(1972)

Dir.: Gulzar

Cast- Sanjeev Kumar, Jaya Bhaduri

 

Meaningful silences speak more than meaningless words. This thought repeatedly crosses my mind while watching director Gulzar’s Koshish- an unforgettable bitter-sweet tale of triumph of indomitable spirit over tragedies in life.

 

Aarti (Jaya Bhaduri) is a young girl who has lost her speech and hearing ability following a childhood illness. Growing up ina poor family which includes a widowed mother (Dina Pathak) and a wayward vagabond brother (Asrani), she accidentally meets Hari (Sanjeev Kumar- another deaf-mute person who is making a living as a newspaper vendor. Their physical handicaps serve as a common bond and soon, both start coming closer emotionally. At Hari’s insistence and with her loving mother’s unwavering support, Aarti attends the special school and learns sign- language. That opens up a whole new world for her whereby she can express her feelings through hand- signs and written notes.

 

In due course Hari and Aarti’s friendship culminates in marriage but soon afterwards, tragedy strikes. They lose their son and Hari loses his job. Undaunted by setbacks, Hari, through his sincerity and hard work, reaches a respectable position in society. Even after his wife’s death, with the support of his kind- hearted boss, he not only raises his second son into a fine man but also provides him with the finest education. Now as the young (and ‘normal’!) son wavers about marrying the deaf- mute daughter of Hari’s boss, Hari’s life is at crossroads- once again. What happens in the end?

 

Sanjeev Kumar and Jaya Bhaduri as the deaf- mute couple are exceptional in their demanding roles. Their eyes talk, their faces emote and their silences speak volumes. There are a number of memorable scenes like the scene where Hari explodes in anger at the mocking by- standers; the shot where they shake an empty rattle and get alarmed at their baby’s lack of response and the sequence where Hari admonishes his son for refusing to accept a deaf- mute girl as his bride.

 

It’s not a flawless film, being at times too melodramatic and even unrealistic. Yet one can’t ignore its cinematic significance. True to its title (koshish means effort)- it is an honest effort from a sensitive film-maker to portray a world of silence and give it a meaningful perspective in the cacophony of life.