Pagglait : The Journey From A Sad Beginning To A Happy Ending
Khevna.P.Shah, INN/Bangalore
Content Writer
Funerals have always been a tricky subject for cinema. The Filmmakers constantly try to highlight various issues about funerals. Pagglait -the Netflix release, directed by Umish Bist has managed to pack the various elements such as patriarchy, mourning, gossips, financial crisis, and personal tension all in the memories of the so-called dear departed.
This comedy-drama covers the 13 days period starting from Astik’s cremation up till his tervi (13th day). Sandhya (Sanaya Malhotra) is a MA graduate who got married to Aatik five months before his demise. Being educated and qualified, she was financially dependent on her husband and so was her father-in-law. Each family member has their quirkiness. As the entire family grieves upon this loss, she couldn’t be able to shed a tear. That was very unnatural behavior of the widow, according to the family. A few days after the funeral she finds a picture of a woman in her husband’s closet, making her infuriated, sad, and left wondering with numerous questions.
The movie not only revolves around the protagonist but also highlights the issues faced by the other side characters as well. Nazia Zaidi (Shruti Sharma) is the protagonist’s friend who is treated very differently by the rest of the family members because of her caste. She breaks the stereotype by saying “not every Sachin is Tendulkar”, when she asks for vegetarian food. Hypocrisy is very subtly induced in the movie, especially when Pappu Griri (Ragubhir Yadhav) catches Alok smoking, who has cremated his brother and is not allowed to induces in such practices during these ceremonies, and we see the former enjoying the consumption of alcohol just in the next shot. Despite the situation, the male members of the family are jealous when Sandhya inherits the issuance money and they lower their standards by bribing the employee.
Pagglait is a story in the lines of Kate Chopin, The story of an hour. In both, stories the protagonist is bound by a fractured relationship and the only thing they desire is freedom. Sandhya gets her freedom after her husband dies and Mrs. Mallard’s freedom was her own death. Unlike other stories, the widow is not portrayed as the victim, instead, she discovers her true self and takes the authority of her own life, and decided to work for herself. According to some of the Hindu rituals, it takes 13 days for the soul to find a new body, symbolically in 13 days, Sandhya discovered a new personality when she realized unless she decides for herself someone else will control her life. Instead of respecting the dead, the family members are caught up in their familial feuds. The unique concept of this movie is the portrayal of female friendships. Sandhya gets in touch with her late husband’s colleague and as he learns about her husband, she slowly starts forgiving him for not loving her.
The movies captured the aesthetically pleasing shots of the Lucknow streets. The narrative style is simple and tricky because each character shown is flawed but is not evil and yet they are not perfect. It is easier to relate to such characters in the real world. The cutting of the scenes is perfect, especially the scene when Sandhya and are having Gol Gappas (panipuri). As Sandhya extends her hand, the scene gets cut with Alok extending his hand to the priest for the ritual. Showing the contrasting events during the same time, parallelly. Another social aspect is the woman can only get married since she has money but not because she deserves to be loved and respected. Every actor, including Shebaa Chadda, Sayani Gupta, Ashutosh Rana, Nakul Sahadev, Rajesh Tailang have served justice to their role.
The statement made by Sandhya “when a woman becomes wise, she is often called mad”, reflects upon the society in the current era. Finally, the film ends with a message of forgiveness and also the redefinition of happily-ever-after and how death can be more revealing than the living.