People who know the term schizophrenia, use it sloppily.
It's used to describe everything from an audience taste (Indian viewers are schizophrenics -- they accept everything from No Entry to Black), to even an ice cream (a friend remarked -- 'the taste is bitter and sweet, an interesting schizo touch').
You'll quickly lose the habit, once you see Aparna Sen's new movie, 15 Park Avenue.
The film begins with two sisters, Anjali (Shabana Azmi) and Mitali (Konkana Sen Sharma) looking for a place called 15 Park Avenue, that we realise is either inaccessible or doesn't exist. We are then introduced to Mithi's life – a strange world within worlds, some that really exist and some that exist only in her head.
This 27-year-old believes she has a husband and five children and they all live at 15 PA.
Then, whatever she sees on television or elsewhere -- even Saddam Hussein -- is lovingly incorporated into her imaginary world. Her family, also comprising an ageing mother (Waheeda Rehman) and a maid, try to be patient and not lose their own minds.
The distant family relations tolerate Mithi, while the children are cruelly amused.
With the responsibility of Mithi and her mother, it's interesting how Anjali's (a professor and writer) life is full of full stops and commas. Divorced but in a relationship, she refuses her lover's offer to take a break and escape with him.
While Anjali copes with her emotional life, her mother must deal with ageing and the loss of control that comes with it, while the insensitive maid audaciously brings home a tantrik who mercilessly beats Mithi up.
Her complaint is believed to be another of her fantastical stories.
But there are moments of endearing clarity. Like once when Anjali explains that she is only imagining things, Mithi throws back the question – 'How would you like it if I told you, you're not a professor, only imagining it?' This thought is further carried on in discussions between characters, exploring what is reality and what differentiates it from delusion.
The viewer, quite in love with Mithi by now, wants to know how this disease overcame her once-functional life as a journalist. What you see then makes you feel sick.
We are told that Mithi, on a journalistic assignment, was gangraped. That triggered off the dormant symptoms already present, and she never recovered.
She finds love in the form of Joydeep Roy (Rahul Bose), who, despite her family's aggressive advice, gets engaged to Mithi.
He thinks he is man enough to deal with her disease and turns out he is not. Some time and a note later, he is gone, and Mithi finds solace in her imaginary world, where her kids are named exactly how she and 'Jojo' had planned.
A chance meeting brings them together after more than a decade and a shameful Joydeep (with a wife and kids, all real) wants to help Mithi find 15 Park Avenue.
It must have been daunting to figure out an end to this film, and writer-director Aparna Sen probably thought it was best to leave the film open for individual reading. Since the film's subject is already challenging, this choice risks leaving the viewer confused instead of pensive.
The pace is agonisingly gradual at times, and the dialogue heavily repetitive. On the technical front, the film is dubbed, but the calibre of the actors pulls it though magnificently. The use of ambient sounds is lovely and so is the non-intrusive and sometimes breathtaking soaking-in-Bhutan's-beauty photography.
The dialogue, exemplary in most parts, is irritatingly bookish in others. Example – 'Shall we have some tea?' 'Yes, let's.'
No one says 'Yes, let's', for god's sake!
Not unless you're in 16th century England having tea and butter cookies. But that's picking too fine a point.
அபர்ணா சென் இயக்கிய ஒரு மாறுபட்ட கதைக் கருவைக் கொண்ட குறிப்பிடத்தக்க திரைப்படம்.
It's used to describe everything from an audience taste (Indian viewers are schizophrenics -- they accept everything from No Entry to Black), to even an ice cream (a friend remarked -- 'the taste is bitter and sweet, an interesting schizo touch').
You'll quickly lose the habit, once you see Aparna Sen's new movie, 15 Park Avenue.
The film begins with two sisters, Anjali (Shabana Azmi) and Mitali (Konkana Sen Sharma) looking for a place called 15 Park Avenue, that we realise is either inaccessible or doesn't exist. We are then introduced to Mithi's life – a strange world within worlds, some that really exist and some that exist only in her head.
This 27-year-old believes she has a husband and five children and they all live at 15 PA.
Then, whatever she sees on television or elsewhere -- even Saddam Hussein -- is lovingly incorporated into her imaginary world. Her family, also comprising an ageing mother (Waheeda Rehman) and a maid, try to be patient and not lose their own minds.
The distant family relations tolerate Mithi, while the children are cruelly amused.
With the responsibility of Mithi and her mother, it's interesting how Anjali's (a professor and writer) life is full of full stops and commas. Divorced but in a relationship, she refuses her lover's offer to take a break and escape with him.
While Anjali copes with her emotional life, her mother must deal with ageing and the loss of control that comes with it, while the insensitive maid audaciously brings home a tantrik who mercilessly beats Mithi up.
Her complaint is believed to be another of her fantastical stories.
But there are moments of endearing clarity. Like once when Anjali explains that she is only imagining things, Mithi throws back the question – 'How would you like it if I told you, you're not a professor, only imagining it?' This thought is further carried on in discussions between characters, exploring what is reality and what differentiates it from delusion.
The viewer, quite in love with Mithi by now, wants to know how this disease overcame her once-functional life as a journalist. What you see then makes you feel sick.
We are told that Mithi, on a journalistic assignment, was gangraped. That triggered off the dormant symptoms already present, and she never recovered.
She finds love in the form of Joydeep Roy (Rahul Bose), who, despite her family's aggressive advice, gets engaged to Mithi.
