Pokhar Ke Dhnu Paar Review: Darbhanga’s Deconstructed Masculinity | Bollywood
The emergence of the heart of Mithilanchal as a film setting has been a talisman for parallel film production in India. Achar Mishra’s shocking Douin (2022) was the first definitive example of this. Given the nickname Darbhanga New Wave (with good reason to justify its unavoidable significance), this quiet revolution is now yet another modest blow to consciousness, the Pokal.・Produced que d’une parle (on both sides of the pond).
Set in the wake of the pandemic, Parth Saurabh’s film centers on Priyanka (Tanaya Jha Khan) and Sumit (Abhinav Jha), lovers in their early 20s who elope in a run-down small town. Many calm and tranquil bodies of water, and imposing and endless city walls. The couple takes shelter in a room in a dank, dilapidated boys’ dormitory overlooking the local degree college, away from the more respectable-sounding Professor Colony where her family lives.
The resulting union also means that the roles of provider and master of the house become Sumit’s. That he is a naive, entitled wanderer with no sense of responsibility or situational awareness for his actions is another matter. While he is on vacation to reunite with his best friend Nihal, the more sophisticated and confident Priyanka takes the time to convince his old-fashioned father to accept his choice of life partner. is spent.
Elopement is a grand concept, a violation as well as a grand act. Sociologically, it is an exercise in choice, especially in a society where cases of inter-caste marriages and elopements (often reported as kidnappings) have recently increased. In the world of this film, out-of-control rebel passion and drive take shape as a slow and painful subversion of the concept of love. Saurabh sinks this act of rebellion and defiance into a quiet pool of disillusionment (of which Darbhanga does not seem to lack). This is a barren enough area to suffocate any grand concept and nullify its existence.
Perhaps that is why, by the time the film begins, the passion that sparked the rebellion has probably already passed, and in fact it has now worsened. Sumit and Priyanka’s hostel room is not a love nest. Like two runaway preteens in Wes Anderson’s world, they get lost and order and buy strange household items every day. One day, when she pointed out the extreme poverty of their circumstances, he brusquely replied that there was nothing wrong with the way her family was run. In the background, the camera moves across a hammer and sickle painted on a wall that is plagued by seepage. When she nags him, he lights a cigarette. When she talks about money problems, he breaks out and starts crying.
In an interview, the director said that “Pokal Ke Dhunu Paar” is a film about the deepening prejudice amid the pandemic and the system of love crumbling under the weight of traditional gender roles. In the timeline this film chooses, it’s hard to justify the glue that seems to hold these people together in the first place. What did either one do to attract the other and convince him to stay? In the film’s first conversation, the more sophisticated Priyanka understands the mechanics required to run a family and home. I have to remind Sumit that he should think more seriously about applying for the job.
Sumit seems too absorbed in fruitless socializing and numbing. When his work is done for the day, he probably doesn’t realize it, but he goes home and gaslights his partner. He overestimates himself when he assures her of a solid plan to start her business or forces her friend to mortgage a motorcycle. With his skillful portrayal of an ignorant young man in a world hit by crisis, Jha once again cemented his credentials as a solid performer.
Great art often interrogates masculinity, and that’s one light in which this film can be read. For me, this is the director’s quote, “Nobody knows what they’re doing. We’re all just trying.” Once you accept that the protagonists of this story once loved each other, it becomes easier to handle the frustration that Pokhar Ke Dhunu Paar creates in your heart. Although clearly from a disadvantaged background (possibly even belonging to a lower caste) and with some academic talent as the plot hints, the only way out for a young man like Sumit is to bluff Learn how to attract and attract people. situation. Faced with the mating dance and the need to start a family, he persuades his partner of the thrill and adventure of his elopement. But when the pandemic and lockdown hit, his feelings crumbled.
Through the character of Priya, Saurabh undertakes a meditative and surreal exploration of choice. By choosing to take on this adventure, she is agreeing to break out of the Matrix. This ordinary small-town world, in which she is confined in her cage of her own will, was never meant to be hers. The fact that her relationships are rapidly deteriorating and the uncertainty brought about by the economic vulnerability that is a direct result of the pandemic is clearly visible on her face. In addition to cinematographer Pradeep Vinyavel casting the character in various frames of isolation and claustrophobia, there is a particularly disturbing interlude in which she is seen in the hostel room where she lives. It depicts him hosting his best friend. You could say that this other Priyanka is her unhappily married alter ego, making different choices and hopelessly weighing herself against her own. The only moment of intimacy between Priyanka and Sumit in her film is when she tries desperately to arouse herself and Sumit so that she can reaffirm the validity of her own choices. become. She begins to urgently explore her reasons for her actions. She feels disconnected from the past and she is lost in the present.
Another stylistic choice in the so-called Darbhanga New Wave, the 4:3 aspect ratio gives viewers easier access to the characters’ minds, whether it’s in the scene where Sumit casually bullies Nihal into letting go of his bike or in the final moments. I will make it possible. In the film, when the pair of protagonists share a compromising moment on a bridge and their relationship almost falls apart. As a result, the reality of the characters is perceived more directly, allowing a break from the familiar comfort of cinematic distance.
Pokhar Ke Dunu Paar is now streaming on MUBI.
