Geography

-There were a few subjects in junior classes at school which I couldn’t help but study, like Geography. I always felt an immense surge to chuck it. But I couldn’t, because it was a part of the syllabus.

-so you want to say that there are many things like partying, et al, that comes as a package with the status of a marketing manager in a British firm.

-exactly! The Sunday golf routine is also Geography

That was Shyamalendu Chatterjee (Barun Chanda) explaining the intricacy of his posh life and living, to his quintessential, inquisitive, young sister-in-law, Tutul aka Sudarshana (Sharmila Tagore), who is amazed with the elite, pretentious and glamorous lifestyle led by him and his wife Dolon (Paromita Chowdhury), a sister who is unrecognizably urbane to the Patna residing younger sibling, in Satyajit Ray’s Seemabaddha. The film emphasizes that at the critical juncture, it is our decision that really matters, but alas, one doesn’t really have a choice. The film unequivocally asserts the trials and tribulations of the pastiche psyche, strangulated by the modern malaise of despair, deriving out of the tiring climb to the towering height of success that draws every drop of solace from one’s life.

Living with his wife in a swank flat in Calcutta, Shyamalendu, an employee at a multinational company, has fast climbed the ladder of success, and expects a sure promotion in a few days. Turmoil strikes at the eleventh hour as the electric-fans meant for export is withheld as they are found defective. The deal is sealed, and no time is left for correction…..this would mean professional hara-kiri for the company and Shyamalendu too, as he is the authority in charge. Succumbing under the pressure, he confides in Tutul, who in turn in a jocular manner suggests that he should go ahead with the idea of channeling a labor unrest amongst the workers, giving the clients a strong excuse for being late for delivery. To save the reputation of both, Shyamalendu is compelled to negotiate with the labor officer, Talukdar (Haradhan Bannerjee), and they both hatch a plan to start labor unrest, leading to a subsequent lockout. The firm’s prestige remains unperturbed, Shyamalendu gets promoted. He returns home to celebrate.

The next scene culminates into a masterful sequence. Both Shyamalendu and Tutul are seated facing each other, both exchange a significant glance, both are mute. Tutul removes the watch from her wrist (belonging to Shyamalendu) and the next shot reveals that she has disappeared-the scene beautifully sums up the fact that her role-model has fallen from grace in her eyes. Throughout the film Tutul keeps asking Shyamalendu, “Is this right or wrong?” about anything and everything. Her naivety simply reflects the conscience of Shyamal, which still breathed, although under the effing pressure of the struggle for existence in the big, bad city. Today Tutul need not enquire about her demigod, Shyam….because with the death of his conscience; her childlike innocence has too died. She has grown up, and he has climbed up…..he has fallen.

The scene in the race course where Sharmila looks around and finds everyone in vicinity sporting goggles and a horse-race booklet, poring over its pages, notice how she smiles and demands for the book, and Barun Chanda (initially taken aback) hands it over to her and flashes the understanding smile and then teases her to take the goggles as well-that scene speaks a lot, although there were no dialogues used. Ray always thought dialogues to be the last resort, and his thought process had been wonderfully executed here, in this film.

This film owes much of its brilliance to the performance of the cast, apart from the script, music and direction by the master himself and the story by famous Bengali writer, Manishankar Mukherjee aka Shankar. Seemabaddha is arguably, Barun Chanda’s best work as yet. Sharmila as the docile Tutul is marvelous(what used to happen to her while working in mainstream Bollywood films)and special mention to Harindranath Chattopadhyay as the septuagenarian womanizer, who doesn’t dawdle at all, once he finds his object of desire. Period.

The thing that keeps your eyes glued to the screen is the impeccable use of a first-person narrative voiceover and the moments…….the moment that lingers on with me the most is the one where, Barun Chanda notices the “out of order” sign on the lift and he is forced to take the stairs. Look how his speed (naturally) retards as he is tired of climbing the flight of stairs, connoting that, he is tired of scaling the heights of success.

I have just one word- beautiful!