Samar (film)
Encyclopedia
Samar (1999) is an India
n feature film directed by Shyam Benegal
. It was produced by National Film Development Corporation of India, a government agency.
It stars Rajeshwari Sachdev
, Jonhawiwi Forsywas, Kishore Kadam and Seema Biswas
among others. The film is in Hindi-Urdu. The film's music is composed by Vanraj Bhatia
. It won the National Film Award for Best Film
in 1999.
It also presents an unflattering image of modern filmmakers, especially those who visit far-flung rural areas, in search of 'sensitive' stories, while themselves remaining insensitive to the rural dynamics, and in turn adding their own preconceived notions and bias, to the entire film making process.
In a small village in Madhya Pradesh, two different communities fight over a water pump installation. When a member of one of the communities, Nathu (Kishore Kadam) decides to protest against a decision he feels is unjust, he angers the local land owner, who decides to impose economic sanctions on the community in an effort to starve them out of the village. When Nathu's house is burned down in mysterious circumstances, Nathu seeks the comfort of a temple, and prays for a solution. Instead he finds himself abused and beaten by the land owner for breaking a rule that bans members of Nathu's community from entering the temple. It later emerges that the situation in the area is being used as a plot for a film made in Bombay, however characters featured in the film are misrepresented, which leads to tension on the set and eventually violence spills.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n feature film directed by Shyam Benegal
Shyam Benegal
Shyam Benegal is a prolific Indian director and screenwriter. With his first four feature films Ankur , Nishant Manthan and Bhumika he created a new genre, which has now come to be called the "middle cinema" in India although he himself has expressed dislike in the term preferring his work to...
. It was produced by National Film Development Corporation of India, a government agency.
It stars Rajeshwari Sachdev
Rajeshwari Sachdev
Rajeshwari Sachdev is a Hindi film actress, who is most known for her role in Shyam Benegal's film Sardari Begum , for which she won the 1997 National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress....
, Jonhawiwi Forsywas, Kishore Kadam and Seema Biswas
Seema Biswas
Seema Biswas is an Indian film and theatre actress from Assam who shot into prominence with the role of Phoolan Devi in Shekhar Kapur's film Bandit Queen . She has a reputation for performing strong character roles.Biswas won the 1996 National Film Award for Best Actress for her role in the film...
among others. The film is in Hindi-Urdu. The film's music is composed by Vanraj Bhatia
Vanraj Bhatia
Vanraj Bhatia is an Indian music composer, who is best known for providing music for most of Shyam Benegal's films, and for his private albums with Music Today....
. It won the National Film Award for Best Film
National Film Award for Best Film
The National Award for Best Feature film is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, India, and was constituted in the year 1954. This is one of the Golden Lotus Awards given among National Film Awards...
in 1999.
Overview
The film is based on a real-life story of a Madhya Pradesh village, where an Ahir farmer had committed the "crime" of entering the village temple for a thanksgiving, for which he publicly humiliated by village priest. When a film actor is to enacted the scene of humiliation, he revolts, thus sparking off another cycle of violence in the village.It also presents an unflattering image of modern filmmakers, especially those who visit far-flung rural areas, in search of 'sensitive' stories, while themselves remaining insensitive to the rural dynamics, and in turn adding their own preconceived notions and bias, to the entire film making process.
Plot
The larger theme of the film is centred around India's caste system, though it is depicted as a film within a film.In a small village in Madhya Pradesh, two different communities fight over a water pump installation. When a member of one of the communities, Nathu (Kishore Kadam) decides to protest against a decision he feels is unjust, he angers the local land owner, who decides to impose economic sanctions on the community in an effort to starve them out of the village. When Nathu's house is burned down in mysterious circumstances, Nathu seeks the comfort of a temple, and prays for a solution. Instead he finds himself abused and beaten by the land owner for breaking a rule that bans members of Nathu's community from entering the temple. It later emerges that the situation in the area is being used as a plot for a film made in Bombay, however characters featured in the film are misrepresented, which leads to tension on the set and eventually violence spills.
Awards
- 1999: National Film Award for Best FilmNational Film Award for Best FilmThe National Award for Best Feature film is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, India, and was constituted in the year 1954. This is one of the Golden Lotus Awards given among National Film Awards...
- 1999: National Film Award for Best ScreenplayNational Film Award for Best ScreenplayThe National Film Award for Best Screenplay winners:-References:...
- Ashok MishraAshok MishraAshok Mishra is an Indian screenplay writer and lyricist in Bollywood films. He is most noted for his work in the Shyam Benegal film Welcome to Sajjanpur .-External links:... - 2000: IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n 'replay award' for most replayed movie in IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
External links
- Samar at the on NFDC website