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Sparsh (film)
Encyclopedia
Sparsh is a 1980 Bollywood
feature film directed by Sai Paranjpye
. It stars Naseeruddin Shah
and Shabana Azmi
playing the characters of a visually impaired principal and a "sighted" teacher in a School of the Blind, where both the characters fall in love with each other though soon their complexes tag along and they struggle to get past them to reconnect with the "touch" of love. The film remains most memorable for the subtle acting of both its leads, plus the handling of the issue of relationships with the visually handicap, revealing the emotional and perception divide between the world, the "Blind" and the "Sighted", epitomized by the characters.
The film won numerous awards including National Film Award - Best Actor
for Naseeruddin Shah
, while Sai Paranjpye
got the Best Screenplay
, later the Filmfare Awards
, it won the top two that of Best Movie
and Filmfare Award - Best Director
, plus a Best Dialogue Award
for Sai Paranjpye
. Further, Shabana Azmi was nominated for Best Actress
, which she eventually won for the film Bhavna
, while Naseeruddin Shah was nominated for Best Actor
lost out to Anupam Kher
in Saaransh
.
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This film is about the blind
, in particular about the lives and feelings of blind children and the principal of their school. Sparsh refers to the sensation and feeling of touch upon which blind people rely in the absence of sight.
The film opens with Anirudh Parmar (Naseeruddin Shah
) as the principal of Navjivan Andhvidyalay, a school for the blind that educates about 200 blind children. Anirudh has a dark and lonely existence for the most part. One day, while on his way to the doctor, he hears a lovely song and ends up, mesmerized, at the songstress' door instead of the doctor.
The voice belongs to Kavita Prasad (Shabana Azmi
), a young woman recently widowed after 3 years of marriage. Kavita, too, prefers a secluded existence. Her childhood friend Manju (Sudha Chopra) is about the only friend she has.
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Manju throws a small party where Kavita and Anirudh meet again. He recognizes her from her voice. During the conversation, he mentions that the school is looking for volunteers to read to, sing to, teach handicrafts and spend time with the children. Kavita is reluctant but she is urged by Manju and her husband Suresh to strongly consider it. Kavita decides to volunteer.
As Kavita spends more time at the school, she begins forming a friendship with Anirudh. The friendship grows stronger over time and they become engaged. But their personalities and feelings are different. Anirudh is of strong character: he firmly believes that the blind need help but not pity or charity. (When once, in his office, Kavita attempts to assist him with coffee, he gets enraged at the thought of his guest offering to overcome his obvious difficulty with hospitality.) Kavita, recently bereaved, looks to the school (and Anirudh) as a way towards an ideal, one of sacrificial service. Anirudh gets wind of this, and assumes Kavita is simply seeking to fill the void in her life with this form of service. He assumes she accepted the proposal not out of love but as a sacrifice towards a way out of her dark life. During this time, Anirudh's fellow blind friend Dubey (Om Puri
) laments that his recently deceased wife was not happy in the marriage either.
Anirudh is shaken, confused and disturbed by all this. He breaks off the engagement (but does not mention the reason to Kavita). She accepts his decision.
Yet Kavita, now a salaried employee of the school, continues to help the children. The initial coldness between her and Anirudh gives way to friction and eventually, over a series of events at the school, brings up the feelings they were not able to discuss before. The situation spirals downward and one of them must leave the school.
The movie ends with Anirudh and Kavita being touched by the depth of their feelings for one another and finally seeing a way out.
and lyrics by Indu Jain.
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
feature film directed by Sai Paranjpye
Sai Paranjpye
Sai Parānjpye is a movie director and a screenwriter in India. She is the director of award-winning movies, Sparsh, Katha, Chasme Buddoor, and Disha....
. It stars Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
and Shabana Azmi
Shabana Azmi
Shabana Azmi is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. An alumna of the Film and Television Institute of India of Pune, she made her film debut in 1974 and soon became one of the leading actresses of parallel cinema, an Indian New Wave movement known for its serious content and...
playing the characters of a visually impaired principal and a "sighted" teacher in a School of the Blind, where both the characters fall in love with each other though soon their complexes tag along and they struggle to get past them to reconnect with the "touch" of love. The film remains most memorable for the subtle acting of both its leads, plus the handling of the issue of relationships with the visually handicap, revealing the emotional and perception divide between the world, the "Blind" and the "Sighted", epitomized by the characters.
The film won numerous awards including National Film Award - Best Actor
National Film Award for Best Actor
The National Film Award for Best Actor is an honor presented annually at the National Film Awards of India to an actor who has delivered the best performance in a leading role within the Indian film industry.-Background:The Directorate of Film Festivals makes awards annually in several categories...
for Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
, while Sai Paranjpye
Sai Paranjpye
Sai Parānjpye is a movie director and a screenwriter in India. She is the director of award-winning movies, Sparsh, Katha, Chasme Buddoor, and Disha....
got the Best Screenplay
National Film Award for Best Screenplay
The National Film Award for Best Screenplay winners:-References:...
