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| Atyachar |
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BASED ON THE NOVEL 'BALUTA' BY DAYA PAWAR |
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| Marathi, , minutes , Color |
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Credits: |
Music, Screenplay and Direction: |
Bhaskar Chandavarkar
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Story: |
Daya Pawar |
Screenplay: |
Meena Chandavarkar |
Camera: |
S. D. Deodhar |
Lyrics: |
Daya Pawar, Dadu Kalu Punekar |
Singers: |
Anuradha Paudwal, Usha Mangeshkar, Ravindra Sathe, Asha Bhosle, Krishna Kalle |
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| Cast: |
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Sushma Deshpande, Vibha Jakatdar, Satish Pulekar, Avinash Ambekar, Vijay Joshi, Hansakumari, Sudhakar Waghmare, P. S. Gaikwad and Mohan Gokhale |
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Synopsis: |
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' Atyachar ' is based on the memories of Daya Pawar , as he penned them in his novel ' Balunt '. Daya Pawar, was in the vanguard of the Dalit movement that burst upon the Marathi literary scene in the sixties, with a content and an expressiveness that was revolutionary. ' Balunt ' has been translated into Hindi, German, French and Italian. The book and the film tell the story of the struggle of a young man, from the backward Mahar community; to escape the pit of darkness that society relegates him to. |
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Traditionally, the Mahars in Maharashtra , along with the Chamars, occupy the lowest strata of society. The struggle with the support of government legislation and advocates of social reform to elevate their lot is a continuing one. |
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Those of the community who have managed somehow to escape the "dried crushed life of the outskirts of the village" have not necessarily found a better one awaiting them in the city's slums. On the one hand, alienated from their kith and kin in the village, they are not accepted as equals in the cities and unanchored, they inhabit the indeterminate in-between. |
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What makes 'Atyachar' different is that it tells the story of the young man's struggle from the inside. It's not the statement of the friendly interested observer looking on from out. Many filmmakers have examined this problem on celluloid, but more often than not oppressor and oppressed play out the action against a background of rural India , and for the city dweller, distance can make the conscience grow quieter. 'Atyachar' makes the canvas larger. Here the oppressed has left the village, but the menacing shadows of his caste follow him wherever he goes. At the same time, education has brought to him an awareness of himself as a human being, but since that same awareness has not been granted to all society, he is simultaneously raised and trodden down. |
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The job which Pawar, the protagonist of 'Atyachar' gets in the city is that of skinning cattle and preserving the parts for veterinary college students - in fact, skinning cattle is one of the many tasks allotted to the Mahars in their role as lowly servants of the village. |
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Pawar's father, an accomplished musician, has died of too much drink; his mother who insisted on Pawar educating himself so he could move up in the world has devoted her every activity to this end. |
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To begin with, it would seem the new world welcomes him with open arms. Pawar marries a lovely girl of his own community and they set up house in the city. Here too, there is segregation and the slums are an urban version of the village outskirts. Pawar joins a morning college to better his prospects. And he embarks on his career as poet and writer, gaining many admirers, but few friends. |
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As for fellow-Dalits in the city, there's his childhood friend, now a leper begging his livelihood, scurrying away to avoid meeting Pawar; there's the Harijan minister who promises him a house in lordly fashion but, of course, nothing comes of it; and there's any number of opportunists masquerading as latter day Ambedkars, parroting the words of that great leader. |
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Step by step, blow-by-blow, the city beats the young man down. And when his mother dies in the village like the dumb, mute animal she's been treated for so long, Pawar hurries there. And then waiting for the bus to carry him back, Pawar comes face to face with reality once more. |
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Available on VCD for Rs. 99/- |
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