Individualistic Individualism

I don’t really know where I should begin my review for Gandhi – My Father as the movie is replete with moments which are like rare gems for a film connoisseur. However, the beauty of the film lies in the fact that it is politically correct, and thus the director succeeds in staying away from silly controversies, coz basically the film’s merits are enough for its worth and thus it doesn’t need to rely on such antics for its success. At the same time, another amazing aspect of the film is that it is pulls out the Mahatma robes from the father of the nation, and thus showcases him as another human being. So even the Gandhi detesters can enjoy certain other moments of the film, because it doesn’t sermonize or re-instill the Gandhinian virtues and it doesn’t talk about his journey into priestly fiefdom through the route of freedom.

From Ramesh Sippy’s Shakti and Karan Johar’s K3G, to more recently in Apne many films have showcased some sort of an idealistic tussle between a father and his son. Gandhi – My Father does precisely the same, but here the battle isn’t for money or other worldly possessions or the son’s love interest; but it is between the identity of the father and the son’s emotions; the way he perceives his father.

In the very first scene, we see Harilal being brought into the hospital where the ward-boy enlightens him with the fact that Gandhi is the father of the entire nation, and asks him for his father’s name. The loss of his father in the Mahatma’s cloak is very subtly brought out over here. Similarly, the movie ends on a painfully beautiful note when a strange hotel owner weeps in front of Harilal and informs him about the nation’s father’s death, while his eyes exhibit both the loss of his father and a sort of shame and guilt of not being the part of the proceedings for his own father’s demise. Harilal’s anonymous existence amongst the masses thereafter and the stampede which he undergoes indicates both his retribution and his repentance.

Certain scenes delicately underplay an anti-Gandhi sentiment, without any intentions of being anti-Gandhi. These are the scenes which show how the Mahatma and the benevolent of the community tends to rise above the emotions of an ordinary human being, which even include the basic concerns of a father and thereby his son’s silent, non-violent revolt to the same. However, even while he refutes against his father’s virtues, Harilal doesn’t adhere to violent means. All his violent outbursts are completely internalized and he burns from within. Notable amongst these scenes are Gandhi’s recommendations of other wannabie Barristers as eligible candidates for the scholarship, his denial for Harilal’s wedding, further Gulab’s departure to India, without Harilal’s consent and even other minor things like constant insistence on every decision which Harilal takes, to the extent that he even suggests the books Hari should read, and finally getting him back to the Phoenix settlement when he decides to run away with a fake name, Pranlal Mehta.

The scene immediately after that, when the father and son speak as a father and the son, probably for the first time in the film, is very well taken. Further on, the scene where Harilal’s smouldered suffering breaks out publicly as he shouts on the streets and yells that he is the useless son of the great man, doesn’t only make you cry, for several reasons; a son’s sufferings, the denunciation of a father’s existence and Akshaye Khanna’s excellent performance; but leaves you with an eerie thought of how should a father of Gandhi’s stature be with his average and ordinary son.

While these scenes may be seen in the anti-Gandhi light, the film doesn’t take any moral stand pro or against Gandhi, as it showcases the character of Gandhi, as just another human being, just an individual. Darshan Zariwala’s portrayal of the father who wants his son back and his efforts to get him, forgiving him as a son, but formally dissociating him from the brand Gandhi, raising Harilal’s children with the Gandhinian values, but suggestion to sack his fraud son is simply superb. From the body language, to his smile, to the make-up every moment which he spends on the screen reminds me of the picture of the Mahatma which I saw in the history book in school.

The emotional high-points of the enterprise are the scenes where Harilal offers an orange to Kasturba and indirectly insists that she doesn’t share the same with Bapu, the one where Ba meets Abdullah (Harilal’s name after he accepts Islam) and the one where she asks her re-converted son to leave after he meets her in an inebriated state. Shefali Shah’s act as Ba, mayn’t be the most lengthy performance of the film, but the dilemma of the mother thrown between the love for her son and her husband’s and her own ideals, is brought out very subtly and beautifully by her. On several silent occasions, her eyes speak, and amongst other things, her make-up is simply superb.

