Decoding Arth (1982)

Movie no 4/100

April 27, 2018

After two back-to-back comedies, I decided to watch something from the shelves of the famed parallel cinema of the 1980s. I chose to watch the 1982-Mahesh Bhatt directorial, ‘Arth’, starring Shabana Azmi, Smita Patil and Kulbhushan Kharbanda. Allegedly based on Mahesh Bhatt’s own clandestine affair with actress Parveen Babi, Arth is a melancholic tale of how an extra-marital affair of a man disturbs three lives – his, his wife’s and his beloved’s.

Orphaned at an young age, Pooja (played by Shabana Azmi) is married for seven years to a film director, Inder Malhotra (played by Kulbhushan Kharbanda). But, her dream of having a loving husband, a beautiful home and a family of her own is shattered by her husband’s dalliances with the reigning actress, Kavita Sanyal (played by Smita Patil). The movie traces Pooja’s tempestuous journey from a state of shock, to disbelief, to helplessness, to pleads and finally, ending up being indifferent. In her tribulations, Pooja finds solace in the company of her maid, Bai (played by Rohini Hattangadi) and a singer she befriends, Raj (played by Raj Kiran).

Keeping in mind the somber nature of the premise, the pace is kept slow but never is it dull or uninteresting. The brilliant performances, the beautifully dull camerawork, the intense dialogues and the soulful music make it a very interesting watch. Delivering a very difficult performance is Smita Patil as the ‘other woman’. She is madly in love with Inder, but her eccentricities scream of the paranoia that she is going through. Due to her fragile state of mind, she remains insecure and even attempts suicide. She steals the show from Shabana Azmi in one scene, where she displays her schizophrenic antics brilliantly! This was the first Smita Patil movie that I saw and she definitely lives up to her reputation of being one of the finest actresses of her time. Rohini Hattangadi as the housemaid was a revelation. I often have a problem with the current crop of writers using inconsequential subplots in the movies. Here is a fine example of how to craft a beautiful subplot and blend it into the narrative. As the Bai, her story is the mirror that she holds to Pooja – by showing the plight of having ‘the other woman’ in ones life. She becomes the support that Pooja needs when her husband abandons her. This was certainly worth the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress that she won, defeating Smita Patil for the same movie!

As the straying husband, Kulbhushan Kharbanda portrays various shades of Inder – from a man passionately in love outside his marriage, to turning an alcoholic unable to bear the tantrums of his mentally-ill girlfriend. But, keeping the canvas melancholic and delivering an incredibly nuanced performance is - Shabana Azmi. The performance that got her the National Award that year, has her display genuine pain and desperation, which she later channels into her determination. She fills the screen with gloom and pain every time she appears on the screen – be it the frantic call that she makes to Kavita to plead her to send her husband back. Or the scene where she confronts Inder and Kavita at a party in an inebriated state. She is outstanding!

Released in the 1980s, I felt the movie was extremely empowering for women. At a time when philandering and infidelity by their husbands was overlooked by the women, Arth sent a strong message, which remains pertinent even today. Also, a special mention of the music by Chitra and Jagjit Singh and the beautiful lyrics by Kaifi Azmi. The ghazals which have gained cult status today, are so beautifully written that they almost seem like dialogues being delivered in the form of songs. With 96 movies to go, I hope I get to see more such gems from the archives of Hindi cinema!