Tathagat movie review: Manav Kaul’s ruminative and brave exploration of renunciation-Entertainment News , Firstpost
Manav Kaul, who has written and produced Tathagat, does not spell out the questions or provide the answers. He simply rolls out a series of ruminations through which the audience is left to draw our own conclusions – or not.
Language: Hindi
If you have watched Manav Kaul as an actor on screen, you have perhaps figured out already that his approach to cinema is unconventional. “Mainstream”, in his book, clearly does not mean silly or mindless, as a section of the filmmaking community and audience seem to assume it (w/)should be. He tends to work with directors who see the commercial potential in sensible, thoughtful entertainment, which is how we have gotten to see him in such memorable roles as Omi Shastri’s rabid right-wing Bittu Maama in Abhishek Kapoor’s Kai Po Che! and the heroine’s supportive, romantic husband in Tumhari Sulu starring Vidya Balan.
Kaul’s directorial ventures occupy a more art-for-art’s-sake space. Hansa (2012) was about two children in a mountainous region whose father’s disappearance threatens their family’s survival. A child and the mountains are once again at the centre of his second film as director, Tathagat, that drops on MUBI this week as a double bill with Hansa.
Tathagat is a complex word that stands for Buddha and for Buddha-like qualities. While the general understanding of the latter meaning is peaceful, unruffled, one who has risen above worldly pre-occupations and one who has forsaken worldly affairs, Kaul chooses to explore an aspect of an ascetic’s being that is not all sunshine and roses: the struggle. This is an aspect that believers avoid and are even averse to acknowledging because human beings are inclined to seek superhuman perfection in our spiritual and religious icons.
Baba (Harish Khanna) in Tathagat is as imperfect as they come. He lives in self-imposed deprivation in a spare dwelling that he shares with a disciple (Ghanshyam Lalsa). The quiet of their Himalayan home is disrupted when a letter arrives one day. The missive dredges up long-buried memories and Tathagat unspools as a conversation between the elderly man and his internal self, which, as it turns out, is primarily his younger self (Himanshu Bhandari) harbouring confusion, fear, insecurity and a terrible secret. These interactions repeatedly blend into dialogue with the childhood memory of his beloved Mausi (Savita Rani) who also serves as a personification of his conscience.
Renunciation has for millennia been glorified as being on a higher plane of human existence, a choice through which individuals inch towards a god-like state. The origins of many major world religions are traced to figures who gave up either their families or great wealth or both to become seekers of truth, and if that is not the case, if such a story is not featured in their scriptures, then in practice these faiths demand renunciation of some form from their followers, with the highest restrictions being placed on monks, nuns, priests and other individuals who are deemed “holy”/“religious”.
Tathagat casts a shadow on rosy pictures of sacrifice by pointing to uncomfortable possibilities.
What if renunciation was born of a desire to escape reality? Does it qualify as asceticism if it is only a camouflage for running away from life? Given that no human is without frailties, is true asceticism possible at all?
Kaul, who has written and produced Tathagat, neither spells out any of these questions nor provides answers. He simply rolls out a series of ruminations through which the audience is left to draw our own conclusions – or not.
Although Tathagat does not situate itself in one specified religion, in terms of its premise and courage, it reminded me of Pan Nalin’s Tibetan-Ladakhi film Samsara (2001/2002), which was about the inner turmoil of a Buddhist monk. In terms of its tone (that some might describe as Terrence Malick-like) and avant-garde filmmaking style, it brought to mind the recent indie Marathi gems, Trijya – The Radius and Sthalpuran – Chronicle of Space directed by Akshay Indikar and to some extent, Sanal Kumar Sasidharan’s more wacko Unmadiyude Maranam (Death of Insane) in Malayalam.
The cast consists largely of artistes with a theatre background. The familiar face for theatrical movie-goers among them is Sayani Gupta (Margarita With A Straw, Article 15, Four More Shots Please!) whose name, is incorrectly, spelt as “Sayoni” in the credits and who doubles up as assistant director in this film along with Ghanshyam Lalsa. In keeping with the nature of Tathagat, their acting is remarkably real.
Through his narrative choices and Pooja Sharma’s discreet, contemplative cinematography, Kaul’s film – like his protagonist – conveys an impression of deceptive surface calm that hides a flurry of existential concerns. It ends on a sweet Paulo Coelho-esque discussion that Baba has with the child he once was (and still is).
Tathagat is a gentle film that raises tough questions. While doing so, it travels deep into itself, making it a meditative experience.
Tathagat is streaming on MUBI INDIA.
Rating: ***1/2
(Anna M.M. Vetticad is an award-winning journalist and author of The Adventures of an Intrepid Film Critic. She specialises in the intersection of cinema with feminist and other socio-political concerns. Twitter: @annavetticad, Instagram: @annammvetticad)
