Pinjar – a delightful Poem. Review on Pinjar

Pinjar is a tale of two families but is not an overly-done-family-melodrama.

Pinjar is a story set during partition but is not judgmental in any regard.

Pinjar is much 'Indian' in flavor and not another inferior, westernized crap.

Pinjar is very emotional but has a universal appeal extending to both genders.

Pinjar is original and unique and not a refurbished version of an earlier attempt.

Pinjar has many characters but those not overshadowed by star-power.

Just as the strength of any structure is as strong as its skeleton, the strength of Pinjar lies in its story. The story starts in 1946 and is set in the province of Punjab. Puro (Urmila) is to be married to Ramchand (Sanjay) and as dictated by a popular tradition in those days, both the families agree upon getting Ramchand’s sister, Lajo (Sandali) married off to Puro’s brother, Trilok (Priyanshu). Puro becomes a victim of a family feud involving her family. She gets kidnapped by Rasheed (Manoj). Ramchand is approached with a proposal to accept Puro’s sister, Rajjo, instead, which he promptly refuses. Ramchand’s cousin marries Rajjo. Trilok however comes under tremendous pressure from his family and agrees upon getting married to Lajo, in spite of being shattered at his sister’s disappearance.

In the meanwhile, Rasheed falls in love with Puro and offers to marry her. Puro somehow manages to escape only to find out that her parents cannot take her back because she has lost ‘everything’. She is horrified and returns back to Rasheed and leads a life of a soul-less skeleton after getting married to Rasheed. Rasheed realizes his mistake and starts his search for redemption. Partition takes place during which Lajo is now kidnapped by a Muslim youth. Puro comes to know about this and finds a mission for her otherwise ‘meaningless’ life – to locate Lajo and save her but she realizes, she cannot, without the help of Rasheed…. and the story comes to an end with a harmonic note.

Full Credit goes to the Art-director and the Cinematographer who take the viewers into the pre-independence era right at the very first frame. Gulzar’s lyrics and Uttam Singh’s music are an adornment to the project, without which, the impact would have been average. Background music flows with the narration perfectly. Screenplay is very good to excellent at places. The director accomplishes a tremendous responsibility with conviction and hard work, which show off in each and every scene of the movie.

All the characters were extensively developed and the casting was carefully done keeping in view, the earthy nature of the characters. Manoj Bajpai had the toughest role and amazes through out the movie. He handles complex situations with his body language and eyes. Urmila Matondkar had the central role and does a very good job for the most part. She excels in some scenes and in some, the absence of an experienced actress able to perform histrionics is felt. Priyanshu Chatterjee was a delight to watch. He had to play a son, a brother, a husband and a patriot. He charms his way out through the project. Sandali Sinha does exactly was was needed of her character, a graceful portrayal. Sanjay Suri plays a suave, intelligent and a philosophical poet with consummate ease.

To sum up, Pinjar has a content oriented subject and the presentation exemplifies the art of story telling. Watch Pinjar if you like serious cinema and if you are looking for a feeling of completeness when you walk out of the theatre. The last time I had the feeling was when I watched Lagaan and Lajja. Pinjar is a new addition to that list.

The movie wraps hinting at a message - something which goes along these lines.....' ye duniya itni buri nahin jitna aap samajhte hai'. This is a dialogue rendered by Trilok sometime during the first half but the second half insists that you and me should contribute to make this world a better place to live in.

Some of the scenes and scenarios, which were brilliantly handled:

· Trilok’s characterization.

· Ramchand and Lajo’s introduction.

· Rasheed’s attempts to win over Puro’s confidence.

· Puro’s mother expressing her helplessness over the plight of women.

· Trilok’s breakdown when he learns about his sister’s kidnap.

· Puro’s rejection by her family.

· Puro’s attempts to save Lajo.

· Puro’s name change incident.

· Rasheed’s constant search for redemption.

· Rasheed’s disappearance at the indo-pak border during the climax.