A look back at Mr. and Mrs. Iyer

By Deepak M. Rao

If you have not seen it, rush to the nearest CD rental store and keep your date with the Iyers.

It may be a shade too late to critique a movie released in 2002, but the fetters of time fail to bind anyone from reviewing a piece of art. Aparna Sen's movie on Love in times of Hindu-Moslem violence 'Mr. and Mrs. Iyer' was shown on Zoom channel. I had missed it on the big screen and so it was the first time I was watching it. What a movie it was.

Hindu-Moslem violence forms the backdrop of the movie. The bus in which the protagonists are traveling to Calcutta is stopped because of a curfew imposed in that region. This is where violence strikes. A group of enraged, fanatical Hindus enter the bus to kill the Moslem passengers. A young Tamil Brahmin lady with her infant saves the life of a Moslem by introducing themselves to the bloodthirsty hooligans as Mr. and Mrs. Iyer. How love grows between the two people despite the difference in religion is what forms the crux of the movie. The director has made brilliant use of the cold mountains, the dreary weather to add to the eeriness factor. No loud noises, no shrieks or shrills.

Konkana Sen Sharma plays the Hindu Tamil Iyer and Rahul Bose plays the Moslem she helps. While Konkana has played her part well, it is Rahul Bose who has portrayed the character with such ease and an amazing control that it makes one stand up in applause. There are many scenes in the movie that would touch a viewer's heart. The time when Rahul is mildly amused when Konkana keeps asking him to take care of the kid. The look in Konkana's eyes when she sees Rahul drinking directly from the water bottle. The disgust on her face when she wakes up to realize she slept in the same room as Rahul. And then, the last scene, when she says 'Goodbye Mr. Iyer.'

In a capitalist world, where it is common belief that everything is for money and personal gain, the director has wonderfully built the movie in such a way as to educate the people about the happenings. She cleverly stays clear of making any judgmental statements lest it may be mistaken for one of the movies-with-a-message that almost always fail to draw the masses. There are none of the jingoist sentiments, no adrenaline overdose, no flags that are a trademark of all movies which talk of Hindu-Moslem rivalry. And yet in her own subtle way she shows how there are still forces that could wipe away the undercurrent of religion from our society.

If you have not seen it, rush to the nearest CD rental store and keep your date with the Iyers.

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