Kaksparsh (Crow's touch) - A review

If someone asks me to name some of the best movies I watched in the past year, 'Kaksparsh' (a Marathi movie) would definitely score amongst the top three. The most remarkable thing about 'Kaksparsh' is its strong story-line.  The writer, Usha Datar and the director, Mahesh Manjrekar weave a gripping tale set in pre-independence India, capturing an entire gamut of emotions such as love, jealousy, selfishness, friendship, fear, superstition, hypocrisy, frustration,  in short - the good, bad and ugly of that age.

The protagonist, Hari dada (played with flawless excellence by Sachin Khedekar) is the head of an orthodox family in a coastal Maharashtrian village. When his younger brother, Mahadev tragically succumbs to illness leaving his barely 14 year old widow, Uma behind, Hari performs the final rites according to Hindu customs. The last ritual that remains is to offer a ball of rice (called 'Pindam' in Sanskrit) to a crow (called 'Kak' in Marathi) that is believed to be a messenger of the departed soul. Hari and the other priests wait under the scorching heat for a crow to touch (called 'Sparsh' in Marathi) the Pindam but in vain. Finally, Hari vows over his brother's soul that he would not allow another man to ever touch Uma. Just then, a crow flies over and sanctifies the Pindam with its touch. Whether this was merely co-incidental or otherwise, is left to the viewer's interpretation. The rest of the plot reveals to what extent Hari can go to ferociously protect Uma and to what avail. We also get to see what the impact of Mahadev's death was on Uma who barely even understood the concept of marriage when she was banished from 'civil' society for life.

This movie is not for those who wish to feel light-headed after watching one. It is serious cinema in all its gravity. It highlights the horrible (in fact, evil) practices that prevailed in that generation - child marriage and ostracizing of widows. It also succeeds in beautifully bringing out the 'grey'ness in human character - why and how people become what they are and how they get trapped in that being to the extent that they believe that is the right way of life. In the case of Hari, the honest and forthright stalwart of a man, the 'grey' factor is exuded in the way he (albeit, unintentionally) puts another life's existence at stake so that he himself remains true to a promise given to a dead brother's soul, that too - after the soul's departure.

Extremely thought-provoking and sometimes sowing a seed of disgust at the treatment meted out to women, 'Kaksparsh' can twist the sinews of one's heart in certain scenes. What is more tragic is the fact that this piece of fiction was and continues to be the reality of hundreds of Indian widows in Hindu society. 

In short - a must see movie if one can understand Marathi and does not mind occasionally using some brains while watching movies.

Hats off to YouTube Maami and Maama !

On the face of it, they seem a typical, traditional, possibly also orthodox Tamilian couple staying in Srirangam, the small, well known temple town near Trichy, Tamilnadu. Yet there is something extremely atypical about Mr. and Mrs. Radhakrishnan (known as Srirangam Radhu, Youtube Maami/Maama) who own a YouTube channel with about 500 videos featuring various recipes,  traditional prayers and tips. They say that it all started with their son marrying a Canadian and settling down in Canada. Mrs. Geetha Radhakrishnan, a retired school teacher, with the expert assistance of her husband, made a recipe video for her son who was missing traditional home food. What started with a single video for a family member is now a full blown channel guiding tens of thousands of amateur cooks across the world through simple indian (especially, south indian) recipes.

If one can understand Tamil, one would observe that merely watching a 5 minute video of theirs, gives a sense of home. While maami(aunty, in Tamil), clad in traditional everyday south indian attire does all the culinary action - cutting, grinding, frying and roasting, maama (uncle, in Tamil) keeps trotting behind her with his video camera, asking curious questions and cracking occasional jokes. Every video ends with an 'all the best' for the viewers (originally meant for just their son) and sometimes with a jocular "Try panni paarungo. It is our maiden venture too. Eppidi irkaporado engalukke inime daan teriyum" (You try this and see. We ourselves will know how its going to taste only now since this our maiden venture) from maama.

What amazes me about this couple is their acceptance of cosmopolitanism and change while still being soaked in Tamilian tradition. One will observe maami using words like 'desiccated coconut' and 'fenugreek seeds'. Every now and then, she also seems to be suggesting her son to use lesser chilli (peppers) than she is using in the video because 'enga aatula engalukku ippidi pudikum. aana unga aatula kaaram aavaade avalo." (In our home, we like it a little spicy but in your home, spice is not preferred). They definitely do not seem to be moping about how their son is missing Indian food.  They do not seem to be complaining that they are having to do things which their parents or relatives or neighbors are probably not. Instead they have embraced technology, learning to use the camera, uploading on YouTube, adding a western touch and variety to their recipes every now and then (evident in corn cheese pulao, oatmeal idli, 7 in 1 cake etc.),  responding graciously to fans, sharing traditional cooking tips, explaining how to perform prayers during festivals (how to arrange items in front of the deity etc.) and so much more. I think it is this open-mindedness and the enthusiasm that deserves a salute.  And I am sure I am not alone in my praise and admiration for Mr.& Mrs. Radhakrishnan.

"I would be lucky if I pass..."

... is what they generally say, while secretly they know they will do much better than just pass in an exam.  I am tired of such people. I mean, really.. what is their problem? I have seen them at school, lying over every petty thing. Then in college, lying over bigger things, acting miserable after an important interview while actually expecting an appointment letter any minute, making up low scores for the benefit of peers, especially "competitors" and of course, flinging the classic "I did not study at ALLLL.." piece of crap every now and then. Then I saw such rats at work, feigning as much disgust as they can over managers, clapping along with you over a light conversation about work, nodding vehemently about how we should all go talk to boss's boss about the former's oppression etc.. and at the same time, shamelessly sneaking into the boss's room and vomiting every single sentence and expression on him/her. Eeeeeeiiuuwww! 

What I did not however expect was to see such rodents here in graduate school, where one comes mostly to learn (at least that is the hope) and not to only score higher than some other random person. But NO! I was wrong. Grad school is not free of this kind of infestation. In fact, here people go a mile extra in such nonsense..."Oh, I have a problem with my brain, I cannot understand things so much" or "I got so confused in the exam, I did not know what to write, I might just fail" or "I just passed. I was given grace marks just for my attempts. I did not write anything" (Really? Was the teacher a fool? Or am I a fool?")  or "Thank God I am not the least in the class. When she said the least score was **, I was so sure it was me." or "Oh the interview? I did not understand a single question. He asked something, I answered something else".... and the list goes on.

If you ask them about their lying and such, you get wonderful answers. "I REALLY thought I would fail, it was just luck that I topped the exam. A miracle. Trust me" (Yawn!). Here is another interesting one. "I am protecting myself from the evil eye." (Uhh !!! Psycho!!!)

I have some news, mostly bad, for such people and it is as follows- "Nobody (except another stinker) cares about your grades or your interviews or your jobs and you know why? Cos you stink. Yes, you do. I know its kind of difficult to take but if you carefully sniff around you will realize that a truck load of stink is emanating from you. And you know who really people care about? Those who change the world. So every time you wag your tongue to lie about how horrible some worthless exam/interview was, ask yourself if you are going to win a Nobel prize for your performance. If not, do the whole world a big favor by stopping your wagging instantly. Thank you".