“Hope begins in the dark; the stubborn hope that if
you just show up and try to do the right thing. The dawn will come. You wait
and watch and work: you don’t give up.” – Anne Lamot
Kay Granger says, “Human rights are not a privilege
granted by a few, they are a liberty entitled to all, and human rights, by
definition, include the rights of all humans, those in the dawn of life, the
dusk of life, or the shadows of life”. I think Bhudhini in Kamakhya Narayan
Singh's Bhor’ might have taken this quote seriously without even actually having
read or heard about this.
Image Courtesy: Indiatimes.com
It is interesting to note that Bhor’s journey
itself is so inspiring that every single independent filmmaker can draw hope
and strength from it. This film which was heaped with praise and great reviews internationally
for its fantastic and realistic portrayal of societal issues like open
defecation, child marriage, women empowerment and social and economic disparity
existing in Indian villages found it hard to find a cheering audience and
packed theatres in its country then. The film has received critical acclaim at
more than thirty film festivals. The film went on to win the best director
award at the Ottawa Indian Film Festival and two awards in the Caleidoscope
Indian Film Festival of Boston. After a long journey, the film has released on
the OTT Platform MX Player and all of a sudden it finds itself in the limelight
again for all good reasons.
Image Courtesy: MX player
Bhor reminds me of the film Gutrun Gutargun by Pratik
Sharma and Asmita Sharma was equally a good movie highlighting women
empowerment and open defecation. Gutrun Gutargun also had its challenges in
getting a fair release in theatres and had to file a case for alleged copyright
issues against Toilet Ek Prem Katha makers in the Jaipur High Court. Finally,
Gutrun Gutargun got released on the OTT platforms like Hungama and MX Player in
2020.
Image Courtesy: MX Player
The film Bhor portrays the harsh realities of the Musahar
community in Bihar and thereby opens a window to the world to experience a
world of the underprivileged and their struggle for human rights. In Bihar, the
word Musahar means mus + ahar (Rat
Eater) based on their traditional occupation of catching rats. The musahar community's literacy rate is minimal and in the case of women, it’s abysmal.
Image Courtesy: MX Player
Savaree Gaur as Bhudhini a school going untouchable
girl is married off to a young villager Sugan (Devesh Ranjan). Devesh Ranjan and
Savaree are fabulous actors. They have slipped into the skin of their characters
so well that the viewer feels their innocence, hope, love, bonding, challenges and
agony all through the film. Nalneesh Neel is an exceptional actor and has delivered
a commendable performance as Chamku the father-in-law of Bhudhini. Chamku’s
drunken stupor, language, mannerisms, acceptance of his fate as a Musahar and
his docility towards his master moves us to tears and at the same time make us
love this man for his honesty and bonding for his family.
Image Courtesy: MX Player
Another actor worth mentioning
here is Amarendra Sharma who plays the role of Bhukan. Amarendra Sharma was
also seen in the film Batla House as one of the police officers in John Abraham’s
team. Amarendra Sharma is one among many talented actors who have landed in
Bollywood and is all set to leave his mark here. Punya Prasun Bajpai enacts
well what he is good at as a journalist. His presence as a journalist in the
film adds value and credibility to his role played because of his progressive
and secular track record in the media circle. Pavleen Gujral as Madamji in Bhor
(The Angry Indian Goddesses actress) looks different here because of her deglamorized
looks in Bhor as a village teacher.
Image Courtesy: MX Player
In short, Bhor is a must-watch because of its
compelling social message and for Kamakhya Narayan Singh’s courage and vision
to make this film his debut film. The last scene of the film hits hard for at
the end of the day the underprivileged, workers, peasants and the poor are
displaced, they remain a migrant or a refugee in their own country. The city
gives them money but they have no worth and the village gives them open space
but chain them in the casteists, patriarchal and feudal systems. Bhor is a
bugle for all of us to stand for the basic human rights of the common people of
our country. True nationalism is beyond religion and I believe it’s high time
we realize this truth. Finally, watch Bhor on MX Player.
Thank you thomas Mathews...
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Amarendra for your commendable portrayal of Bhujan in Bhor. Keep doing good projects like Bhor. All the best 💐💐💐
Delete