Aligarh movie review

When I read about Aligarh, I had no recollection of having read about the case of Prof Siras. For all it's all-pervading nature, the media is usually making so much of a big deal out of everything, that sometimes, you tend to overlook something you shouldn't have.

Aligarh is based on the incidents that happened in the life of Aligarh University  professor Shrinivas Ramchandra Siras. A sting operation, his suspension from the university, the fight against it and the unsettling end. The great thing is that this is a story about the human psyche, the ideas of morality and the tussle between liberty and social conformity.The fact that it is about homosexuality is only incidental. 

The greatest strength of the film is the way it develops the character of the Linguistics professor and the way Manoj Bajpai has portrayed it. A learned man, a poet, a man who loves what he does, enjoys music to the depth of his soul- a regular old man who has no time or space for anything revolutionary. Bajpai fills the frame on many occasions and completely captivates you as he speaks with every inch of his body. Complementing and almost matching him is Rajkumar Rao, playing the journalist who comes to Aligarh for the story but ends up forging a friendship with Siras. Their conversations are some of the best moments of the film- the older man's exasperation at the younger generation's fixation with 'labels', the way he explains how poetry lies between the lines- and how his face lights up as he speaks about poetry. Ashish Vidyarthi does justice to the role of the lawyer representing Siras.

Throughout the film, the director's vision shines through.The irony of social conditioning-as society is conditioned about sexual orientation, the protagonist is conditioned about sanctity of food in relation to caste- is expressed in a seemingly casual lunch scene. The close succession of two scenes of intimacy challenge the viewer's perception of 'normal'. The camera work and mise en scene work beautifully. Delightful touches like the professor using a towel on top of his pillow add to the feel. The end makes you restless, raises many a question; about the society we live in and our systems of law enforcement and justice.

Yes, there are a few flaws, although the great outweighs the not-so-great by a huge margin.There is inconsistency in the professor's accent. Whereas he utters the typical Urdu sounds like the epiglottal 'kha' very naturally, he's made to say 'ijjat' instead of 'izzat' to underline his Maharashtrian roots. Despite having lived in Aligarh for decades, he says 'bas, bas' (Marathi for 'sit') when urging someone to sit down. Also, I felt the film contradicts its own statement that not all people who stand for gay rights are gay. When the lawyer's assistant take the professor to a gay party, he says, 'These are the people who signed the petition in your support'.

But as I said, the positives absolutely outweigh the flaws. Hats off to Hansal Mehta for choosing to make this film, and making it so well. Watch it and it'll occupy space in your mind for a few days. And probably, Manoj Bajpai will be your new favourite 'hero'. 

Droplets of light

Life is like the moon. It has phases-illusions, that seem real to the observer. It's easy to see the brighter side of things on a full moon night, isn't it? It's the darker phases that are a challenge. 

But then there are myriads of sparks around us, waiting for our miraculous gaze to raise them above their commonness, waiting to tell us that divinity exists despite our doubts, waiting to light up our moonless nights. Or may be it's their very ordinariness that makes them beautiful.

If you've traveled by Mumbai local trains, you'd know what a melting pot of human beings- hot, irritated, packed together too close-they are. Add to it filthy surroundings and the abject poverty of the beggars and vendors. Yet, the twinkling eyes and toothy grin of an unwashed urchin is sometimes enough to bring a smile to your face. The women's compartments have the advantage of attracting flower sellers. The jasmine gajras pale in front of the golden champaks. I can smell them from far and their lasting, intoxicating fragrance is something I just can't resist. I end up buying a few which the lady wraps in a leaf. I cross the Thane Creek at Vashi to go to work everyday. Flamingoes-those living fossils-feed so close to the train tracks along the water that it's the closest I've seen them from , though without the advantage of binoculars. Arriving in Mumbai by the end of winter, and staying throughout summer, most of these are lesser flamingoes, with greater flamingoes making an occasional appearance. What a joy it is to watch these pink beauties filter-feed with their teapot-like beaks!

Flamingoscape

Chavar/Wild arrowroot-Hitchenia caulina

Sonki-Senecio grahamii

And if you're overcome with monsoon blues, all you have to do is step out and look around, as nature is literally bursting out into magical shapes and colours from unimaginable places. Grasses, mosses and fiddleheads of ferns soothe the eye and a great variety of flowers, sizes varying from teeny to huge add colour to nature's canvas.
It is quite unbelievable how so many plants that lie dormant throughout the year sprout up while conditions are favourable, and delight us so in the process. The otherwise rugged Sahyadris get adorned -flowers of wild arrowroot, sonki, various ground orchids, and many many more.

Sonki carpet

To my great surprise, as I was once returning from Pune on a monday morning in August, I saw a flaming Glory Lily among the bushes by the roadside near the signal on the Vashi highway. A lone flower that had bloomed stubbornly by a crowded junction full of honking, smoke spewing vehicles.

Glory Lily- Gloriosa superba

So, here I am, enjoying yet another blessed evening and pondering about life. I'm sipping ginger tea sitting in my terrace, overlooking mangroves and the sea. I've been scouring the skies to see if the Peregrine Falcon is flying around today, but no sight of the helmeted-fighter pilot. It sure is a special bird- the only 'interesting' raptor that you can see around the year in Mumbai, and of course the fastest bird of prey on earth! The post monsoon sky is changing from pink to purple against a flock of black-headed ibises flying past me. The fruit bats will start heading east soon; my cue to go inside the house.


Photo credit: The flamingoes and Glory Lily have been shot by Mayur. Special thanks to Mr. Prashant Awale for the beautiful pictures of Sonki and Chavar.