Film ReviewsSiddharth: Star of India
Sept 18, 2014, Anchorage Press
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According to Kabbalah philosophy, plenty. Just ask Madonna, or better yet, look at the significance of the name "Siddharth" or "Siddhartha" through history, culture and art. It is no accident that Canadian Director, Richie Mehta weaves a story through multiple layers associated with the namesake. The Sanskrit name is composed of "Siddha", meaning "achieved", plus "Artha" meaning "what was searched for", which together means "he[she] who has found meaning" or has attained a goal. Buddah was named Siddhartha Gautama before becoming Buddha. Siddharth is based on a true story about a man who sends his 12-year-old son, Siddharth, to work in a trolley factory. The son is expected home a month later for Dawali, India's festival of lights, which happens in the autumn and celebrates the victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, good over evil, and hope over despair. When Siddharth fails to come home, the family discovers that he has gone missing and was likely abducted. And the search begins.
Rajesh Tailang, plays Mehendra Saini, the father. Tannishtha Chatterjee plays Siddharth's mother, Suman Saini. The parents are supported by a cast of complex characters, from the runaway kids on the streets, to the voices of the Siddharth and Mehendra's father via the telephone. The couple is relatively young; they have two kids, little education and few skills. Mehendra works as a chain-wallah who fixes broken zippers on the streets. Their financial stress, like that of those around them, is tremendous. Need drives them to make decisions without knowing the real impacts these may bring. Chatterjee's portrayal of the mother is compelling. The mother is the driving force and source of direction for her husband's quest. Tailang's portrayal of the father is just as complex. The character is a bit naïve. His lack of experience quickly gives way to an ever-expanding understanding of the world that brings him to his knees. Viewers may be taken aback by the kindness that the characters have towards one another, even their reproaches are rooted in love.
Siddharth is a jewel that has been somewhat overlooked in the American movie scene, perhaps because it is unpretentious, and doesn't employ Hollywood stars or gimmicky faux realities seen in other movies rumored to be in the Oscar lineup. The film is in Hindi with English subtitles. Mehta equips his characters with strong moral compasses and resiliency at the center. In Amal (2007), Mehta explores the dynamics of poverty and classes with an overarching moral or lesson to be learned. Siddharth is a stronger work because the essential human dynamics are present, just as vigorous, but also intimate and delivered by brilliant actors. At times the viewer may feel that he/she is intruding on moments meant for one, or two at most. The quiet melody of sorrow felt by the Siddharth's parents and community is revealed via details that add up to moments signifying plot points and shifts in emotional paradigms, from denial to sorrow, from mourning to hoping, from letting go, to holding on. Mehta demonstrates his expertise as an auteur in balancing images and sound. The soundtrack is beautiful and effective at translating images to sentiment and mood.
Poverty is not the natural condition of human beings. Through Amal and Siddharth, Mehta reminds us that the economic conditions that billions of people are born into are artificially constructed and are so old that the world is reluctant to change them out of fear and/or perhaps myopic assumptions about reality. Mehta's work does not glorify poverty, neither 'favela chic' nor 'ghetto fabulous', nor any other euphemism applies to his work. At the same time, Mehta does not judge the conditions of poverty in which his characters develop because that would be unfair to the characters and the people they mirror. One of the greatest accomplishments of Mehta's Siddharth is that it brings to the screen a tragic reality in contemporary India, that of the unintended consequences of forced or illegal child labor and human trafficking. Mehta brings these issues to the forefront without alienating the viewer or forcing any kind of moral resolution or direction. Although Mehta's vantage point is Delhi and other parts of India, key scenes in the film remind viewers that the rampant human trafficking industry is a worldwide problem, in which everyone has a part.
Siddharth is an original telling of a story about familiar journeys across deeply rooted cultures. Some viewers may recognize parallel symbolism with Herman Hesse's 1920's novel about the self-discovery of a character also named Siddhartha. Other viewers may recognize the human spirit embodied in the notion of hope seen in Fellini's Nights of Cabiria, and still others may be reminded of Vaclav Havel's famous quotes on hope, "Isn't it the moment of most profound doubt that gives birth to new certainties? Perhaps hopelessness is the very soil that nourishes human hope."
Siddharth plays at Bear Tooth on Monday, Sept. 22 at 9:40 p.m.
Rajesh Tailang, plays Mehendra Saini, the father. Tannishtha Chatterjee plays Siddharth's mother, Suman Saini. The parents are supported by a cast of complex characters, from the runaway kids on the streets, to the voices of the Siddharth and Mehendra's father via the telephone. The couple is relatively young; they have two kids, little education and few skills. Mehendra works as a chain-wallah who fixes broken zippers on the streets. Their financial stress, like that of those around them, is tremendous. Need drives them to make decisions without knowing the real impacts these may bring. Chatterjee's portrayal of the mother is compelling. The mother is the driving force and source of direction for her husband's quest. Tailang's portrayal of the father is just as complex. The character is a bit naïve. His lack of experience quickly gives way to an ever-expanding understanding of the world that brings him to his knees. Viewers may be taken aback by the kindness that the characters have towards one another, even their reproaches are rooted in love.
Siddharth is a jewel that has been somewhat overlooked in the American movie scene, perhaps because it is unpretentious, and doesn't employ Hollywood stars or gimmicky faux realities seen in other movies rumored to be in the Oscar lineup. The film is in Hindi with English subtitles. Mehta equips his characters with strong moral compasses and resiliency at the center. In Amal (2007), Mehta explores the dynamics of poverty and classes with an overarching moral or lesson to be learned. Siddharth is a stronger work because the essential human dynamics are present, just as vigorous, but also intimate and delivered by brilliant actors. At times the viewer may feel that he/she is intruding on moments meant for one, or two at most. The quiet melody of sorrow felt by the Siddharth's parents and community is revealed via details that add up to moments signifying plot points and shifts in emotional paradigms, from denial to sorrow, from mourning to hoping, from letting go, to holding on. Mehta demonstrates his expertise as an auteur in balancing images and sound. The soundtrack is beautiful and effective at translating images to sentiment and mood.
Poverty is not the natural condition of human beings. Through Amal and Siddharth, Mehta reminds us that the economic conditions that billions of people are born into are artificially constructed and are so old that the world is reluctant to change them out of fear and/or perhaps myopic assumptions about reality. Mehta's work does not glorify poverty, neither 'favela chic' nor 'ghetto fabulous', nor any other euphemism applies to his work. At the same time, Mehta does not judge the conditions of poverty in which his characters develop because that would be unfair to the characters and the people they mirror. One of the greatest accomplishments of Mehta's Siddharth is that it brings to the screen a tragic reality in contemporary India, that of the unintended consequences of forced or illegal child labor and human trafficking. Mehta brings these issues to the forefront without alienating the viewer or forcing any kind of moral resolution or direction. Although Mehta's vantage point is Delhi and other parts of India, key scenes in the film remind viewers that the rampant human trafficking industry is a worldwide problem, in which everyone has a part.
Siddharth is an original telling of a story about familiar journeys across deeply rooted cultures. Some viewers may recognize parallel symbolism with Herman Hesse's 1920's novel about the self-discovery of a character also named Siddhartha. Other viewers may recognize the human spirit embodied in the notion of hope seen in Fellini's Nights of Cabiria, and still others may be reminded of Vaclav Havel's famous quotes on hope, "Isn't it the moment of most profound doubt that gives birth to new certainties? Perhaps hopelessness is the very soil that nourishes human hope."
Siddharth plays at Bear Tooth on Monday, Sept. 22 at 9:40 p.m.