, later the Filmfare Awards
Filmfare Awards
The Filmfare Awards are presented annually by The Times Group to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the Hindi language film industry of India. The Filmfare ceremony is one of the oldest and most prominent film events given for Hindi films in India. The awards were...
, it won the top two that of Best Movie
Filmfare Best Movie Award
The Filmfare Best Film Award is given by the Filmfare magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films.The award was first given in 1954. Here is a list of the award winners and the nominees of the respective years...
and Filmfare Award - Best Director
Filmfare Best Director Award
The Filmfare Best Director Award is one of the main awards presented given by the annual Filmfare Awards to recognise directors working in the Hindi film Industry. It was first presented in 1954 in the inaugural year.-Superlatives:...
, plus a Best Dialogue Award
Filmfare Best Dialogue Award
The Filmfare Best Dialogue Award is given by the Filmfare as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films. Here is a list of the award winners since 1958 and the films for which they won.-Superlatives:Most AwardsGulzar - 4...
for Sai Paranjpye
Sai Paranjpye
Sai Parānjpye is a movie director and a screenwriter in India. She is the director of award-winning movies, Sparsh, Katha, Chasme Buddoor, and Disha....
. Further, Shabana Azmi was nominated for Best Actress
Filmfare Best Actress Award
The Filmfare Award for Best Actress is given by Filmfare as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to recognise a female actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role. The award was first given in 1954.-Superlatives:...
, which she eventually won for the film Bhavna
Bhavna
Bhavna is a 1984 Hindi film directed by Pravin Bhatt. The film stars Shabana Azmi, Marc Zuber, Saeed Jaffrey, Rohini Hattangadi, Kanwaljeet Singh, Satish Shah and Urmila Matondkar. The film's music is by Bappi Lahiri....
, while Naseeruddin Shah was nominated for Best Actor
Filmfare Best Actor Award
The Filmfare Award for Best Actor is given by Filmfare as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to recognise a male actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role. The award was first given in 1954....
lost out to Anupam Kher
Anupam Kher
Anupam Kher is an Indian actor who has appeared in nearly 400 films and 100 plays. Though mainly appearing in Bollywood films, he has had roles in some films from other nations as well...
in Saaransh
Saaransh
Saaransh is a 1984 Bollywood film starring Anupam Kher, Rohini Hattangadi and Soni Razdan. The film marked the screen debut of Anupam Kher. It was nominated for India's official entry for the 1985 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film...
.
Synopsis
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
, in particular about the lives and feelings of blind children and the principal of their school. Sparsh refers to the sensation and feeling of touch upon which blind people rely in the absence of sight.
The film opens with Anirudh Parmar (Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
) as the principal of Navjivan Andhvidyalay, a school for the blind that educates about 200 blind children. Anirudh has a dark and lonely existence for the most part. One day, while on his way to the doctor, he hears a lovely song and ends up, mesmerized, at the songstress' door instead of the doctor.
The voice belongs to Kavita Prasad (Shabana Azmi
Shabana Azmi
Shabana Azmi is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. An alumna of the Film and Television Institute of India of Pune, she made her film debut in 1974 and soon became one of the leading actresses of parallel cinema, an Indian New Wave movement known for its serious content and...
), a young woman recently widowed after 3 years of marriage. Kavita, too, prefers a secluded existence. Her childhood friend Manju (Sudha Chopra) is about the only friend she has.
As Kavita spends more time at the school, she begins forming a friendship with Anirudh. The friendship grows stronger over time and they become engaged. But their personalities and feelings are different. Anirudh is of strong character: he firmly believes that the blind need help but not pity or charity. (When once, in his office, Kavita attempts to assist him with coffee, he gets enraged at the thought of his guest offering to overcome his obvious difficulty with hospitality.) Kavita, recently bereaved, looks to the school (and Anirudh) as a way towards an ideal, one of sacrificial service. Anirudh gets wind of this, and assumes Kavita is simply seeking to fill the void in her life with this form of service. He assumes she accepted the proposal not out of love but as a sacrifice towards a way out of her dark life. During this time, Anirudh's fellow blind friend Dubey (Om Puri
Om Puri
Om Puri is an Indian actor who has appeared in both mainstream Indian films and art films. His credits also include appearances in British and American films. He has received an honorary OBE.-Early life:...
) laments that his recently deceased wife was not happy in the marriage either.
Anirudh is shaken, confused and disturbed by all this. He breaks off the engagement (but does not mention the reason to Kavita). She accepts his decision.
Yet Kavita, now a salaried employee of the school, continues to help the children. The initial coldness between her and Anirudh gives way to friction and eventually, over a series of events at the school, brings up the feelings they were not able to discuss before. The situation spirals downward and one of them must leave the school.
The movie ends with Anirudh and Kavita being touched by the depth of their feelings for one another and finally seeing a way out.
