Friday, August 15, 2008

Independence Day with Bollywood movie "Pinjar"

Today is Independence Day for India.

Though many movies have been made on this period of India's history, there is none so poignant as 'Pinjar' (2003), based on a novel with the same name by Amrita Pritam, a renowned Punjabi writer. Her sensitivity to the social issues of her time always found voice in the incredible beauty and artistry of her poetry and novels, even if much of it got lost in translation. It is a fitting tribute to this depiction of the Partition days that the movie is being screened today by one of the TV channels.

The euphoria of the historic moment of independence was marred by the pain, bloodshed and turbulence that followed from the partition of the country into India and Pakistan. A sensitive movie on what qualifies as recent history is worth a watch, even if only to realize the sheer repetitiveness and futility of intolerance.

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