He thinks he is man enough to deal with her disease and turns out he is not. Some time and a note later, he is gone, and Mithi finds solace in her imaginary world, where her kids are named exactly how she and 'Jojo' had planned.
A chance meeting brings them together after more than a decade and a shameful Joydeep (with a wife and kids, all real) wants to help Mithi find 15 Park Avenue.
It must have been daunting to figure out an end to this film, and writer-director Aparna Sen probably thought it was best to leave the film open for individual reading. Since the film's subject is already challenging, this choice risks leaving the viewer confused instead of pensive.
The pace is agonisingly gradual at times, and the dialogue heavily repetitive. On the technical front, the film is dubbed, but the calibre of the actors pulls it though magnificently. The use of ambient sounds is lovely and so is the non-intrusive and sometimes breathtaking soaking-in-Bhutan's-beauty photography.
The dialogue, exemplary in most parts, is irritatingly bookish in others. Example – 'Shall we have some tea?' 'Yes, let's.'
No one says 'Yes, let's', for god's sake!
Not unless you're in 16th century England having tea and butter cookies. But that's picking too fine a point.
அபர்ணா சென் இயக்கிய ஒரு மாறுபட்ட கதைக் கருவைக் கொண்ட குறிப்பிடத்தக்க திரைப்படம்.
2005ஆம் ஆண்டு திரைக்கு வந்த இப்படம் அந்த ஆண்டின் ‘இந்தியாவில் உருவான சிறந்த ஆங்கிலப் படம்’ என்பதற்கான தேசிய விருதைப் பெற்றிருக்கிறது.
Schizophrenia என்ற நோயால் பாதிக்கப்பட்ட ஒரு இளம்பெண்ணை மையமாக வைத்து உருவாக்கப்பட்ட கதை. கதையை அபர்ணா சென்னே எழுதியிருக்கிறார்.
மிட்டாலி என்ற மீத்தி Schizophreniaவால் பாதிக்கப்பட்டவள்.
அவளுக்கு ஒரு அக்கா. அவளின் பெயர் அஞ்சலி. அனு என்று எல்லோரும் அவளை அழைப்பார்கள். அனுவிற்கும் மீத்திக்கும் வயது வித்தியாசம் மிகவும் அதிகம். அவர்களின் அன்னையும் உயிருடன் இருக்கிறாள். அவளின் வயது அதிகம். மீத்தியை ஒரு சிறு குழந்தையைப் போல கவனம் செலுத்தி பார்த்துக் கொள்கின்றனர் அனுவும், அவளின் தாயும். மீத்தி, தன் தாயின் இரண்டாவது கணவருக்கு மகளாக பிறந்தவள். எனினும், அனு அவளின் மீது உயிரையே வைத்திருக்கிறாள். அவளுக்கு ஒரு சிறிய கீறல் உண்டானாலும், அதை அனுவால் தாங்கிக் கொள்ள முடியாது. எச்சிலை ஒழுக விட்டுக் கொண்டு பேசும், சாப்பிடும் உணவு உதட்டுக்கு வெளியே வருவது மாதிரி சாப்பிடும் மீத்தியின் செயல்களை மிகவும் ரசித்துப் பார்ப்பாள் அனு.
30 வயதை எட்டி விட்ட மீத்திக்கு இன்னும் திருமணம் ஆகவில்லை. எனினும், தனக்கு ஏற்கெனவே திருமணம் ஆகி விட்டது என்றும், தனக்கு ஐந்து குழந்தைகள் இருக்கின்றன என்றும் அவள் தன் மனதில் ஒரு கற்பனை கோட்டையைக் கட்டி வாழ்ந்து கொண்டிருக்கிறாள்.
மேலும்
அவளுக்கு ஒரு அக்கா. அவளின் பெயர் அஞ்சலி. அனு என்று எல்லோரும் அவளை அழைப்பார்கள். அனுவிற்கும் மீத்திக்கும் வயது வித்தியாசம் மிகவும் அதிகம். அவர்களின் அன்னையும் உயிருடன் இருக்கிறாள். அவளின் வயது அதிகம். மீத்தியை ஒரு சிறு குழந்தையைப் போல கவனம் செலுத்தி பார்த்துக் கொள்கின்றனர் அனுவும், அவளின் தாயும். மீத்தி, தன் தாயின் இரண்டாவது கணவருக்கு மகளாக பிறந்தவள். எனினும், அனு அவளின் மீது உயிரையே வைத்திருக்கிறாள். அவளுக்கு ஒரு சிறிய கீறல் உண்டானாலும், அதை அனுவால் தாங்கிக் கொள்ள முடியாது. எச்சிலை ஒழுக விட்டுக் கொண்டு பேசும், சாப்பிடும் உணவு உதட்டுக்கு வெளியே வருவது மாதிரி சாப்பிடும் மீத்தியின் செயல்களை மிகவும் ரசித்துப் பார்ப்பாள் அனு.
30 வயதை எட்டி விட்ட மீத்திக்கு இன்னும் திருமணம் ஆகவில்லை. எனினும், தனக்கு ஏற்கெனவே திருமணம் ஆகி விட்டது என்றும், தனக்கு ஐந்து குழந்தைகள் இருக்கின்றன என்றும் அவள் தன் மனதில் ஒரு கற்பனை கோட்டையைக் கட்டி வாழ்ந்து கொண்டிருக்கிறாள்.
மேலும்
No comments:
Post a Comment