I don’t want to be a published
writer. A conclusion I reached last month as I touched 50. Many of the
so-called bucket list sort of melted away as realisation dawned & I decided
to be sincere to be myself. I will write for the joy of writing & nothing
else. Not for the reader – not for the publisher – not for being a part of any
list. But I will write. It’s a simple truth.
Manto, the movie is a good effort
but I found all other characters very wooden and artificial. The only reason
one should see the movie is Nawazuddin Siddique who get’s inside Manto as he
portrays the anguish of multiple things - being Indian & in love with
Bombay but fleeing India, the Hindu-Muslim divide and the havoc it caused to
the people of both countries, being tried in the court for obscenity, papers
not publishing his work, his guilt of neglecting his family.
One should also see this just to
understand Manto and the whole process of writing. We have always read about
movies where the actors become the character – what is typically defined as
method acting. The recent being Joker. Here is a writer who depicts the reality
the way he sees it and what he feels about it. He writes to convert his anguish
and helplessness into words and characters. He becomes so engrossed in the
whole tragedy of partition that he becomes alcoholic and dies of cirrhosis of
liver. He was a true case where the writer and the reality and his writing all
became one.
Any creative work even if it’s a
simple blog must come from inside. That’s my belief, it cannot be manufactured.
So, the painters, writers (especially poems) & movie makers (sensible ones)
go through lot of churn when they put out something. If the same churn can be
felt by the viewer or a reader, then they have made something which is worth
watching for that person. Read the below article to understand Nandita’s views
as a director and time and effort she spent making this film.
Start here to know more about
Manto: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saadat_Hasan_Manto
Hear what Nandita has to say:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYkDZe8y600
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EIq5OPjXBc
(Both interviews are long but ...if you are keen to understand the director - see it.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EIq5OPjXBc
(Both interviews are long but ...if you are keen to understand the director - see it.)
Revisit Manto's Bombay in words & pictures*:
https://www.firstpost.com/long-reads/revisiting-mantos-bombay-in-words-and-pictures-5228631.html Buy This: Bitter Fruit: The very best of Manto; Edited and translated by Khalid Hasan (best short stories)
The 5 stories which are weaved into the movie Manto* (Reality and imagination are diffused through skilfully weaving the narrative of Manto’s life with that of his famous short stories. ‘Dus Rupay Ka Note’, ‘Sau Watt Ka Bulb’, ‘Khol Do’, ‘Thanda Gosht’ and ‘Toba Tek Singh’ make their way into the film that encapsulates four years of Manto’s life – two before Independence and two after it. (*courtesy: First Post)
