Chakravyuh : A moviegoer's opinion about Naxalism and beyond

Yesterday I went to a theatre .......Kesri in Bhubaneshwar ...It possess a large  70 mm. screen equipped with Dolby-Digital sound system & a big campus. It is  a classical single-screen theatre having the old world charm of movie-watching experience along with a dedicated team of ticket blackeers which are a hallmark of small-town India.

The omnipresent blackeers signify the  economic theory of mismatch between Demand and supply. There are nearly 10,500 single-screen theatres in India in addition to approximately 900 multiplex screens.But the revenue share of multiplex is around 65% whereas single-screen theatres contribute only 35% .

To put facts in perspective , a balcony ticket costing Rs. 80 in Kesari(Bhubaneshwar) is available with blackeer at a premium cost of Rs. 250, same amount which you will normally pay in PVR  in NCR of Delhi. Here comes the role of blackeers as they devour all the Rs. 170 on every ticket in collaboration with cinema owner.It is a cool arrangement  for cinema owner as he has to pay entertainment tax according to printed price but actually eats up more money from valued customer.Hence, the power of black money grows as they contribute to only a small share of 35 % of those 100-crore blokbusters.

Kesri boasts of central air-conditioning system and  push-back seats are very comfortable.It provides wholesome movie experience at a fraction of cost of watching movies in multiplexs. So, I decided not to enrich the black money coffer of the cinema owner and preferred the online route to grab seats according to my comfort. BookTicketNow provided  the ideal platform and I chose the best seat of the balcony and paid a legitimate service fee of Rs. 16 per ticket.

Happy...very happy.....blackeers never gave me the chance to choose seats and here I was spoilt for the choice.It was a tough job to go for the best seat among 200 seats of balcony.

It was wednesday,24th of October 2012, the movie was "Chakravyuh" by Prakash Jha and I was eagerly waiting for this movie since last few months as it was supposed to enlighten me about the root causes as well as factual status of Naxalism in India.

I woke up early in the morning, ran few Kilometres and got ready to watch the first day,first show at 0915 Hrs.The air was thick with Lal Salaam even before I entered theatre as the posters were revealing the story-line.I straightaway reached my seat without the help of torch-fellow as I had seen the the location of my seat on my computer screen. It was a great relief as I didn't jostled with my fellow movie-goers to get the attention of  torch-fellow.

I have read few books on Naxalism e.g. "Naxalism in India" by Prakash Singh and  "Hello Bastar" by Rahul Pandita  but they failed to provide me visual glimpses of the battlefield of Naxalism. News channel  coverage  on Maoist attacks as well interviews with Naxal Commanders  can not enhance your  perception of this great fight.

It is a very sad commentary on the calibre of our film-makers that despite watching the unfolding of Naxalism since 1967 in India....no one has dared to put it on  the biggest canvass of 70 mm.The last movie on the topic I watched  was "Hazaron Khwahishen Aisi" in 2003 by Sudhir Mishra. But that movie basically depicted the human emotions associated with Naxalism.The  actual conflict was just a background of the movie.
Here in "Chakravyuh" Prakash Jha dares to show the conflict between Indian State and the adivasis on the ground in Chattisgarh.

One striking thing about the movie is that it was shot in Panchmarhi and Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh.So, the landscape of Chattisgarh depicted in movies seems authentic as the sun-drenched jungles of Panchmarhi are more or less like Dantewada.Last time, such striking similarity of landscape was depicted in " Dakait" by Rahul Rawail. Sunny Deol shot in ravines of Chambal to give a real touch to the story.

Now coming to the movie,

It is a master-piece by Jha even by his own standards as  he has surpassed his earlier creation be it Gangajal or Rajneeti or Apaharan or Aarakshan . Simply because, he has shown the way to tackle a complex issue without making cinematic compromises.Both sides of  the coin have been shown in threadbare details.

He has not preached us about the need or futility of Naxalism ......he has just presented it as the mirror of society prevalent in under-developed  parts of India. He has shown the genesis of conflict between actual inhabitants of the land and outsiders who are hell-bent upon making profit.Human lives does not matter for greedy, so-called upper class of Indian society.

At the same time, he has depicted the conflict in the mind of an upright police officer, the games that our ruling class plays and how the Naxals hijack the mind of urban intellectualy-inclined youths.If you have a heart, you can not be immune to the suffering of your neighbours.

