When Tears Stop, A Revolution Begins…

Ratings: * * * ½

Director: Anant Narayan Mahadevan

Production: Siddhivinayak Cine Vision

Story: Sindhutai Sapkal

Screenplay: Anant Narayan Mahadevan and Sanjay Pawar

Cast: Tejaswani Pandit, Jyoti Chandekar, Upendra Limaye, Suhas Palshikar

Women empowerment or women triumph isn’t a new topic for Indian cinema. The theme is explored in almost all Indian languages ever since the inception of cinema in the country. Despite this, Anant Narayan Mahadevan’s Mee Sindhutai Sapkal stands apart from all other pro-women films because of the heart-warming story of Sindhutai Sapkal and the interesting way in which the tale is narrated.

Based on Sapkal’s book Mee Vanvasi, the film tells the story of 12-year old Chindi who is married to a middle aged man (Upendra Limaye) and is later (when she reaches 26) abandoned by her husband and family as she is wrongly accused of infidelity. Things get worse for Chindi as even her own mother refuses to give her shelter fearing the society. It is from here on that Chindi’s real journey begins. She abandons her image of Chindi and becomes Sindhutai, a social reformer and a shelter for all homeless children.

Mahadevan and Sanjay Pawar’s screenplay is the biggest winner. Adapting a biography on celluloid can be a daunting task which the duo completes with maturity. Especially the mixture of flashback with the present scenario makes the goings special. Special mention should be made of those pre-interval sections where Sindhutai’s mind shifts to the past because of the small incidents that take place during her plane journey. Very creative indeed! And the way the importance of a mother is highlighted is highly touching. Cinematography and background score are apt for the subject.

As a director, Mahadevan continues from where he left in his last brilliantly conceived Red Alert-The War Within.  He achieves utmost perfection in narrating the tale, capturing the location and bringing the best from his cast hence providing a number of brilliantly executed scenes. His first foray into Marathi cinema will be remembered for a long time.

Having said that, the film might not be admired by the commercial cine-goers who are looking for non-stop entertainment.

The efforts of the script writers, dialogue writer (Sanjay Pawar) the director wouldn’t have looked so impressive if Tejaswini Pandit hadn’t played the central character so wonderfully. Her performance is sure to touch you from start till the end as she gets into the skin of the character. In fact, she will be a contender for a National Award. Jyoti Chandekar’s portrayal of the older Sindhutai is equally lovable as one is forced to respect and admire her. The rest of the cast, especially Upendra Limaye leave an impact too. Neena Kulkarni is impressive in a cameo.

In a nutshell, Mee Sindhutai Sapkal is a must watch saga, which will move, inspire and motivate every human being irrespective of his/her gender who is eager to achieve something against all odds. The film should enjoy good collections at the box-office because of the strong word-of-mouth it’s receiving.