A call to arms

The last time a film carried a three-disc edition it was for a special collectors disc of Avatar

The last time a film carried a three-disc edition it was for a special collectors disc of Avatar. Khelein Hum Jee Saan Sey KHJSS,in that respect,falls way short of expectations in terms of features when compared to its iconic predecessor. However,on all other counts,the DVD is a keeper.

Right from the two discs dedicated to the near three-hour long movie to the extra disc with special features,the set brims with an enthusiasm that takes you right back to the 1930s when the film was set.

Based on a Rabindra Puraskar-winning novel,Do Or Die,The Chittagong Uprising 1930-34 by Manini Chatterjee,this Ashutosh Gowariker-directed film tells the back story of an uprising that went from glowing idealism to a chase gone awry,with aplomb.

Manini says that she found the inspiration for the book in Kalpana Dutta herself,who was her mother-in-law. Other revolutionaries like Subodh Roys unpublished memoirs and Anant Singhs three-volume account of the uprising formed the basis of the book along with the memories of Kalpana that was later translated on screen in KHJSS. Maninis primary motive,that the picture brings to life vividly,is the escape after the failed attempt to seal off Chittagong that forms the second half of the movie. Places like the jungles of Jalalabad and Gairala from where Surjya is finally arrested,thus come into focus in the narrative. Manini says that Gowarikers track-record ensured that both of them were creatively on the same page.

Of course,one must set aside the prejudice of Gowarikers lengthy expositions and scene development to enjoy this real- life slice of historical action. You must also look aside when the actors mispronounce perfectly normal Bengali words,including names like Kolpona. Deepika Padukone,who plays revolutionary Kalpana Dutta in the film,says in the extra DVD,It was the first time I was playing a real-life character and I realised how important her role was in the closed period back then. She also gushes about working with Gowariker,an accomplished maker of period films with Jodhaa Akbar and Lagaan under his belt. Deepika repeats a line she had told this correspondent when the film was up for release: I went by the directors vision as I had complete faith in Ashu sir. I did not have to read the book to know Kalpana, she says.

Lead actor Abhishek Bachchan talks about Surjya Sen,an ordinary teacher turned hunted revolutionary,with a certain nonchalance. He says that freedom fighters are always made out to be classy and theatrical whereas he tried to make Surjya real and approachable. He also says that the role of a teacher and revolutionary almost contradict each other in their action and attitude. More than anything,as Abhishek says so simply,the role of the film is to bring back an era that is largely forgotten but whose story is as relevant today as it was almost 80 years ago.