Love is the shortest distance between hearts . Review on The Japanese Wife

A part of you has grown in me.
And so you see, it's you and me
Together forever and never apart,
Maybe in distance, but never in heart

• Anonymous

The purest form of love is when it ceases to be ambiguous and amorphous.Aparna Sen's latest film - The Japanese wife explores the myriad facets of a surreal love story of two people that transcends all geographical boundaries. A love that is timeless, a marriage that is true to its vows, a commitment that holds true till the final breath. The film spans over a decade portraying how a mere friendship metamorphoses into love and marriage, thereby bounding two people with the invisible promise of love so delicate, that is prone to break with the slightest misbehavior from either end, yet so strong that it grows firm with each passing year and each letter exchange, 637 being the final count.

The plot:

The film starts with 40+ Snehamoy a village school master in Sundarban, walking down the memory lane with the impressions of the moments shared with his Japanese wife, he has never met.The scene oscillates back and forth between the thoughts of Snehamoy and a huge box embossed with colorful pictures arriving first on a small boat, then in a van with small village kids running after it and finally to his house, as a present form his wife on the occasion of their 15th marriage anniversary.The waves of emotion of a husband waiting for every small bit of communication from his wife living faraway, is well captured in Rahul Bose's awed expressions as he unwraps the gift.Miyagi had sent him colorful kites that once belonged to her father. In a relationship so unique, everything unconventional is the conventional thing.

The film then moves to the flashback scenes of how the hauntingly beautiful love story evolved.Snehamoy was an orphan who was brought up by his widowed aunt(Mousumi Chatterjee).While Miyagi was a shy and reticent young Japanese girl with an ailing mother and a brother who lived away from home. They came to know each other as pen friends. Both being lonely in their own world, it didn't take much time for them to open up with each other through writing letters. The only problem being, none of them were conversant with the only common language they knew - English. Still they understood each other completely in whatever little English they knew.

Friendship soon blossomed into love and Miyagi took the initiative of expressing her feelings by offering herself as Snehamoy's bride. Snehamoy speculates about all the hardship his bride would be required to endure in the situation of a marriage, like using the single Indian style loo. Miyagi replies in good humor ‘why you men are so stupid, the important thing is we are getting married’. Finally they unite with the bond of marriage - Miyagi sends Snehamoy a silver ring with her name embossed in it and Snehamoy sends her back the traditional conch bangles and vermilion.He tells Miyagi that she should always wear the bangles and apply the vermilion till he is alive. Miyagi as a devoted wife follows Snehamoy's instructions verbatim.During the second year of their marriage, a young girl, the daughter of Snehamoy's aunt's friend comes to their home. His aunt expresses her desire to get them married, when finally Snehamoy breaks the news of his secret letter-marriage. The initial shock is wiped away with a bigger shock when his aunt learns about his Japanese wife.Years pass and gradually everyone, including the villagers have come to accept the fact that the school master is married to a japanese lady who lives faraway. His aunt had become very affectionate about her daughter-in-law, who sends handmade socks and chemis to her in-laws as gifts all the time.

Snehamoy is truthful while narrating each and every thing that happens in his life. So when the aunt's god-daughter, Sandhya comes back after 15 years as a widow with a son and starts staying in their house, Snehamoy never hides the emotional turmoil he happens to undergo due to her presence. The story form here moves around the emotional sinewave surrounding Miyagi, Snehamoy and Sandhya. The mental proximity with Miyagi and physical presence of the young Sandhya in Snehamoy's life is beautifully captured.Life goes on like it was, and one day Snehamoy learns about Miyagi's ailment. From here the story takes a new turn and finally builds up the climax.

Cast and crew:

The main lead, Miyagi is brilliantly played by Chigusa Takaku. Her voice is so expressive that the entire voice over had come to life with her intonations. Happiness, agony, anguish, concern, she emoted each and every emotions with unequaled excellence. Her innocence  makes you smile when she sends a camera to her husband while apologizing for the fact that she couldn't manage to get a camera with a Bengali manual in japan. You would feel akin to whatever she undergoes. You will feel her anticipation when she proposes to Snehamoy, (whom she calls as'Sonomoy' due to her limitations in the language), the jealousy when she knows about other women approaching her husband, the agony of her ailment while being concerned about her husband worrying for her, the undying love for the only man in her life when he manages to call her and finally the overpowering sadness that she feels when she walks into the room of Snehamoy after his demise, running her finger over all her gifts that her husband had preserved all through these years. Even in the calmness of her face, you will feel the the turbulence of a wife who has lost her only love.Her devotion for her husband is unmatched when you see her wearing the conch bangles even after her husband's demise, as Snehomoy had not informed her that they should be removed as well with the husband's death.

Mousumi Chatterjee as Snehamoy’s caring yet strict aunt is the most lovable character of the movie. She loaths a Japanese daughter in law at first but soon grows quite fond of her "bouma". She understands Snehamoy's love for his wife but at the same time is concerned about his real needs of a companion. Her love for Snehamoy compasses all other things. Mousumi Chatterjee has excelled herself in the film, no doubt one of her best performances till date. She is funny and charming at the same time and her expressions and humorous quips comes as a much desired comic relief in the otherwise serious theme