aashishhere Review of Masaan

Masaan (2015)

Masaan means Crematorium but this is about waking up from dead

[18 June 2017]

The movie is mainly about two characters — Devi and Deepak. Devi is caught having sex with a friend in a hotel room by police who see it as nothing more than a scandal. The guy commits a suicide. She lives with her father and their life is turned upside down with a police officer asking a 3lakh bribe from his father to not put the video on YouTube. She quits her job as they blame her for death of the guy, and struggles to find new jobs. Her dad keen on her working for any sufficient pay so as to pay the bribe. Dad is ashamed of what the daughter has done. Devi is sad about how her right is being treated as her crime. What happened was not her fault. It was the guy who had committed suicide. And both of them consented to have sex. So why blame her? She goes on strongly about it, determined to move to Allahabad once she is done helping her father pay the bribe. She is still in love in with the guy, Piyush. She wants to talk to her family to tell them what had happened, as it is important for any parents to know what were the last conditions of their son still alive. It doesn't go well when she visits them in Allahabad. Her Dad is has struggles of his own. There is Jhonta, a little guy who he bets money on in the competition of which of the kids gets most money out of the river in few dives. He loses him and finds him. Deepak is from a lower caste family whose job is to burn dead bodies and help with rest at a ghat in Ganga. He falls in love with Shaalu Gupta. They both love each other. Until she dies in a road accident. They had talked of running away from home and getting married if their families don't accept it. His life is shattered from her death. She liked Shayri's. Tu Kisi Rail Si Gujarti Hai. Main Kisi Pool Sa Thartharata Hun. He dwells on them for a while. After having thrown her ring in the river and then violent but futile attempt to recover it, he decides to move on. He works hard and lands a job in Allahabad. Devi moves to Allhadbad too for her university course. After visiting Piyush's parents, which doesn't go very well, she decides to move own. Drowns the last gift from Piyush in Ganga and when Sobbing, Deepak approaches to console her. And that is how two stories connect. I can't actually place what the movie was about. It does portray the struggles of young India who wants to shatter the bounds placed by society on whether it is OK to have pre marital sex or if it is OK for a low cast and high cast boy and girl to be together. They try. They are happy momentarily. And then find their lives shattered. One due to society, but other just random chance. Both of them get over it and start a new life, leaving the old shackles behind.