Movie: Earth

Actors: Aamir Khan, Rohan Khanna
Director: Deepa Mehta, Producer:

On Veterans Day (Nov. 11th), I took the time to visit the Tower
Theatre in Sacramento to see the movie "Earth" by writer/director Deepa
Mehta in spite of not being into Bollywood/Indian movies, even the "made
in the West" variety. But this one did have a special appeal. Frankly, I
went to see it because it`s story line was based on a novel called
"Cracking India" by Pakistan`s Bapsi Sidhwa.
As we know there are not too many Pakistani writers of English novels
published in the West. But ever since I read "The Crow Eaters" and "The
Bride"
by Bapsi (whom we have just recently heard from in the PakistaniAmerican press introducing her brother M. P. Bhandara), I thought that it would
be nice to try and share some thoughts about this movie with
CHOWK readers.

So first, a warm welcome to Bapsi Ji for making her presence known
from Houston. Let us hope that this is only the beginning of her interest in us here. And as one person who has read
many articles by M. P. Bhandara in the Pakistani Press and have come to
depend on him for keeping us abreast of what is brewing in Pakistan from
time to time (and not only in politics), let us hope that we
Pakistani-Americans will read his articles here too.
Now to get back to "Earth" and the difficulty in reviewing it from a
Pakistani perspective and as one who has not yet read "Cracking India".

Deepa Mehta
may or may not have taken some liberties with the original story line
but the movie without biased intent, did not turn out to be as neutral
as I would have hoped (maybe my own biases prevail here?) . And I
mention that because Bapsi as a Pakistani Parsi (Zoroastrian) writer has
projected the difficult position and forced neutrality of her community
in this story line. But let us start from the beginning.
The central character and conduit through which all the events and
personalities in "Earth" come to us is Lenny Sethna (played by Maia
Sethna), a eight year old physically challenged Parsi girl in Lahore at
the time of Partition (when British India was divided into two states,
India and Pakistan in 1947). Maia is absolutely wonderful in this role
and retains a smile and expression that will make a viewer`s heart melt,
even amidst high the tension, brutality and just plain horror portrayed
in this movie. The story is about how history treats two groups with
which this little girl interacts. One is that of her immediate family,
her mother Bunty (played by Kitu Gidwani who is simply outstanding in
this movie) and father Rustom (Arif Zakaria) and their religiously
diverse, relatively affluent friends. The second and "working class"
group is that which surrounds Lenny`s Nanny, Shanta the Ayah (played by
Nandita Das).

The story starts off with whispers of Partition and ends when it
becomes a reality. Bapsi/Deepa have done a wonderful job in the area of
speculation and disbelief as to which part of the country would go to
which country. But it is in the realm of the question whether Partition
should ever have taken place, that Pakistani-Americans may have a
problem. So when Lenny breaks a plate and wonders how one breaks up a
country the underlying message was not lost to this scribe. And the
question did come to mind as to which country? And whether British India
was actually ever really one country to begin with?

The neighborhood in which Lenny grows up, within which her parents
socialize has British, Hindu, Sikh and Muslim residents. The impact of
Partition on this group is dramatic. This is especially true within the
character of Mr. Singh (a Sikh) because when Lahore goes to Pakistan,
he, along with the Hindu neighbors leaves. And he has to entrust some of
his property to Lenny`s family for safekeeping as once again the
minority Parsi neutrality comes into play. One very touching moment is
when Lenny`s mother Bunty asks why they were letting the neighbors down
by not doing anything for them with their neutral status? Her husband
Rustom asks which group should they support or betray, Hindu, Muslim or
Sikh? The analogy of "Sugar in Milk" and its applicability in the role
of Parsis in South Asia was also very well done.

But it appears that the main story lies within the group that
surrounds the very sensual Shanta (Lenny`s Hindu Nanny) and the central
male character Dil Nawaz (played by Aamir Khan) also known as "The Ice
Candy Man" (Cracking India was published under this name in England).
Shanta`s beauty attracts not only Dil Nawaz but Hasan the Massuer
(played by Rahul Khanna) both Muslim characters. Hindus and Sikhs also
form a part of this group which is able to maintain relative harmony in
spite of it`s diversity. But then Partition comes into the picture in a
big way.

The utterly devastating impact of the dark forces unleashed during
Partition on the friendship and lives of these poor people is where I
believe the main focus of this movie lies. There is no blame attributed
to any one group or individual Hindu, Muslim or Sikh, but the
transformation of Dil Nawaz after his twin defeat in love and against
the historical forces of partition hit the viewer like a hammer. And the
message that Deepa & Bapsi send to us through this movie is that
such dark forces that live within the prejudices that the religious
communities in South Asia should keep under control, if released can
cause a catastrophe. All three communities and the exiting British are
collectively held accountable here.

In conclusion "Earth" sends an anti-war message to South Asians.
Through the colorful journey through Basant (Kite Festival) and the
blood spilled streets during Partition in the City of Lahore (which to
this day has many admirers on both sides of the India/Pakistan border),
there is a lesson to be learnt. And if one can ignore the unnecessary
and strong Urdu and Punjabi profanity (Galis) of which there is much of
in this movie, "Earth" can be quite an educational movie. One is
reminded here that Indians and Pakistanis are a fun loving, sensitive
and caring people who unfortunately also carry a beast within them. The
Partition of 1947 let this beast out of it`s cage and we witness the
destruction that it can cause. The message projected in "Earth" is
that this beast should never again be let out. And that is where the movie,Deepa Mehta and Bapsi Sidhwa succeed in educating the viewer. The question now is as Kashmir bleeds between us, who is ready to listen?