M S Sathyu's GARM HAVA

The year was 1973 when this movie was first released...and it was not until early eighties when I happen to watch this brilliant movie on a black & white TV set. Even at that time though I could not follow the finer nuances of cinema , it still did leave an indelible mark .

Unfortunately, in todays times there are no prints available in the market yet of this movie, depriving cine lovers of this masterpiece . I managed to somehow request a copy of this movie through a dear family friend, and relived the moments on a Sunday Noon...

The movie is based on a short story by Ismat Chughtai, adapted for the screen by writer Kaifi Azmi.

It is set in the late 40's post partition era , depicting the plight of a muslim family based in Agra, during those troubled times. One after the other, his brother and family and later his son along with his family migrate to Pakistan, not able to withstand the turmoil faced during that time....left behind is Salim Mirza, the eternal optimist along with his family. Balraj Sahni in a role of a lifetime. If anyone wants to know the definition of a subtle yet impactful performance, the reference point should be Balraj Sahni.

Watch the simple story masterly told by M S Sathyu, devoid of any traps of your regular commercial cinema. The shot taking methods used by the director is rarely seen and is way ahead of its time...There are some scenes in which the actor are emoting/conversing facing the camera as if the camera is one of the actors, amazingly deployed.

This movie has a wonderful Qawwali (and the only song in this movie) , performed by Aziz Ahmed Khan Warsi for the Durgah Salim Chisti (Fatehpur Sikri)...mind you these was way ahead of its time, when Qawwali was not an item insertion.... The Picturization of this Qawwali at the Durgah while the lovers are visiting the shrine is again simple and still impactful. Imagine the entire Qawwali, without showing the Qawwali performers...only the shadows of the Saajindey (chorus), clapping to the beats, and camera focussing on the fingers moving on a harmonium.

Classical Background score by Ustad Bahadur Khan. Communicative Cinematography by Ishan Arya.

Then there is this Dadi ma (mother of Balraj Sahni in the movie), who does not wish to vacate the haveli, since it has memories of her life in every nook and corner....she hides in the house, when the family is moving out...and finally her breathing her last back in the same haveli (Post getting evicted)...hearing distant voices of all the members of the family with eyes wide open as if she is searching for the members those who have left the family house and moved to Pakistan....

Movie, also stars Farooque Shaikh in a miniscule but impressive and important role. Shaukat Azmi, A K Hangal, Yunus Parvez, Jalal Agha to name the few.

Reward yourself by watching this simple muslim socio-political drama for the performances,story telling skills by the director and most important BALRAJ SAHNI....