Breaking free (Anupama)

Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Anupama has a choking effect on me. But, I enjoy that. I shed happy tears and bask in the warmth of the lovable characters. I clap when Uma breaks the shackles of her guilt and emerges a stronger and emancipated individual. I smile when Mohan redeems himself by liberating his wronged daughter. My heart brims with joy when I witness the goodness in Anita, in Moses, in Ashok and his mother, in Arun and in Gauri. Anupama, made in 1966, strengthens my faith in good wholesome cinema that looks simple but has hidden in its layers a multitude of emotions. Most importantly, it establishes my belief in Mukherjee's films. Subtle, simple yet so strong...
Mohan marries Aruna late in life. Understandably, he is head-over-heels in love with this lovely woman.
Distracted at work all the time, he cannot wait to get back to her everyday. You cannot blame him. Aruna is adorable. She sings, is exuberant, quite pretty and dotes on her husband. When Aruna sings Dheerey dheerey machal for Mohan (lovely music by Hemant Kumar), you can see how smitten this 40-year-old is. It is as if she is his lifebreath. But, soon fate strikes a cruel blow to Mohan's halcyon life; Aruna dies during childbirth.
Mohan's world comes crashing down. Unable to move on from his sorrows, Mohan, the wealthy businessman, drowns himself in work. That bit is acceptable. But, the sad part is, he holds his newborn Uma responsible for his wife's death. A helpless baby, who needs love, care and nurture, has to depend on Sarla, the maid. For, her father despises her sight and shuns her. Yes, Uma is brought up in luxury, replete with all material comforts. But, this unfortunate girl never receives a caring word or even an iota of love from her father. With an abnormal upbringing, Uma grows up to be shy and reticent and traumatised by the guilt of killing her mother. Imagine the pain of this helpless girl.
Mohan can only face Uma and offer kind words when he is inebriated. The scene when Mohan kisses Uma's head (when she is pretending to sleep) is so stark. Petrified of her father, she is forced to submit to her misfortune and accept this loving gesture only because he is not in his senses. When he is back to his normal self, Uma will be hated again. What a stifled and pained existence for our protagonist.
So, is this alcoholism an avenue of escape. Yes. Mohan admits that Aruna's death is not Uma's fault. But, his mind shuts out the words of his heart. Whenever, he sees Uma, he is reminded of Aruna. And, back comes the negative thoughts of Uma, as a child, murdering the only person who captured Mohan's heart. A baby, a killer? Yes, for Mohan, that looks possible. But, for the alcoholic Mohan, Uma becomes the innocent daughter who deserves love. This muddled-up Mohan is not able to segregate his thoughts on Uma and Aruna. He is most happy showering his stigmatised daughter with gifts. What a dichotomy depicted by Mukherjee...And, what a performance by Tarun Bose!!
Uma blames herself for the distance between herself and her father. Her mind numbed with the trauma, she grows up to be a painfully shy person who enjoys the company of birds, flowers and fishes. Kuchh dil ne kahaan (an awesome song by Lata Mangeshkar) bears testimony to that. Perhaps, because these creatures will not blame her, or ask her any questions or point a finger towards her. She will be able to express her feelings towards them. She will not be reprimanded for little things. She can sing with them, dance with them and most importantly talk to them. Something she never had the priviledge of doing with her father...
When Uma's teacher tells her that she is plain ill-behaved because of being pampered by her parents, you can see the shock in her eyes. Pampered? Uma? The girl, who didn't know what parental love was?
I can see why Hrishikesh Mukherjee dedicated this brilliant film to Bimal Roy. I see Sujata in Uma. Both are stigmatised, both are wrought with pain. Both have aching hearts. While Sujata pined for love from her foster mother, Uma craves for love and acceptance from her father. While Sujata bore the brunt of a caste-ridden society, Uma has to shoulder the burden of her mother's death. And, like Sujata, Uma too, fights against all prejudices to shine forth. With a bit of help from Lady Luck, both women emerge stronger. If I might say that Adhir, and Ashok, is that stroke of luck that is...