Nearly 75% population  of our country is surviving on less-than Rs. 30 a day even after 65 years of  Independence. The glass of fruit juice which  I had during my breakfast today will cost you Rs. 40 in the markets of Cuttack. Imagine if you have to survive even for a day on Rs. 30......how would you feel......the population in remote corners of India do not have this luxury............

So, I give credit to the director for informing me of this fact.Urban youth of India has no idea what the f##* is happening in the heart of India ...yes MP is literally located in middle of India.

Arjun Rampal conceded recently that he does'nt knew about  the Naxalism before doing this movie. This boy has even surprised himself.....he was considered the most handsome non-actor in Mumbai but he has delieverd a power-packed performance. His anger,angst,inability to change system and other weaknesses of a young police officer has been brilliantly caught up by the lens of Prakash Jha.

Abhay Deol, as usual ,has injected the life in the role of a baseless/wanderer youth undecided on his loyalties to Indian State or the cause of Naxalism. His mannerism as well as chemistry with other lead actors is wonderful.His transformation from a Friend to a Revolutionary is the high point of Chakravyuh.His conscious efforts to get lost in Chakrvyuh is  legendary.His death and few moments of vulnerability before that brought tears to my eyes.It can be put in the league of Amitabh Bachchan's death in "Sholay" His chemistry with Rampal reminds me of Jay-Veeru.Only change is that Veeru died in Chakravyuh.

Manoj Bajpai has lived the life and times of "Comrade Rajan" so wonderfully that if  senior hardcore Naxalite leaders get to watch this movie...they will recruit him for their organization. He has looked every bit the reclusive Maoist firebrand leader.His regional tone as well as ruthlessness of a Zonal commander is truly remarkable.His pep talk to adivasis about the need to fight Indian State and community bonding during Maoist camp evokes admiration.

However,if it comes to the crux,whose performance is the best among all the protagonists....then this title needs to be given to "Comrade Juhi" aka Anjali Patel.This Nasik-born girl is the revealation of the movie.  As soon as she comes on the screen she lights up the proceedings.......her immense brooding eyes and body language is class apart.She has played the role of femme fatale i.e. Bish Kanya to the hilt.Her character is the binding central character in this movie of epic proportions. I have not seen such a strong-willed female character in Indian cinema since long time that too from a relatively newcomer. She is bound to go places in Indian cinema.She has played perfect foil to the combined screen presence of all 03 senior male actors.
Furthermore,the best dialogue of the movie has been said in her honour........
"We know baby that you are Madhuri Dixit"...................Iconic words  to describe a lioness in wild jungles of Central India.

Now coming to some sore points of this 152-minute long drama.

First one is the sultry and curvaceous Esha Gupta.....after displaying her acting skills in Raaz 3 in the august company of lover boy Imran Hashmi....she has again wasted herself by some skin show and trying to add some fire power by using FN P-90 weapon in combating maoists while strategically riding a low-flying helicopter.

2nd one is Sameera Reddy in a faltu item song which was unnecessary inserted by the idiot editor of the movie.

But,for the first time conflict issues have been raised  in Indian cinema.Chkravyuh takes inspiration from some real-life events like massacre of security force personnel in badlands of Abujhmad.....it is called so because Indian State has been unable to understand the people living there.Glimpses of Kishanjee or Kobad Ghandy are scattered here and there.

Nevertheless, how can any movie be given 5-Stars so easily..we need such loopholes to criticize the ability of director. I really miss Nikhat Kazmi of Times of India....whenever she gave more stars to any movie...I was sure that the movie will be a waste of time and whenever she criticized any movie I was sure about the goodness of the movie in question.
As I used to watch each and every movie......she wasn't a bad influence on me but some of my collegemates/batchmates used to find her opinion very useful.....

So, my advice to you is that....grab a seat in your nearest theatre to watch this epic saga of modern India.....purchase only online tickets.....because it feels very awkward to return empty-handed from  the theatre gates as you have used Petrol to reach there in first place. If you give money to blackeer......better you forward a bank draft to some Swiss Bank because most of the Indian Black Money is stored in their vaults while our countrymen are literally starving.

One of my dear friend Parmar also watched the movie first day ,first show........may be he will throw some more light on topic under discussion.One of my esteemed friend had complained that my blogs are gigantic.....so from my standard this is a short blog.....you need to read it religiously to enjoy the message so that the CHAKRAVYUH crosses the 100-crore barrier in near future.

Happy reading till the time I decide to write again........

see you some day at some theatre in your neighbourhood.