It is observed that the Rain brings the sweet smell of soil with its first showers, then it’s time to  pour heavily in Ashadh; which is the actual monsoon month and then it sprays gradually during  Shravan . These are the different faces of rains, which makes everyone crazy, be it a child, youth or elders. But, Rain adds a special significance to the dreams and happiness in farmer’s life, especially in Maharashtra. But, many farmers sometimes call it a 'Damned Rain' (Gabhricha Paus), when it pours more than required.

Incidentally, ‘Gabhricha Paus’ is the name of new marathi film released recently. Every movie has a hero and a villain and we generally witness a conflict between good and bad etc. But, this movie is totally different. It highlights only two things; the farmer and the rains. You may call it a  black humour, which can be seen either in the books of late P.L. Deshpande or try to locate the same in a movie like 'Bicycle Thief'.  

The efforts of  writer-director Satish Manwar have to be appreciated, for using his skill to film such difficult and serious issues throughout the film, with a difference. The succeeding suicide of another farmer is shown with a different angle, where the surviving members of family struggle hard to claim the  compensation,  due to their poor condition and lack of awareness about the paper work. The small kid is shown happy collecting rupee coins thrown during the last rites before cremation. The movie doesn’t have any melodrama, as witnessed during suicides. Every frame of the film is a pleasure to watch for the wonderful  cinematography by  Sudhir Palsane. The background score  has been cleverly used with movement of train and bus, showering of rains and with the use of  FM Radio and TV etc. 

In the film, the performance of the small innocent boy Dinu played by Amaan Attar is more appreciable. Girish Kulkarni and Sonali Kulkarni steal the show with their beautiful chemistry. Sonali has given full justice to her role but her make-up and costume does not go well with the character. Veena Jamkar’s  performance is also very nice, as she expresses all emotions through her eyes.

The whole movie talks about ‘living under the fear of death of the near and dear ones’; which makes the audience think seriously about the grave existing situation faced by poor farmers. And, this is where the film maker delivers his message effectively. The climax is very beautifully crafted, which  can place the movie at par with world cinema.

Rating:
by Kashmira Pawaskar © MMW