Cast
- Shabana AzmiShabana AzmiShabana Azmi is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. An alumna of the Film and Television Institute of India of Pune, she made her film debut in 1974 and soon became one of the leading actresses of parallel cinema, an Indian New Wave movement known for its serious content and...
- Kavita - Naseeruddin ShahNaseeruddin ShahNaseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
- Anirudh Parmar - Sudha Chopra - Manju
- Mohan GokhaleMohan GokhaleMohan Gokhale was an Indian film, television and theater actor who has worked in art films such as Sparsh, Bhavni Bhavai and Mirch Masala. He became popular because of his role in the Doordarshan television serial Mr. Yogi...
- Jagdish - Pran Talwar
- Arun Joglekar
- Om PuriOm PuriOm Puri is an Indian actor who has appeared in both mainstream Indian films and art films. His credits also include appearances in British and American films. He has received an honorary OBE.-Early life:...
- Dubey
Awards
- 1980: National Film Award - Best ActorNational Film Award for Best ActorThe National Film Award for Best Actor is an honor presented annually at the National Film Awards of India to an actor who has delivered the best performance in a leading role within the Indian film industry.-Background:The Directorate of Film Festivals makes awards annually in several categories...
: Naseeruddin ShahNaseeruddin ShahNaseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:... - 1980: National Film Award for Best ScreenplayNational Film Award for Best ScreenplayThe National Film Award for Best Screenplay winners:-References:...
: Sai ParanjpyeSai ParanjpyeSai Parānjpye is a movie director and a screenwriter in India. She is the director of award-winning movies, Sparsh, Katha, Chasme Buddoor, and Disha.... - 1985: Filmfare Award - Best MovieFilmfare Best Movie AwardThe Filmfare Best Film Award is given by the Filmfare magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films.The award was first given in 1954. Here is a list of the award winners and the nominees of the respective years...
: Basu BhattacharyaBasu BhattacharyaBasu Bhattacharya was a Hindi film director , most famous for his 1966 film Teesri Kasam, starring Raj Kapoor and Waheeda Rehman , which won the National Film Award for Best Film in 1967; he also produced Sparsh in 1985 starring Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah, which won the Filmfare Best Movie... - 1985: Filmfare Award - Best DirectorFilmfare Best Director AwardThe Filmfare Best Director Award is one of the main awards presented given by the annual Filmfare Awards to recognise directors working in the Hindi film Industry. It was first presented in 1954 in the inaugural year.-Superlatives:...
: Sai ParanjpyeSai ParanjpyeSai Parānjpye is a movie director and a screenwriter in India. She is the director of award-winning movies, Sparsh, Katha, Chasme Buddoor, and Disha.... - 1985: Filmfare Best Dialogue AwardFilmfare Best Dialogue AwardThe Filmfare Best Dialogue Award is given by the Filmfare as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films. Here is a list of the award winners since 1958 and the films for which they won.-Superlatives:Most AwardsGulzar - 4...
: Sai ParanjpyeSai ParanjpyeSai Parānjpye is a movie director and a screenwriter in India. She is the director of award-winning movies, Sparsh, Katha, Chasme Buddoor, and Disha....
Music
Films music is by veteran music director Kanu RoyKanu Roy
Kanu Roy was an Indian film actor, and music composer in Hindi and Bengali films. Contrary to public misconception,He was not the brother of noted bollywood playback singer Geeta Dutt...
and lyrics by Indu Jain.
| Song | Singer (s) |
|---|---|
| Concert (Sarod Sarod The sarod is a stringed musical instrument, used mainly in Indian classical music. Along with the sitar, it is the most popular and prominent instrument in the classical music of Hindustan... ) |
Amjad Ali Khan Amjad Ali Khan Amjad Ali Khan is an Indian classical musician who plays the sarod. Khan was born into a musical family and has performed internationally since the 1960s... |
| Geeton Ki Duniya Men Sargam | Sulakshana Pandit Sulakshana Pandit Sulakshana Pratap Narain Pandit is a Filmfare Award winning Playback Singer & Actor.Her brothers are the composing duo Jatin Lalit and her younger sister is Vijeta Pandit who achieved fame with her debut movie Love Story. Her uncle is the accomplished classical vocalist Pandit... |
| Khali Pyala Dhundhla Darpan | Sulakshana Pandit Sulakshana Pandit Sulakshana Pratap Narain Pandit is a Filmfare Award winning Playback Singer & Actor.Her brothers are the composing duo Jatin Lalit and her younger sister is Vijeta Pandit who achieved fame with her debut movie Love Story. Her uncle is the accomplished classical vocalist Pandit... |
| Pyala Chhalka Ujla Darpan | Sulakshana Pandit Sulakshana Pandit Sulakshana Pratap Narain Pandit is a Filmfare Award winning Playback Singer & Actor.Her brothers are the composing duo Jatin Lalit and her younger sister is Vijeta Pandit who achieved fame with her debut movie Love Story. Her uncle is the accomplished classical vocalist Pandit... |