Ashok, the idealistic writer and teacher, brings to Uma's life a gust of the morning breeze. This breeze takes away with it all the gloom. First love, from Ashok, livens up the quiet Uma. She learns to question, to think, to want. She starts to smile, to talk, to love... As Ashok says, "Pehle ke Uma aur is Uma mein bahut parivartan hain." When Mohan lambasts her for going to Ashok's house, she does not tremble with fear anymore, she does not retreat to her cocoon. She smiles. It is the faith in her convictions, the trust in her love, that escapes through her soft smile. Though she breaks down when Ashok offers her his love and support, something she aught to have got from her father, she knows that this will egg her on towards liberation. With Ashok's love she will be able to emerge out of her father's shadow. She will be Ashok's Anupama, the one who is incomparable...
The film is a poignant coming-of age story, shouldered by fascinating performances by the star cast. I shall not say anything about Sharmila Tagore. She does not require that. The only thing I can say is that as Uma she not only stole Ashok's heart, but mine too. She does not have to speak. Her eyes are enough to tell you what's going on inside her. She is breathtakingly beautiful (she was just 20 then). There is dignity in her woes. You feel like crying with her when she weeps and giving her a peck when she flashes those deadly dimples. (Isn't it amazing that in the film she would go on to become Durga Khote's daughter-in-law? Both share those absolutely cute dimples!!!)
Uma is a revelation. And, so is Ashok (Dharmendra is drop-dead handsome). A film believer in being happy no matter what, Ashok never forces his opinions on Uma. He just teaches her how to listen to her heart, helps her negate her guilt, makes her smile, understands her and completely loves her. But that does not mean he does not realise her pain. Just hours after he strengthens her with his kind words, he sings Ya dil ki suno duniya walo . A thorough reminder of the fact that no matter what people say, personal grief is excruciating and it just is a gargantuan task trying to camouflage it (Awesome lyrics by Kaifi Azmi). Isn't it what Uma has been trying? But, he also believes that his love will triumph over all sorrows in the end...
Anupama does not have any wickedness. Even though Mohan's mind is clouded by pretention and false pride at a point of time, he is cut to size by Ashok. Mohan insults Ashok because he is a struggler and thinks Arun is not good-enough for Uma because he has not maximised on his foreign education. But, he is the poorer man after all. Devoid of love and happiness, Mohan is lonely and desolate. Ashok, in this, is so right...
If Uma doesn't talk, Anita prattles. But, this gregarious girl is not irksome (only her hideous wig is!). Never. She is a livewire, a rich girl with a heart of gold. In fact, the strains between Uma and her father become even more apparent when Anita is shown bonding with her father. This bond is natural, full of love and childish altercations. How come I never hear anything about Shashikala's performance in Anupama? She is simply fabulous. A motor mouth to say the least, she is the quintessential moodlifter, a spunky girl with a zest for life. Taking care of everyone's needs, she has no qualms in admitting that she talks too much. She chides her lover Arun (Deven Varma looks quite good) for not being brave enough to decline Uma's hand in marriage and at the same time comforts him when he is worried over other issues. Anita is a dear friend, a loving daughter and a bouncy sweetheart. In Bheegi bheegi faza she sets the mood for the picnic. She instantly makes her place in Arun's heart. She also feels blessed for her good fortune and acknowledges that in Kyun mujhey itni khushi de di (lovely Asha Bhonsle numbers). But, she also has a serious side to her. She senses the love between Ashok and Uma and is a catalyst in their love story. She is a good soul who deserves happiness, The best part is, Anita is not scared to laugh at herself. And, hence she is adorable...
Then there is David, as the amicable uncle Moses, who refuses to grow old. Spreading cheer wherever he goes, he is the cynosure of attention in all circuits with his jokes and stories. Whatever happened to these characters in our Hindi films???
Anupama is a strong tale with a happy ending. Not just for the union of the protagonists. The smile is spread seeing the transformation of Mohan. Realising how wrong he was, he redeems himself by setting Uma free. His pride is shattered, his soul is purged. His tears wash his sins away...