Movie: Koshish
Director: Gulzar
Cast: Sanjeev Kumar, Jaya Bhaduri, Asrani and Dina Pathak
Rating: ***1/2
Usually films dealing with human disability are melodramatic, heart-wrenching and loud but it’s not the same in the case of Gulzar’s “Koshish”, which restores faith and optimism in a simple love story that will leave an ineffaceable impression. The film which could very well be a classic tearjerker is not because of the deftness and finesse the director demonstrates. By not making it just another love story of sympathetic characters, Gulzar proves that a story with complex human emotions can be an inspiring watch too.
Haricharan Mathur, a deaf-and-dumb bicycle messenger falls in love with Aarti, who also suffers from hearing and speaking impediment, at first sight. Hari convinces Aarti to enroll into school for people like her so that she can learn to communicate through sign language with people around her. Eventually, the two get married and have a baby. Years later, after the death of Aarti due to brief illness, Haricharan has singlehandedly raised their son, Amit to be hardworking and independent. Having been raised by deaf parents, Hari was under the assumption that Amit will never see a fellow human being with similar problem as a disability, until he plans his son to get married to a young girl who also happens to be deaf and mute.
The film does get tad too depressing at some juncture especially after the marriage of the couple, but the director quickly shifts gears and proceeds with conviction. This love saga between two ‘abnormal’ persons transcends beyond our understanding and underlines the fact that life is made up of faith and optimism. One might be overwhelmed at the way Gulzar carves each frame, each scene and the characters with precision.
No character in the film seems inappropriate as each and every one of them have a purpose. For instance, the blind character essayed by Om Shivpuri that at first appears unneeded becomes the most important individual in the life of Haricharan soon after the demise of his first child. Even Asrani’s role as Kanu, mean and dishonest brother of Aarti, helps us realize that there are people as strong willed and assiduous as Hari and abhorrent as Kanu who look for opportunity to live life the easy way.
“Koshish” is simply a stimulating study of two persons with some disability fighting for survival in a mad world filled with onlookers laughing at every instance. The love angle is slyly used to paint a story of togetherness and separation (after the death of Aarti) to make us realize that everything else is part and parcel of life. While some may have personally liked the ending, but I personally felt it was doctored to give the film a happy ending. I’d have personally liked if Hari had allowed his son to decide for himself rather than making him succumb to pressure.
No matter how much ever one spoke about Sanjeev Kumar, it always seemed less because the actor was no less than a legend. Sanjeev as Hari is a survivor, a fighter against all odds and a firm believer of karma. His expressions are far more expressive than words spoken by several people around us. To emote through eyes and face is a herculean task but Sanjeev makes it look so easy in several scenes. Sample the scene where Hari gets into an argument with passing onlookers after being rejected by Jaya initially. This particular scene is a brilliant manifestation of his anger, which we later see again towards the end when Amit says no to marriage with a deaf girl. Jaya in a role sans makeup slips into her role with ease and proves her mettle as an actress.
