A brilliant portrait of the tremendous evil that war is,
this movie by first time director Mrityunjay Devvrat is a masterpiece. It is
astonishing to even wonder how a first time director can have an eye for such
detail and create such spell bounding cinema.
Children of War is
about the war of Bangladeshi Independence in 1971. Scenes have been recreated
in this movie like the ones in Schindler’s
list and Inglorious Basterds
which graphically displays the unbearable torture that some sections of the
society are subjected to during a war; that pierces the very skin of the
average viewer and infuses his inner self with hatred and dismay. Just quite as
much as in the Hitler movies, a concept of a concentration camp is also shown
in this movie, the only difference being that this concentration camp had only
girls and middle aged women in it who were supposed to serve the purpose of
giving birth to “Pakistani” children.
The film begins with documentary clips of Mrs. Indira Gandhi
on the subject of India’s strategy for the Bangladesh war. She pleads that the
world support the cause and the war be stopped. Amir (Indraneil Sengupta) and
Fida (Raima Sen) play a married couple. Amir is a journalist who fights with
his pen for independence. After a fine night of love making the villain, Malik
(Pavan Malhotra), walks in to disturb the romance. Malik is a policeman in a
high rank with immense powers and like almost every other human being in power
he sinks to depths so low that an average human mind would feel detested. He
rapes Fida in front of Amir and then many more in his organized female
concentration camp and then in a later scene when he is about to be killed he says
that he was only performing his duties.
The story is also about a brother (played by Riddhi Sen) and
a sister (played by Rucha Imandar) who have been lost (and seen way too many
deaths for their age). Their struggle for survival and the sibling relationship
glimpses at the hardships faced at war. In a certain scene where the brother
picks up a gun and shoots one of the Pakistani men who was trying to kill his
sister, a dying old man (played by Victor Banerjee) says that day he saw the
innocence of a child dying an innocent death.
At heart, this movie is a story of the unification of love,
the love of Amir and Fida. It is only a symbol, though, like many others in
this movie. Splendid storytelling and
fantabulous acting polish a brilliant script. The 158 minutes of this cinema
leaves the audience with a lasting aftertaste and I, for one, would want every
viewer to have a taste of it. If you understand the taste of freedom, go and
watch this. Children of War will
remain with you forever.
Acting: 3.7/5
Script: 3.8/5
Direction: 4/5
Overall: 3.8/5
Verdict: Don’t let go of this one
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