Vasthuhara

This is a Malayalam language film starring Mohanlal and Neena Gupta. The film is a tribute the from the Malayalam film industry to the travails of refugees from Bangladesh after the 1971 independance war.

A classic art film by G Aravindan and his last before he passed away, it won both National and State awards. Hats off to Mohanlal and Shobana to take up their roles even at the peak of their commercial success, getting due attention to a topic as only celebrities can.

The film is about how refugees from Bangladesh have undergone a lot of hardship in their bid to settle down in life in Bharat. Bharat did its bit by getting them rehabilitated in Andaman instead, which is but a slow and painstaking process for all involved.

The fictional story in the film is about how a government officer finds out that one of the refugees are estranged relatives. He tries to get them integrated to the family but wounds of the past haven't healed. Even then the family is overjoyed with hope and relief at meeting and bonding with a family member.

A touching and sensitive film, it is a nice watch despite being slow in parts.

The story is told through the eyes of Venu, a Malayali government officer send for a mission in Calcutta to rehabilitate refugees to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Even after 25 years of its release, the film is so fresh. Succeeds in connecting the viewer to it.

Just like every Aravindan film, this film too is slow-paced, but still the level of engagement the movie delivers is impeccable. And that's how good pacing works.

A true artistic work of cinema, has no death, it would always be magical! And Vaasthuhara is the proof that it's true!