Le secret de Kanwar

What if you were the prisoner of desires? What if your construction was nothing but a quicksand of lies? All you gain is a house of cards. A ghost, so lonely by the defeat of his realism walks down the Punjab territory. Alas, the land gets bisected by a border, so violent! Such is the tale of Tillotama Shome's Kanwar being morally stabbed behind the curtain of sexuality. Anup Singh's Indian-German film 'Qissa-The Tale of a Lonely Ghost' is a cinematic sensation that goes down deep into your subconscious.

In the hour of Partition, a Sikh resident of the now Pakistan seeks shelter in Punjab, India with his wife and three not so desired for daughters. Thus is what Irrfan Khan's Umber Singh, wishing for a boy out of Mehar's (Tisca Chopra) womb. When the fourth daughter is born, he persists on bringing her up as a son. Kanwar, in disguise of a son prepares herself as a boy. An adolescent love gets injected in the form of Neeli (Rasika Dugal) followed by a marriage. The beginning of a new relationship calls for the end of what was so far a sexual illusion.

Director Anup Singh does true justice in maintaining the patience of being brave as he successfully makes the non-chronological phantasm work in a meter of realism as well as surrealism. The second half of the story takes a sudden realistic turn as it is revealed in the posters of the film. If realism is the false fall, surrealism gives the definite land in the plot.

With the evergreen brilliance of Irrfan Khan, the acting has reached a summit of what one can hardly comment about. The soliloquy presented to the dead sands is like a perpetual cycle of fate that cries in the tone of,"Naa aadmi, naa aurat. Naa jeev, naa pret." Tillotama Shome, famous for her serious portrayals has once again nourished the excellence of her virtue. With an innocent boldness and an intense artistry, her character is like a flame, the delusion of which stays on even after it gets extinguished. Tisca Chopra and Rasika Dugal has also contributed their magnificence in sculpting this master class.

A warm tone cinematography throughout the film along with the immaculate sound mixing has successfully provided for balancing the tension with the 'what happens next' feeling. A well edited synchronization with the proper synthesis of music has given the film a strong circumference.

The audience leaves the theatres with some serious question marks haunting their grey scale. The well cooked delicacy of a sexually exposed Kanwar with the fog of Neeli's existence is the best abstract that gets nailed into your brain. The posters came out with a Mira Nair quote terming the film as a "masterpiece." 'Qissa-The Tale of a Lonely Ghost' is not a onetime watch. Watch, leave and watch again

A well-written script with an honest performance by the cast, the story telling has an Indian folk tale touch.

Tillotama Shome is great with her performance, the scenes with the mother and father are perfect and heart touching, and it is because of her performance that this movie comes out as a subtle art film rather than a Yash raj melodrama.

The movie talks about the how the desire of having a boy child was prevalent in the past and to what level the people can be obsessed with such pity things and destroy their and others happy peaceful life.

Do watch and support the movie, the movie perfectly encapsulates the sense of an Indie classic(that is a new story line) and not an artificial work like "ship of Theseus".

Anup Singh's "Qissa" is one of those movies which are not meant for the mass but for a specific set of people who are well-aware of the theories of symbolism, sociology and above all, psychology. The plot is a direct interpretation of King Dhrupad's story from the Mahabharata blended with Freud's theory of Id, Ego and Subconscious.

Speaking of acting, Irrfan Khan is just brilliant again, Tillotama Shome is flawless. Tisca Chopra is perfect and Rasika Dugal is stunning.

Anup Singh and Madhuja Mukherjee's screenplay is the best gift we get from the movie.

The background score by Beatrice Thiriet and Manish J Tipu goes along with the slow pace of the movie but not very apt considering the Punjabi background of the movie. But the songs are brilliant, got a flavor of Lohri and the Punjabi Tappas.

I couldn't relate the landscape. Punjab hasn't got that much of hilly terrains.

Cinematography by Sebastian Edschmid is simply superb.

We need more movies like this even considering the fact that it's not for the commercial sector of the industry. Movies like this are essential to understand cinema and it's theories. It is a pride that Nandan, Kolkata has got a screening of this feature.

Its a story of one unfortunate irrational mind which produces a situation which destroys everyone. If the challenge the nature , it's bound to be a catastrophe and in this movie its a domino effect.

The character played by Irrfan is undoubtedly cannot be played and executed by someone other than Irrfan himself. He is a true artist and words are less to describe the versatility he chooses in his film carrier. Kanwar played by Tilotima Shome is also well done. The character is living in self guilt and humility at the same time and its only theater artists that can wear this sheen to showcase their capability.

Honestly I had this movie for a long time with me but did not happen to see and when I did - I was just silent for some time. It leaves with thoughts and admire the way this is being narrated. The climax could have been much better and a little pacey. It dragged a bit in the end but till the half time its an interesting , well paced, ready to fire kind of buildup is achieved. You will enjoy as long as you don't die for mainstream only.

Iam still struggling to process the movie, its unbelievably dark, deep and has lots of layers, which you wont understand at first.( At least i didnt). I was hooked right from the beginning and were really intrigued to know how the story unfolds. Its one of these rare masterpieces, which you leaves you clueless at the beginning, but after rewatching you slowly start to comprehend the concept behind it. Iam aware, that this movie might be not suitable for the broader audience, cause it demands patience and interest for folklore& different storytelling, but its worth watching and i can recommend this movie to every movie lover! It will strengthen your understanding for movies on a different level! This is the first punjabi movie Ive ever watched and iam glad that it turned out to be a masterpiece.