Katha Chitram

“What’s your favourite color?”she asks “Gulabi-woh jo mughal raniyaan pehanti thi woh wala gulabi “ ..the old widow replies ... The smile on her face and the dreams floating in her eyes like those candy floss clouds narrate a painful tale of unspoken words and unfulfilled dreams crashed in multiple fragments. Last night I watched this amazing movie called “The last color “ based on the novel of chef Vikash Khanna ..a simple yet hard hitting tale of the naked truth of widows of Benaras ..the saga of “Achhoot-the untouchable “..the pain and agony of an eunuch ..story of a little girl who is managing to survive in a ruthless world of greed,inequality,lust ,hunger and uncertainty. Neena Gupta is an underrated actor of tinsel town ..she can emote through her smile ..she can win you with her eyes..the ease and simplicity of her acting is beyond any talent ... Few dialogues have left an everlasting impression on my mind ...or shall I say it has been nudging me all through the day ... There was a scene when the little girl is telling Noor..a widow played by Neena Gupta that she had found a dog whose eyes resembled that of Noor...she goes on to explain that when ever she touched the dog to love it used to bark and get scared ... Noor asks her the reason and the little girl’s reply left me in tears .. She says ..”usko shayad pyar ki aadat nahi hai..ghat par kutte aise hi pal jate hain” It was not just the dog -the widow and the girl both had also seen such hardship in life that perhaps the thought of love and care were either an alien terms or an intimidating feeling for them .. How painful is the thought that love can scare someone ...that goes on to explain that how deep are their wounds .. Allow me to speak about another scene when Noor is telling the little girl that she should soar so high in life that no body should be able to touch her ..and that should be the true definition of “the untouchable “ She says that the Sun is so big and the moon is very minuscule in comparison however a day comes when the tiny moon completely eclipses the Sun ..suraj toh roz jeetata hai lekin ek din chand ka bhi aata hai..” Please see the movie if you haven’t seen it yet ..brilliant cinematography,profound dialogues and excellent screenplay Chef Vikash Khanna ,take a bow !!!-kathachitram by shailja