Bhumika Chawla as Gulab isn’t the most potent performer of the lot, but the innocence and strength in her performance is noteworthy, especially when she breaks the news of her departure to Harilal, the point where she tells her husband about him being wrong, and when she tells Bapu that she’d stay with her parents in Rajkot. Nonetheless she doesn’t let the lack of a meaty role hamper her histrionics.

Amongst the technicians, cameraman David Macdonald steals the show. The use of the distinct colours for the frames, which capture both the essence of the Gujarati culture; then be it the wedding rituals, the Harilal Gandhi house in old Ahmedabad, the step well at Adalaj, the street play in the lanes of old Ahmedabad (which I presume is Bhavai); and the anglicized colonies of South Africa; mixed with black and white footage of the Indian freedom struggle (some actual and some very well matched with the dated prints) gives the film the brilliant look which it rightly deserves. Amongst the other contributors to the film’s authentic look is art director Nitin Desai. Given the plethora of varied movies which he has done, from 1942: A Love Story and Hum Dil de Chuke Sanam to Lagaan and Devdas; Gandhi – My Father belongs to the same league and adds another feather to his already bedecked cap.

Piyush Kanojia’s music captures the Gujarati flavour of the film, and the folk songs fit in very well with the film. For once, a period film thrives on its authenticity even in this department and doesn’t resort to musical means to monetize more share of the viewer’s wallet. The costumes also add to the look.
I don’t recollect the name of the dialogue writer, but he/she along with the screenplay writer has managed to capture chunks of history spread over several decades in a taut 2.5 hours. Kudos to the effort!

Anil Kapoor should be specially lauded for his efforts. The film bears a rich look and the producer has made sure that every frame looks worth every penny that has been spent on it. The film is definitely remarkable and AK should be congratulated for providing the financial muscle for an enterprise which would have been rendered worthless without it.

Director Feroz Abbas Khan confidently debuts in the league of the great story tellers of Hindi cinema. Every frame has some significance to the main plot of the story and the execution of the plot is superb. Also, the film has abundant cinematic metaphors, which have been deftly incorporated by the skilled craftsman, like the scene where Harilal bows down and touches Bapu’s feet, being shot against the rising sun, or the scene in Harilal’s house where his children run around in a circle with the wooden horse oscillating in the centre.

The plot operates on several levels and he has handled all of them skillfully. The scenes where rivals of the Mahatma take extra special efforts, and the probable knight of Gandhi’s kingdom is pawned by the opponents, subtly hint at the sort of politics and the burden that comes along with the tag of being born to a successful father. The director has also used silence very effectively in the background score, and amongst other noteworthy aspects of the film is the climax of the film, which ends on a spookily silent note, and the muted visuals where the end credits roll in just can’t leave you unperturbed. Let us suffice it to say that there is a new ray of hope for Hindi cinema, as a neophyte emanates the potential of an expert director.

And finally, if there is one person to whom the film belongs, it is Akshaye Khanna. That I am a big fan of his, would definitely make me write extra epithets to praise him, but the fact of the matter is that he is so superb and effortless in the film, that whatever anyone says can’t come anywhere at par with his extraordinary performance. From the child-like demeanour in the court room scene, where he sort of blindly adheres to his father’s principles and flashes a smile just because he is being the Chhota Gandhi, to his breakdown in the lanes of Ahmedabad where he proclaims to be Gandhi’s worthless son, to the scene where he gets drunk and misbehaves with the cop, to his lonely tone when he asks the prostitute whether she’d spend some time and chat with him; he conveys the complex emotions with ease and comfort, without being dramatic or going overboard. The Devdas like end of spirited man couldn’t have been portrayed any better. Akshaye is brilliant, period!

The film is a must watch, not only because it shows a human and personal side of history and the man who wrote and re-wrote history, but also because it has subliminal messages for child rearing especially in case of successful fathers, and it shows the repercussions of abandonment of an individual’s individuality.