Kamal Haasan: A Cinematic Journey

by K. Hariharan

Shortly after Partition, Saket Ram is able to meet up with his beloved colleague Amjad but gets trapped in Amjad’s locality and is forced to fire upon Hindu militants who want to attack the Muslim ghetto. Credit must be given here to the meticulous attention given to the set décor by Sabu Cyril and his rapport with the cinematographer, Thiru. Together they brought alive a period which very few films have paid attention to. The architecture of Amjad Khan’s home and basement strangely resembles the Mohenjo Daro site, emphasizing the crucial narrative purpose of the film—a story can merely unearth some findings, but it depends upon the people who unearth it to decipher the codes etched into it. In short, the saga of the Mahatma’s assassination can be unearthed, but it depends on the viewers to determine its significance. At a cultural level of this conundrum, the narrative tries to deconstruct Saket Ram’s Hindu space. At first, he belongs to a secular space, which allows him to marry his beloved with simple marital vows and no religious ceremonies; after her rape and death, the subsequent marriage with Mythili, a lady from a Hindu feudal household, has no element of ‘choice’ and is formalized with a ritual-bound ceremony. Then he makes an intoxicating entry into the politicized all-male world of Hindutva, where the gun is supreme. All three events are further discussed below.

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