Get to making a list of the best and you bet you are getting into a controversy. There cannot be the 10 best films ever list. It is perception, it is often the impact a film leaves on you when you first see it or when you revisit it. It differs from person to person and often a product of lost memories and a recall syndrome that abets poor memory and the product often lingers around the milestone where you started. Given these shortcomings and others, I thought as our cinema celebrates its century and Dada Saheb Palke lifts his bat in acknowledgement I should list out ten all-time great movies, according to me. My list is also genre based. When every list includes Mother India and Mugha e Azam mine does not. The reason: this is a list of Avant Garde films.
1. Garam Hawa: 1973. This master
piece of a film from MS Sathyu dealt with the sensitive issue of partition at
the micro level. With actors like Shaukat Azmi, Gita Sidharath, AK Hangal,
Farooque Shiek, he had an assemble that can’t go wrong. He topped it with a
story (Ismat Chughtai) realistic story telling brilliant cinematography (Ishman
Arya) and above all the brilliance of Balraj Sahani. The performance and the
scene of him the elder patriarch who refuses to join the exodus to Pakistan is
an enduring motif of our cinema. If a student of Hindi cinema has not seen this
film his task has been incomplete.
2. Aavishkaar: 1974. This was the second of the marriage triology by Basu
Bhatacharya and also his best. It was great to see the protagonists Rajesh
Khanna and Sharmila play Amar and Mansi after stripping themselves of their
starry mannerisms and giving us a true to life story of discord in matrimony.
With Kany Roy adding some whispering music and Jagjit and Chitra doing Babul
Mora in the background, this film is sure to haunt the viewer for a while after
you leave the theatre or remove the DVD.
3. Ankur: 1974. The arrival of New Wave cinema was announced loud and clear. It
made it way straight to the Awards and most importantly introduced the Shaam
Benegal – Shabana Azmi. With Ananth Nag and Sandhu Meher alongside Shabana this
film dealt realistically with the problem of feudalism and is still considered
a cult film.
4. Bhumika: 1977. This film announced the class of Smita Patil as an actress.
Benegal having hitherto dealt with social issues this time deals with a
Biography – a genre he returns to with Zubeida decades later, deals with the
life of Marathi actress Hansa Wadkar. The film is a biopic with great
credibility and apart from Smita a great performance from Amol Palekar doing a
negative character.
5. Aakrosh: 1980. Shayam benegal’s cinematographer had already wooed the
audience that was into serious cinema. Aakrsoh was his second film as a
director. Ardh Satya was yet to be made and this time he decided that playing
with black and white was still economical and suited the tale. This must see
film on Dallit exploitation and how the Indian legal system was dealing with it
threw up fine performances from Naseer and and Om Puri. What a blast they
were!!
6. Sparsh : 1980. This time it was the tested pair Shabana and Naseerudding
Shah who with their sheer performance add an awesome dimension to Sai
Parajanpee’s story telling skills. The film deals with a visually challenged
person and how he shares a relationship with a lady in his life. His touch me
not sensitivity with a lady who carries her own emotional baggage leads to a
very sensitive film rarely captured on our scree.
7. Khandhar: 1984. Wow!! What a performance it was from Shabana Azmi and
predictably giving company was Naseer. The eerie translation of loneliness in
the midst of ruins comes with the authentic label: Mrinal Sen. Every scene in
the film is sculptured in brilliance and a pointer to what a superior actress
Shabana is. A must see for those who enjoy cinema as a work of art.
8. Drishti: 1990. For its sheer grammar this film is a genre apart. Again
Govind Nihlani dares to travel where most would fear to travel. The middle
class family ( Shekar Kapoor- Dimple Kapadia) is shattered with extra marital
affairs but what makes the film a must watch is the haunting music form Kishori
Amonkar and the grammar- fully a spoken film. The film deals at length with
conversations that leaves very little for action. Govind Nihlani who writes,
directs and pictures the film makes a master piece for Dimple Kapadia and is
arguably one of the most mature films dealing with the institution of marriage.
9. Bandit Queen: 1994. This is probably the Sholay of parallel cinema. For
scale, violence and the works. With Seema Biswas playing the central role as
Phoolan Devi, this biopic was just too violent for the weak hearted. Told with
more than just a punch by Shekar Kapoor it is not just the most authentic
dacoit film made in the country but is arguably one of the best made here. It
is not recommended for those who want a mujra and think rape is what Prem
Chopra does on celluloid. Sima Biswas in the central character gives one of the
very best performances of our cinema and justifies Shekar choosing her over
Shabana, the doorstep where every great director’s search ends.
10. Dor: 2006. Hyderabad Blues was an experiment for this Hyderabadi engineer.
Zor is very different, in every sense of the word a different film. Starring
Ayesha Takia, Gul Panag, Shreyas Talpade this film deals with the sensitivity
of human relationships and despite being Avant Garde line had a dramatic story.
Will be remembered for not just fine performances, but for the great treatment
Nagesh Kuknoor gives to the story. A milestone film in the last two odd
decades, a great fav. in the DVD circuit.