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9/11 remains etched in the minds of filmmakers Film reviews

Film: Hope and a little sugar

Cast: Mahima Chaudhury, Amit Sayal and Anupam Kher

Direction: Tanuja Chandra

Post 9/11 filmmakers across the world have not been able to forget the event that shook the world. If we recently had Shoaib Mansoor talking of Muslims’ heightened sense of persecution in the U.S. after the 9/11 attacks, this week we have our own Tanuja Chandra walking down the same lane.

However, 9/11 is the sole common point between the two movies, both of which have had a delayed commercial release here. Tanuja’s film, set in New York, is a rare story by a Mumbai filmmaker where in a cross-religion love story it is the hero who is a Muslim and the heroine a Sikh. Otherwise, in a queer mix of majority communalism and patriarchal order, it is the majority hero or someone claiming India to be his janambhoomi as well as punyabhoomi, who walks away with the girl.

Here, a Muslim photographer finds his muse in a Sikh widow. A little irritant of the girl’s father being opposed to Muslims becomes an existential crisis after the events of 9/11, as the old man becomes hostile to the entire community, holding it responsible for all the ills afflicting the society. That includes persecution of Sikhs too, as they were often mistaken for Taliban in the ignorant West.

However, there are no diatribes as Tanuja adopts a kid gloves approach, and the change in mindset is easier than anticipated. Give her that easier option and applaud her for making a film from her heart. “Hope and a Little Sugar” is a crossover cinema piece that works mainly because of the director. Mahima Chaudhury, Amit Sayal are competent and Anupam Kher as the rabid old man, more than effective. However, it is the director who gets most of the credit for a languid pace and a natural narration style. The film grows on viewers gradually, ultimately not giving them a choice of exit before the last frame.

After the debacle of “Zindaggi Rocks”, it gives us hope that Tanuja might just be able to hold on to the promise she showed in “Dushman”.

- Ziya-Us-Salam

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