Storyline: Sabar Bonda (Marathi movie; English title Cactus Pears) revolves around Anand (Bhushaan Manoj). He hails from a small village in Maharashtra but has migrated to Mumbai where he works in the corporate sector. His father falls seriously ill and passes away. In order to carry out his funeral and other post-demise rituals, he visits his village for more than a week.
Amid such a situation, Anand’s orthodox relatives and close family members taunt him directly and indirectly on he still being unmarried despite reaching a ‘high age’ of 30. It is impossible for him to reveal it to them that he is a homosexual and recently went through a break-up. His mother Suman (Jayshri Jagtap) has accepted his reality; even his father had. Apart from her, his friend in the village Balya (Suraaj Suman) is his only companion. Anand finds solace while spending time with him.
Review: Homosexuality is not a novel subject, especially in the unconventional or festival kind of cinema. But writer and director Rohan Kanawade’s Sabar Bonda stands apart from a lot of such films due to various reasons.
It is quite tough for parents to accept their son as a gay in a country like India. The film shows that even if somehow the parents accept their child’s sexuality, what about the relatives and society at large? And this becomes even tougher in a remote village where even a mere mention of the subject is considered more than taboo. This core aspect of the film is skillfully and sensibly portrayed by Kanawade in his feature film debut itself as a writer and director.
The film’s story has a definite conflict element. But the narrative is nowhere near dramatic by any means. It keeps moving in a quiet and gentle manner without making any sort of noise whatsoever despite the subject. The makers have even hardly used any background score. Cinematographer Vikas Urs has enhanced various sequences through his skills, especially in some long one-take scenes.
Sabar Bonda is more like a glimpse into the current state of Anand and the difficult ground on which he is standing at the moment. You do feel sad for him. But the film never goes into a depressive zone. However, you do feel glad for Anand whenever he goes through an episode of happiness; whether it is while spending time with Balya or the moment where he savors Cactus Pears.
This is one of those films where a lot of onus is on the actors and they don’t lag behind. Bhushaan Manoj simply lives the complex but quiet character of Anand. He goes through his various moods without saying much; mostly speaking through expressions. The same sort of quiet but expressive performance is seen from Jayshri Jagtap, who plays his mother. Her support for her son is unwavering, even if it is not visible.
The character of Balya also has an arc of his own, which is finely played by Suraaj Suman. The film has a number of supporting and minor characters as Anand’s relatives and fellow villagers. They all appear realistic.
The film doesn’t have a major negative point. The only minus here is the length. This movie needed to end before 1 hour and 52 minutes.
Overall: Sabar Bonda is unlike a lot of Indian films dealing with homosexuality. It portrays a bold conflict in a quiet and gentle manner.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Director: Rohan Kanawade
Writer: Rohan Kanawade
Producers: Lotus Visual Productions, Dark Stories, Moonweave Films, Taran Tantra Telefilms and Bridge PostWorks
Cast: Bhushaan Manoj, Suraaj Suman and Jayshri Jagtap
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