Sparsh

A film by Sai Paranjpe that stands out due to the extraordinary duo…Shabana Azmi & Nasiruddin Shah. Released in 1980 I had my first brush with black tickets then. I must have been the fifth in the row & yet I came home without tickets. Eventually I got to see it & it was worth every penny( not that I earned any of it, but my parents had been toiling for it & I definitely knew the value!)

Sparsh refers to the sensation & feeling of touch. It is the story about a principal of the blind school & a recently widowed young woman. It is a story of the blind & the sighted. It has a very simple beginning, he is mesmerised by a singing voice & lingers at a door. It belongs to Kavita (Shabana Azmi).She is living alone.

At a party thrown by her friend ( Sudha Chopra) she meets him again. He mentions that his school needs volunteers for reading, singing & spend time. Her friend urges her & she reluctantly agrees. She starts spending more time at the school. As their friendship grows stronger they get engaged. He is a firm believer that the blind need help but not charity or pity.

Once she tries to help with the coffee in his office, he raises his voice as he cannot accept his guest’s help. The abnormal change in his voice scares her. The incidence is pictored so neatly we imagine it happening in front of our eyes. We are actually in the office! When she goes to choose a saree she brings it to her cheek & checks the texture, her friend suggests many but she does not go by the color! Such touches make it a great film.

When she is thinking of any story she can’t use the word..’Dekho’ or ‘ usne dekha’ because the students wouldn’t know it. She has to think like them. There is a story where a child falls in the well, so many people come running but it is so difficult to bring him up. When she asks what is the moral of the story , a child equips..” Mummy ne itna bada naam rakhna nahi chahiye, naam lete lete bacha kue mein gir jata hai” The children are same, with or without eyes. She enjoys their sense of humour. The Principal is in the vicinity & he is happy that his children are enjoying.

Mis understandings creep & he starts to doubt her love for sympathy. He breaks off their engagement.The movie ends with them realising the ‘sparsh’ of their feelings for each other.

“Geeton ki duniya mein sargam’,’Khali pyala dhundla darpan’,’Pyala chhalka ujla darpan’ by Sulakshana Pandit. They set the tone of the film.

The national award for best feature film in Hindi, best screen play for Sai Paranjpe & best actor for Nasiruddin Shah.Filmfare award for best movie ..Basu Bhattacharya, best director.. Sai Paranjpye & best dialogue..Sai Paranjpye.

It was a wonderful experience.Happy viewing!