Veer-Zaara from the Other Side
By Ras Hafiz Siddiqui
CA

The recent "Peace Momentum" or apparent thaw in relations between India and Pakistan cannot just be left to leaders and governments. It is making its way into the lives of ordinary people too and the entertainment medium of films is certainly leading the way.

The most recent of these efforts is Bollywood's portrayal of a cross-border India-Pakistan love relationship in "Veer-Zaara," a film which incorporates some of the most commercially successful actors and actresses in the Indian film industry from both the current and the recent generation. Shah Rukh Khan and Preity Zinta along with Rani Mukerji are some of the top box office performers of today while Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini represent the cream of the past that just cannot be forgotten. And assisted by the voice of the ageless Lata, how could this film lose? But it is not just the Veer-Zaara cast or the topic that persuaded me to visit the Grand Surjit Cineplex theatre in Aligarh, India last month.

It was both the company and a sense of curiosity. I had not visited South Asia or a movie theatre there in over 15 years. Since this was a personal "nostalgia tour", it was the search of both the family roots and identity (assisted by the aftermath of 9/11) that drove me to take an extended trip to both India and Pakistan during November and December, 2004. I have lived in the US for over 30 years now and very much wanted to connect with the past. Watching movies in the Karachi and Dacca of our youth during the 60's and early 70's always brings back fond memories. But the darker days of the 80's in Pakistan had dampened much of that enthusiasm. So this experience at the Surjit in India was an attempt to reunite with a somewhat lost past.

That entire families come to watch movies in Indian theatres is wonderful and one is reminded here of our own past in Pakistan. Movies are big business in India and much attention is paid to make sure that viewers are comfortable and feel secure in theatres. The Waheed Murads, Ali-Zebs and Nadeems of our yesteryear are alive and well in today's India (in a much larger form) as Shah Rukh, Preity, Amitabh and Hema Malini along with numerous others have such a dedicated following that that it even makes fans here in America seem tame in comparison. Muslim women clad in chadars and veils/burqas (Aligarh has a huge Muslim presence), along with sarees, and Hindu women sporting bindi's and sindoor and some more westernized in jeans, and men in a variety of attire too, the viewing audience of Veer-Zaara in Aligarh was indeed an interfaith affair. Maybe Indians are getting used to the idea of "this friendship thing" as are many Pakistanis, I thought, but such ideals have a price associated with them and one is yet to discover who will have to pay what or how much? In the mean time as I glanced over at the audience both before and after the movie, Veer-Zaara seems to have been received quite well.

Or was it that in India today the Shahrukh Khan-Preity Zinta combo has such a strong fan base that any movie they star in automatically becomes palatable? In a potentially powerful story, an Indian man Veer Pratap Singh (Shahrukh Khan) and a Pakistani woman Zaara Hayaat Khan (Preity Zinta) try to defy the odds in this Romeo and Juliet style cross border relationship. But it is the sheer determination of a Pakistani female lawyer Saamiya Siddiqui (played by Rani Mukerji who brings the complicated lives of the lovebirds into focus) that captures the more serious viewers' attention. Add to that the colorful appearances of Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini and the mother figure now patented by Kiron Kher and one could easily expect a blockbuster.

Unfortunately this Yash Chopra film left a little to be desired in the editing department. It seems to have reached the cinemas in too much of a hurry in order to meet some kind of deadline. The cloth and the tailoring are all correct but the final stitching could have used some more work. One does not have to be political to either appreciate or reject this movie. The same may even be true of the message that it is trying to send out to the people of India and Pakistan who could sure use some peace amongst their governments. So let me just add here by stating that viewing Veer-Zaara in Aligarh was a delight. Not just because Aligarh has a special place in the lives of South Asia's Muslims who are very much present on both sides of the border. But the real positive news is that bridges of understanding are finally being allowed to be established.

To close, the two high points of the movie are the courtroom defense scene and the sensual aspect added in the very beginning by the very pretty Preity Zinta. Preity is at her best here aided by Lata Mangeshkar's voice and the late Madan Mohan's music. "Hum to jaisay hain, waisay hi rahain gay," is the song which translates to "I/we will never change". One can only hope that this song, no matter how beautifully sung, does not remain a lasting commentary on India-Pakistan affairs.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Editor: Akhtar M. Faruqui
© 2004 pakistanlink.com . All Rights Reserved.