I wanted to Watch Water in Theatre but on checking up at PVR found out that it was gone so ended up in watching Namastey London instead
At Evening just stopped by Our Movie Rental Library to check for Water as next day was sunday & thought will watch at home in Peace;-)
He showed me a DVD with three Movies Water, Hattrick & Just Married all with their original prints so I thought better watch three instead of One;-){ reviews on others to follow as soon as I watch them} lol
Director: by Deepa Mehta
Music: A.R.Rehman
Lead Actors: Seema Biswas, John Abraham, Lisa Ray, Kulbhushan Kharbanda
Water is set in 1938 – the pre-independence era – in a small village along the banks of the holy Ganga.
The movie begins when a eight-year-old girl is told that she is now a widow(even though she doesn’t remember her husband). Her head is shaved, she is made to drape a white sari around herself and then she is left at an asylum where widows live together. The child cries and throws a tantrum but she is taken away. The woman-in-charge at the widow house is a fat, seventy-year old cranky hag and she tells her that they are sisters in grief. It seems just so unnatural that a little kid is made to also follow these rituals.
This young girl is called Chuhiya(played by Sarala). She is a naughty, hotheaded girl and creates uproar in the house. There are many other women, of all ages and sizes…similarly clad and equally deprived.
Among these women are Shakuntala(Seema Biswas) and Kalyani(Lisa Ray). Shakuntala is the middle-aged, tough yet sensitive woman who helps and protects Chuhiya. Kalyani is the beautiful, young, long-haired(though against the rules) widow who is more like an elder sister to her. Chuhiya always dreams of going back home to her mother and is quite adamant about it. Kalyani, too, has dreams of her own. She dreams of getting out of the rut and getting married. Then Narayan(John Abraham) comes into the picture and they meet somewhere on the ghats. He falls for her and befriends Chuhiya. Kalyani’s dreams are now turned into hope.
Shakuntala asks the local priest if there are any options for widows. He tells her that there are only three ways out – 1. A widow can choose to burn with her husband on the pyre(sati). 2. She can spend a life like hers, in renunciation and give herself up for God; and 3. She can marry her brother-in-law, if the family permits. He also says that there is a law that permits widow re-marriage but we do not acknowledge it. We only abide by those laws that serve a purpose or those that help us maintain the status quo, else we simply ignore them.
In the backdrop, there is mention of Gandhi and his work for the upliftment of women(remember it is 1938 and there is enough turmoil as it is, owing to the colonial rule). Our hero, John Abraham also keeps mentioning Gandhi and wants to marry the beautiful widow. There are instances in the widow house that make you pity the plight of the women. There is an old one who craves for sweets(laddoo and mithai) and even in her sleeps she mutters about it. Chuhiya steals a piece for this woman and gives it to her. Later the woman dies and Chuhiya confesses to Shaktuntala about it. Shakuntala reassures the little girl that despite it, the woman will go to heaven(eating sweets and indulging in pleasures is considered a sin for widows). Shaktuntala further adds that she hopes the woman is reborn as a man so that she can eat as much sweet as she likes. Among other instances that take place, the one that requires a mention is that Kalyani is often sent to the local seths(rich and middle-class landlords) across the river for one-night stands to earn money. Among the seths, she has also been to Narayan’s father.
John Abraham gives one of the finest performances of his career! His entry scene was very nice, and right from that scene till the end, he was fabulous. He carries out his part in such a nice manner, that you just fall in love with his character, Narayan! Fabulous work, John!
Lisa Ray also does a great job. Though she didn’t like an Indian widow(!), she tries her best to be like an Indian woman and she almost succeeds too! Seema Biswas is an actor to watch. She gives a power-packed performance, especially in the climax.
Sarala, who played the role of Chuyia, gives an outstanding performance. She has done such a great job that it cannot be expressed! Raghuvir Yadav proves that he can do any type of role. He looks completely unrecognized in this movie and really does a great job.
Vinay Pathak as Ravindra portrays his part perfectly. Waheeda Rehman as Narayan’s mother does a great job. Kulbhushan Kharbanda as Sadananda leaves a strong impact, even though he has a small role. Same for Gerson da Cunha(as Seth Dwarkanath, Narayan’s father). Mohan Jhangiani as Mahatma Gandhi does a superb job.
. A R Rahman’s music is as usual melodious. Songs were unnecessary, but though they don’t hamper the pace of the movie
Deepa Mehta’s direction is wonderful! She has carried out the scenes in a very nice way. She has also done a great job as a storywriter.
On the whole, Water is a must watch movie. It is Deepa Mehta’s another realistic and brilliant movie Performances, music, background score, art direction, direction-everything is perfect. Don’t miss it!