Before the Rains

Being a native of Kerala and not knowing much of this movie, I went because my favorite Indian actors Nandita Das and Rahul Bose were in it. My hubby and I were in for a stunningly visual treat of our home state in India and were jumping for joy. Every frame was pure, with shadows and light and filters that just transported you and wanting to see more. I would liked the movie more if it had been stretched a little longer and see more deeper delving into the characters and the village life. Instead a limited dimension was presented. I was a little disappointed and left feeling like something wasn't complete in the application of the story. While the film focuses around the central characters,not enough time was spent on how the setup started but the movie picks-up almost mid-stream it felt like and therefore a little incomplete. There were seeming contradictions in the movie. exploration of each of the characters could have been done more deeply. I was sorry to see that Nandita Das was relegated to such a minimal role. Rahul Bose whose phenomenal acting could have been explored profoundly was also limited to more of a silent portrayal while his eyes spoke volumes. I wasn't sure where his loyalties were or whether he was really trying to live in two worlds and ultimately what is it that he stood to gain in the way of empowerment. The storyline is simple and did a good job around Roach's role and his moral conflicts. The actress who portrayed his wife as brief as it was very good and believable. The supporting actors all acted well (kudos to Indrajit and Lal and Mr.Thilakan as well-it was awesome to see these phenomenal actors on the big screen through such an artistic lens. It was a little discomforting to see the far from the truth portrayal of the tribal ritual. My huge kudos to Mr. Sivan- the quality of the cinematography is pristine and flawless and timeless. I hope you'll blaze forward with more courage at exploring in-depth portrayals of Kerala even more.

When I first began watching this film, I thought it was a movie that romanticized adultery. After all, the first minutes of the film show a very romantic tryst between a Brit living in India (Linus Roache) and his maid (Nanditas Das). However, this is not where the film went and I was quite impressed overall. You see, it turns out that the love is very one-sided. The Brit is married to a sweet lady and you can't see any reason for the man having an affair other than he's a sleazy dog. And, in many ways, this character appears to be a metaphor for the British in India--as he uses this woman and feels a certain sense of superiority. Where all this goes is very gripping--and I was caught by surprise many times. The film is full of interesting characters (especially Rahul Bose, who plays a VERY devoted servant who evolves throughout the film), an excellent script that is intelligently written and assumes the audience isn't stupid and wonderful locales. My only reservation is a small one--and some of the ending is a bit anti-climactic and certainly won't sit well with all the viewers. Still, it's a very good film and one well worth your time.

A mixture of social commentary and period-piece melodrama, "Before the Rains," directed by Santosh Sivan, takes place in India in 1937 during the waning days of British rule.

Henry Moores (Linus Roache) is an English businessman living with his wife (Jennifer Ehle, the ghost-wife from "A Gifted Man") and young son (Leo Benedict) in the Madras district of colonial India, where he is supervising the construction of a road that must be completed before the monsoonal rains begin to fall. Moores is also having a clandestine affair with a beautiful Indian housekeeper named Sajani (Nandita Das), who is herself married to an unloving and abusive husband from the village. Through a series of tragic circumstances, the affair manages to have lasting repercussions not only for Moores and his family but for Anglo-Indian relations in the area as well.

The story by Cathy Rabin serves as a microcosm for what was occurring on a national scale at that time, as the oppressed natives were just beginning to assert their right to oust the British and become the leaders of their own nation. Thus, Moores' dilemma becomes much more than just a personal one of love and marital infidelity due to the extraordinary circumstances taking place around him. For not only is Henry breaking his own marriage vows with the affair; he is violating any number of social taboos involving race and class structure as well. The situation becomes even more complicated when another of his servants, T.K. Neelan (Rahul Boss), becomes a pawn in Moores' game to extricate himself from the consequences of his actions, and T.K. is finally forced to choose between his desire to be a part of a growing future promised by the Brits and his innate loyalty to his own people who serve under them. The triumph of the screenplay is that each of these characters emerges as a well-meaning but often flawed individual caught in a world greater than his or her own private passions.

Even though there are times when the gravity of the social issues feels a bit diminished by the contrivance of the plotting – as if the melodrama were not commensurate in importance and value with the seriousness of the subject matter - on the whole, this is a well-acted, thoughtful and gripping drama that makes important points about colonialism, class structure, personal morality and the untamable nature of the human heart.

Before the Rains is a beautifully made drama set in south India in 1937. An engrossing story, it shows us what India was like and awakens our interest in foreign lands. But what stuck in MY mind was the extreme difficulty of having a sexual/romantic encounter in this time and place.

Young people these days take their sex fast and casual. There is no way they can ever understand the restraints of the pre-1960 era (let alone 1937). And this was the case in India, or in the USA. With most women married well before their 18th birthday, with marriage being respected by society, with the remaining single people mostly being (obvious) born losers, non or extra marital sex was virtually impossible, and could lead to the serious and multi-complicated downfalls portrayed in this movie. Easy to say had the lovers handled things wiser or smarter their ultimate problems might have been easier. But wait, they DID handle their situation wisely......

When DOP holds the directorial reigns one can expect a visual feast nothing short of excellence. And precisely that what you are in for "Before the Rains". Every scene seems to hand-picked and aesthetically delivered. Brillaince perhaps would be an understatement for the visual poetry.

The plot weaves a story of love, passion, friendship, loyalty and greed amidst the struggle for freedom from the British Raj neatly showcasing the customs and traditions of Gods own country, Kerala.

Santosh Sivan gets down to business straight away and while the visuals keeps the audience glued, the same cannot be said about the plot/ narrative which seems to give away. Perhaps screenplay needed further cementing.

Performances::

Ψ Rahul Bose:: Needs no intro, he is might in his own right. Manages to pull off the various layers of the role effectively. His character seems to be inspired from Karna in Mahabharata.

Ψ Nandita Das:: Her role was smaller than expected and needed more screen time to establish the character.

Ψ Linus:: He was good, though has immense scope to make a dent.

Ψ Jennifer:: Now literally stealing the thunder would be the apt idiom to compliment her performance and her character backs it up nicely.

Ψ The other stalwarts from Malayalam cinema were confined to character roles and perhaps minuscule.