Only for Amiran (Umrao Jaan)

The last time I met Meera Ali, and that would be about fours years ago, I kept singing praises about her husband's landmark film. The elegant personality that she is, Meera took my childish prattle rather sportingly and invited me to her house in Mumbai where I could meet Muzaffar Ali. Elated at the offer, I hardly gave enough attention to her new collection of weaves and clothes, which she was showcasing in Kolkata for the first time. Mind you, I was yet to see Umrao Jaan then.

Four years later, the enthusiasm to meet the director remains unmitigated. I just finished watching Muzaffar Ali's 1981 masterpiece. Given my crazy schedule of work (and its hardly helping that the Wills Lifestyle Fashion Week starts tomorrow) I've not had any time to see my beloved golden oldies. Driven up the wall and my head spinning like a Ferris wheel, I just had to rejuvenate with a film. And, I chose Umrao Jaan for the sheer belief that this one film should fill the gap that had resulted due to my hectic travel schedule and the work that will keep me on my toes for the coming weeks.
But, Muzaffar Ali will be facing a different set of questions when I meet him now. His poetic film on the doomed courtesan Umrao has me far from satisfied. Why is it that I feel justice was not done to the novel Umrao Jaan Ada by Mirza Hadi Ruswa? Why am I not mesmerised by the exploration of the Awadhi lifestyle depicted in the film? Am I the only one to feel the patchiness of the script? Why do I want Umrao Jaan to be recreated by the mastery of Gulzar (this man surely knew how to mold any plain story into a mindblowing experience)?

There are plenty of good things about Umrao Jaan. Rekha, for instance. She is ethereal as the sad courtesan. The role is tailormade for her. She is the only person who stays etched in my mind after Meena Kumari's Pakeezah. She is the sole reason why I finished the film, the tardiness notwithstanding.

Ali gets hold of some of the luminaries of the industry for the film. The costumes are elaborate, the sets are opulent and the setting is true to the times. But, is is only Rekha who surfaces as the sole winner in this film. Farooq Shaikh's Nawab Sultan is tepid, Naseeruddin Shah's Gauhar Mirza is unfleshed and Raj Babbar's Faiz Ali is hardly exploited. He appears like a flash and disappears in the same way. An actor of Babbar's calibre deserves more time. Same with Dina Pathak, Satish Shah, Prema Narayan and a host of other big names. In the loop of getting the biggest talents for his film, Ali lost out on tightening their characters in the film. I kept feeling that Shah and Shaikh were so unused.
Now for the storytelling (pardon me for being ruthless). Ali fails to place the different events into a smooth line. The narrative is jumpy, with plenty of jagged edges. For example, the annexation of Awadh is shown pretty suddenly, without any build-up. Similarly, Umrao's moving from place to place is a tad unclear. Also, how come the other girl who met the same fate as young Amiran (Seema Sathyu) becomes lucky enough to marry Nawab Sultan?

Not all's bad with Umrao Jaan though. There's the heavenly music by Khayyam and the magical lyrics by Shahryar. They breathe life into Umrao's saddened existence. A courtesan by fate, it is her poetry that is her claim to fame on one hand, and reason for downfall on the other. While all the songs (In aankhon ki masti ke and Dil cheez kya aap meri)  are landmarks in terms of Bollywood music, my personal favourite is Yeh kya jagah hain dosto (Asha Bhonsle). It has a haunting value that stays on just like the lost look in Umrao's eyes. Here is a beautiful woman, unlucky in love, who craves for affection but is jilted by fortune. Her childhood was snatched away by two malicious men. Her sullied profession is not of her own doing. But, the world will not forgive her for being a courtesan, of repute or otherwise. She embraces her mother, is eager to shower her love on her younger brother, but are they willing to accept her back? Umrao's future hangs dangerously in mid air. Alone and sad, this Amiran will always remain a desolate soul...

Umrao Jaan is a celebration of Rekha's enormous talent as an actor and a dancer. Amiran blooms into a beautiful and talented courtesan. Her songs and beauty draw the Nawab to her. Her heartbreak at his marriage is so poignantly portrayed by Rekha. Her muted tears and quiet sorrow adds a sublime quality to her personality. And, when she puts music to the beautiful poetry, it's as is the heavens sing aloud with her. No wonder, her cries as well as music reverberate through the walls of her haveli to reach every heart of Awadh. In Umrao, Rekha lives on for eternity...