Neeraj Ghaywan's debut movie Masaan evokes a whole gamut of emotions ranging from fear, redemption, hope, love to transformation. The movie's themes of entropy, destruction and resurrection are signalled by the title, which means crematorium, and the location. Masaan looks for love, meaning, redemption and transformation which it victoriously portrays through its lead characters, characters which swirl in their own eddies but forging ahead with determination.
Set in the backdrops of rustic yet idyllic Ganga ghats of Varanasi, the movie showcases two parallel stories.Two journeys are twinned, one beginning in despair and the other in hope. One is of Devi, whose sexual rendezvous with a recently acquired boyfriend goes horribly wrong, putting Devi and her father at the mercy of a corrupt police officer. The other is of the star-crossed romance between Shalu and Deepak, she from an upper caste and he a member of the Dalit Dom community that cremates bodies at the Varanasi ghats. The scenes between Deepak and Shaalu offer innocence and charm and offset the sadness that overtakes Devi and Pathak, neither of whom is equipped to deal with their changed circumstances.
Ghaywan's periodic drama also digs and lucidly put forwards the brutal truths of Indian society- sexual repression, the caste divide, financial hardship, limited mobility – through individual philosophical journeys. We are stifled by our growth and age-cultural traditions that have led to relative morality. The whole patriarchal system allows us to take the moral high ground – how a small city girl cannot have sex before marriage, for instance. Though brutal but these traditional truths encapsulate the inherent Indian-ness and allows the viewers to be more attached the displayed theme. Ghaywan's narrative is fluid and rich with confidence and sensitivity and the Indian-ness in his writing and shooting does allow its protagonists savor the characterization. Masaan perfectly captures the journey of two tragedy-struck souls from decay to renewal. It all comes to the beautiful concluding scene, which suggests that sometimes, redemption can begin at a point that is not too far away.
Set in the backdrops of rustic yet idyllic Ganga ghats of Varanasi, the movie showcases two parallel stories.Two journeys are twinned, one beginning in despair and the other in hope. One is of Devi, whose sexual rendezvous with a recently acquired boyfriend goes horribly wrong, putting Devi and her father at the mercy of a corrupt police officer. The other is of the star-crossed romance between Shalu and Deepak, she from an upper caste and he a member of the Dalit Dom community that cremates bodies at the Varanasi ghats. The scenes between Deepak and Shaalu offer innocence and charm and offset the sadness that overtakes Devi and Pathak, neither of whom is equipped to deal with their changed circumstances.
Ghaywan's periodic drama also digs and lucidly put forwards the brutal truths of Indian society- sexual repression, the caste divide, financial hardship, limited mobility – through individual philosophical journeys. We are stifled by our growth and age-cultural traditions that have led to relative morality. The whole patriarchal system allows us to take the moral high ground – how a small city girl cannot have sex before marriage, for instance. Though brutal but these traditional truths encapsulate the inherent Indian-ness and allows the viewers to be more attached the displayed theme. Ghaywan's narrative is fluid and rich with confidence and sensitivity and the Indian-ness in his writing and shooting does allow its protagonists savor the characterization. Masaan perfectly captures the journey of two tragedy-struck souls from decay to renewal. It all comes to the beautiful concluding scene, which suggests that sometimes, redemption can begin at a point that is not too far away.