It requires guts to make a film that defies stereotype.Director Pankaj Parashar merges form and content beautifully in Banaras and the effort needs to be lauded and appreciated .A film like Banaras signifies the changing face of Hindi cinema and that’s a step in the right direction
This is the story of Shwetambari (Urmila), the daughter of affluent Brahmin parents (Dimple Kapadia and Raj Babbar) and Sohan (Ashmit Patel), who’s been brought up by a local sweeper after being deserted by his family.
Since childhood, Sohan has been at the receiving end of barbs and insults by the class-conscious citizens; his only solace is Babaji (Naseeruddin Shah), a spiritual teacher who belongs to a lower caste.
Hell breaks loose when Shwetambari and Sohan meet and fall in love, giving rise to caste differences and wounded egos. They somehow overcome the pressures and get engaged but before things could settle down, on his wedding day, Soham is killed.
The murderer is never found and a disillusioned Shweta almost goes mad with grief until she finds peace in spiritualism.
Circumstances then compel her to turn her back on the city and take off on a spiritual journey.
Director deserves distinction marks for giving the film a mesmerizing look. The look of the film and even the visuals can be compared to the best across the Atlantic.Besides Pankaj’s execution, three more departments that shine brightly are cinematography [Neerav Shah], sound and background score . In fact, the three factors are the three pillars of this enterprise. But towering above everything else is Parashar’s deft execution.
The scenes involving Ashmeet and Urmila, also between Dimple and Rajbabbar and Urmila’s outburst in climax are fabulously executed.In fact climax, is the best part of the film. The mystery is also revealed well and will shock those who aren’t aware of it.
Besides extracting wonderful performances and blending form and content beautifully, more so in the second half, Parashar also deserves all the praise for exhibiting courage to attempt this genre of film-making.
Though the film does not have much scope for music, the songs are tuneful.
Cinematography is first-rate. The look of the film is consistent and can be best described in one word – brilliant.
It’s difficult to pinpoint the best performer in the film.Urmila is proficient as ever. She is in complete form towards the second half. Naseer shines in a role that seems tailormade for him. Ashmit is superb, conveying a lot through his expressions.
An apt example of progressive cinema that breaks the shackles of stereotype , Banaras deserves our respect and time.