently presented through flashbacks as told to the character of Riyaz, Zubeidaa's elder son who is now a journalist trying to find some documentation of who his mother was. He is surprised to hear that she was a charismatic woman who lived life to the fullest, and the movie is authentic enough to make the viewer feel a connection to the story and to its main protagonist. Unsurprisingly, Shyam Benegal's direction is excellent and he unusually accepts many of the ingredients of mainstream Hindi cinema, which certainly sets this movie apart from his previous directorial efforts. He is aided by Mohammed's script, Javed Siddiqui's fantastic dialogues, the terrific sound design, the wonderful cinematography, and of course the art direction; the sets, the costumes and the props all successfully capture the atmosphere of the 1950s. One cannot go without mentioning A.R Rahman's music which gives life to the film. "So Gaye Hain" is the finest song in the soundtrack and its melody is really calm, haunting and melancholic.

The one who is most responsible for making Zubeidaa the movie that it is and the character so memorable is unquestionably Karisma Kapoor. After delivering an all-time great performance as the main protagonist in Khalid Mohammed's Fiza, she is now cast in the role of his mother to deliver another performance of equally high standards. Shyam Benegal once frankly stated that he actually had not seen a single movie of hers before, and therefore he directed her with utmost guidance. Kapoor's portrayal is indeed heartfelt, real and powerful, and she displays Zubeidaa's feisty nature, determination, yearning, anger and frustration with energy, depth and conviction that make her really easy to relate to. Manoj Bajpai is very fine as Zubeidaa's loving husband. Rekha is superb as Mandira. She is amazingly restrained and graceful and is mysterious enough to make one wonder what her real take was. The supporting cast includes Amrish Puri, Surekha Sikri, Rajit Kapoor and Lillete Dubey, and all of them manage to leave a mark.

Zubeidaa's ending is really poignant, but its melancholic and bittersweet feel actually explains why Zubeidaa Begum will be remembered. It's great that Mohammed decided to immortalise his mother even though he sadly did not even know her that much in her life and her portrait existed in his mind only from stories he had heard from those who knew her. Anyway, kudos to Mohammed, Benegal and Karisma Kapoor for making Zubeidaa the entertaining and moving picture that it is.

Shyam Benegal continues to carve out a niche as one of the leaders & promoters of indian parallel cinema. this film is based on a true story, set in last days of British rule in India. the acting is good all around, although no fireworks here. Karisma is as good here as she was in FIZA. it is a fairly straight forward biography, and although it was nicely done, i found it rather luke-warm as compared to Benegal's other films. in any case, it is a much needed break for viewers who are tired of watching typical Indian masala potboilers.

Riveting performances. Strong female characters. Patriarchy and the position of women.

Shyam Benegal is an international award winning film director who made his name in the 1970's with films, such as Anker (1974), that focus on controversial subjects involving the examination of fraught, complex social and cultural relationships. These films tend to concentrate on the lower rungs of Indian society. Zubeidaa is a refreshing update in this mode of film-making, as Benegal transfers his name-making qualities to a subject at the higher end of society.

It is the story of a young man, Riyaz, who goes on a journey to discover what has happened to his mysterious mother, absent for as long as he can remember. What he discovers is reenacted in scenes set not long after independence, as the naïve but headstrong young Zubeidaa is scandalised by her romance, and subsequent marriage to Prince Vijayendra Singh of Fatehpur, head of a grand Hindu ruling royal family. As a middle class Muslim divorcée with a child by another man, her relationship with the Prince is naturally complicated by socio-political and religious factors.

But not only does she become entangled in the politics of the royal circle around the Prince, particularly in her relationship with the Prince's first wife, Mandira Devi, she also gets caught up in the larger politics of India. The film is set during a time not long after Independence, a time of change and uncertainty for the traditional ruling class of India, which still laid claim to about a third of the country.

Though it is clear that this film is much more than royal watching, having such a subject naturally supports a lavish treatment, which Benegal ably supplies, as well as making the film's content rich in nuance and resonance, handling its mature romantic storyline gracefully, and skilfully embedding it into its larger historical context.

The characters are generally very well developed with empathy and without judgement or cliché. The acting matches this. Karisma Kapoor captures the strength and naivety of Zubeidaa with aplomb, and Rekha is authoritative and understated as the enigmatic Mandira Devi.

The only problem I have with the film is Zubeidaa's grown son, Riyaz. Riyaz is imperative to the film, since the viewer follows him on his journey of discovery. Seeing great characters through the eyes of other characters is a useful fictional device, most successfully utilised in Scott Fitzgerald's novel, The Great Gatsby. Nick Carraway's character is revealed by his journey in discovering Gatsby. However, in Zubeidaa, Riyaz stays enigmatic while discovering his mother, and even, at times, comes across as anodyne, feeling more like a biographer looking into an interesting episode in history, not a son trying to find his mother. Rajat Kapoor, playing Riyaz, does not manage to rise above his character's failings. And so, unfortunately, the film ends up feeling incomplete.