Celluloid "realism" makes waves. 'Chingaari' is one such attempt by master filmmaker Kalpana Lajmi where she experiments the outburst of female protagonist against the rural religious double standards and illiteracy. If Madhur Bhandarkar's 'Page 3' was microscopic about the filth of hi-profile socialite, then 'Chingaari' depicts the rural fanaticism through the miseries of a prostitute. Kalpana Lajmi has tried to explore different facades of womanhood through her creative work 'Chingaari'. Last year it was Vinod Pandey's 'Sins' that brought evil caricature of Godman (Church father) and this year it's village "Dharamadhikari" (Godman) showing evil practices that form the crux of the story.
In fact, 'Chingaari' is not about rural illiteracy or religious orthodox system but is about women's outrage against injustice and atrocities. Women oriented subjects have been hot favorite among class filmmakers and films like 'Matrubhoomi' and 'Devaki' got major awards. Both these films spoke about the miseries of rural and tribal women but none of them suggested any positive solution. The socially relevant theme might hold significance for many but fails on entertainment contents. This may find many takers among class audiences but the contemporary movie lover may find it difficult to digest.
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'Chingaari' has been bold enough as a protagonist holds the fort and settles score with the devil embedded in human skin. It was challenging and in fact painful for glam doll Sushmita Sen to portray prostitute but the prolific script writing made it tailor made. In terms of subject and content the film holds similarity with Prakash Jha's 'Mrityudand' (Madhuri Dixit, Shabana Azmi). The film gave apt solution to the problem the film portrayed. The concept of "slut" turning into "Durga" (Goddess of Power and Strength) shows the demeaning journey of the hated sex worker to the ravaged beloved.
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'Chingaari' means "spark of fire" and it shows former Miss Universe Sushmita Sen in her career's most serious and meaningful role. Kalpana Lajmi's tryst with women oriented subjects like 'Rudaali' and 'Daman' won laurels for the actress in her previous films. This time the ace director proclaims her venture to be groundbreaking for her lead actress Sushmita Sen. Ironically, Lajmi's last two offerings 'Kyon' and 'Daman' faced rejection by the audiences and failed to get critical acclaim.
'Chingaari' made news for wrong reasons as Sushmita Sen backed out from film promotion after some unprofessional remarks from her fellow co-star Anuj Sawhney. Lajmi patched up the matter by apologizing and the film's commercial prospects seem to be least affected.
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'Chingaari' is a creative work ("The Postman and the Prostitute") of the Assamese genius Bhupen Hazarika that brings out emotional outrage of a sex worker against the dominance of a corrupt Godman. In terms of performance 'Chingaari' belongs completely to Sushmita Sen. She deserves all the positive accolades of being selective and professional in delivering author-backed role. Mithun Chakraborty comes out with his finest role in his second innings as an actor after reckless performances 'Elaan'.
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Kalpana Lajmi's 'Chingaari' unfolds through the author backed narration of age old tree (now that's poetic) and it tells the story of Basanti (Sushmita Sen). The scenario is Rangpur village (fiction village in North India) where there is red light area Lal Batti. Village "Dharamadhikari" (Godman) Bhuvan Panda (Mithun Chakraborty) rules the heart and mind of illiterate villagers through his wicked and venomous terror. Panda holds large religious and other rituals of Goddess Durga; the villagers are either spectators or victims of his injustice. Padmavati alias "Didi" (Ila Arun) runs a brothel with countless prostitutes with Basanti being the best. Panda has huge crush on Basanti and often visits her after day's proceedings.
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He ill-treats and behaves irrationally many times. Nobody dares to challenge his power and strength. One day new postman Chandan Mishra (Anuj Sawhney) comes to the village and delivers letters in Lal Batti (red light area). Chandan's pristinely innocence and intellect attracts Basanti and they share physical intimacy. Basanti finds eternal love after lustful nights and decides to tie a knot. The marriage proposal creates a wave of wrath in Panda's life and he resents it by showing his dissent at Basanti's brothel. Chandan declares war against Godman Panda but gets killed by his goons. Basanti awaits Chandan for marriage but gets disheartened by his absence. In the climax she learns about Bhuvan Panda's evil acts and decides to settle score with him. Now it's a war by Basanti against Panda as she collects villagers and kills him in public.
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Bhupen Hazarika's story has been author-backed for female protagonist and has given lead actress enough footage to display her acting prowess. Sushmita has been brilliant at many places and comes out a winner. The film may not find many takers among family audiences for its gory treatment but comes out as first major performance by mainstream actress this year. The sequence where Sushmita discloses her heartfelt emotions for Anuj Sawhney in the post office is beautifully executed.
The confrontation between Sushmita Sen and Mithun Chakraborty in the climax is another engrossing scene. The wrath and ire she delivers shows the inner strength of the character and Lajmi's fitting direction in conceiving emotional scenes. The sequence where she learns about Anuj's death is another heart-piercing act where Ila Arun joins her in sorrow. Despite all these emoting scenes she has been proficient in delivering dance sequences in "Dank Mare" and "Mahakaali". Ganesh Acharya's choreography holds attention despite the fact that "Kitni Sardi" is overstretched. Anuj Sawhney as an actor has shown maturity and it shows in his performance. The immaculately delivered poetic dialogues and phrases speak for his improvisation from a novice actor in 'Fun2sh' to postman in 'Chingaari'. Tanvir Durrani's poetically written dialogues hold the center stage and binds the events appropriately. Anuj comes out as winner at the end of the day after being targeted as unprofessional for his irrational comments. Mithun Chakraborty comes out in his one of his career's most meaningful caricature of demon Godman Bhuvan Panda. The gray shaded character suited his age and the body language matched the narration of his character. Ila Arun and Anjan Srivastav have shown their professionalism as competent character actors.
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Adesh Srivastav's least publicized music amplifies the story narration with songs like "Dulhan Dulhan" and "Kitni Sardi". Lajmi's direction and treatment of subject brings back the memories of her 'Rudaali' days. After directing spineless and weak-willed subjects in 'Daman' and 'Kyon' she comes out as proficient and gifted woman director in 'Chingaari'. The film may be too dark to digest for family audiences but will attract the media and the class audience. There is a possibility that the film may attract Hindi speaking people more than the rest of audiences. However, in multiplexes it will generate interest among class audiences only. 'Chingaari' deserves good mouth publicity after 'Rang De Basant' as the second meaningful treat from Bollywood dream merchants. In nutshell, it can be termed as a woman show altogether with leading ladies Sushmita Sen and director Kalpana Lajmi as big winners.
