Annu Kapoor starrer ‘Humare Barah’ screened at Cannes: The film raises questions on the country’s population growth and education system

India’s young filmmaker Payal Kapadia’s film ‘All We Imagine As Light’ will be screened in the most prestigious Palme d’Or category of the Cannes Film Festival. After the selection of this film, a large number of young filmmakers have come here. A large scale participation of young filmmakers is being seen in the activities of India Pavilion, Cannes Film Bazaar and Indian Motion Pictures Producer Association (IMPPA), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) etc. Their enthusiasm is also because this time films of about 10 Indian filmmakers from all over the world are included in the official selection of the Cannes Film Festival. The film raises many questions Director Kamal Chandra’s first film ‘Humare Barah’ has garnered a lot of praise due to its different content. The film raises the question that which interpretation of Islam is correct? The basic question is whether Islam adopts different standards for men and women? The hero of the film is a true Muslim and is bound by his religious beliefs. Life did not give him the opportunity to know, understand and adopt the progressive traditions of Islam beyond the religious gurus. Therefore, he is definitely not the villain of the film. When his wife dies while giving birth to their twelfth child due to his foolish fanaticism, he monologues on her grave that she did not get the opportunity to learn anything new about Islam. Here is Rukhsana’s voice over that I became free after dying but left many women in the prison of pain. ‘Humare Barah’ was also discussed at the India Pavilion. Apart from Annu Kapoor and Manoj Joshi, all the actors in the film ‘Humare Barah’ are new. Its world premiere took place at the Cannes Film Bazaar. On this occasion, the film’s lead actor Annu Kapoor, director Kamal Chandra and producers Sanjay Nagpal, Virendra Bhagat and Shiv Balak Singh gave detailed information about the film. ‘Humare Barah’ was also discussed at the India Pavilion. The producers had named this film ‘Hum Do Hamare Barah’ but due to the pressure of the censor board, it had to be changed to only ‘Humare Barah’. On the surface, it may seem that this film is directly accusing the Muslim community that they alone are responsible for increasing the population of the country. But later, many touching stories emerge in the background of this issue without hurting the sentiments of any community. Virendra Bhagat, one of the producers of the film, says that all the characters in the film are Muslims, so it is not appropriate to see the Hindu-Muslim angle in it. Sanjay Nagpal says that population growth is a global issue which has been raised through a touching story. The film will also premiere in London and Dubai. After the Cannes Film Festival, the film is also to be premiered in London and Dubai. The producer of the film, Ravi Gupta, says that this film will be released on 6 June in India and overseas, only then will the opinion of the audience be known. Shiv Balak Singh clearly denies the possibility of hurting the sentiments of the Muslim community. At the same time, director Kamal Chandra believes that this decision should be left to the audience. Lead actor Annu Kapoor says that whatever the truth may be, it is possible that the Muslim community may not be ready to tolerate this truth. One thing is for sure that Annu Kapoor has given such a brilliant performance after a long time. He has so much mingled with the role of the main character of the film, Mansoor Ali Khan Sanjari, a Qawwal from Lucknow, that it does not seem that he is acting. Manoj Joshi has also done a wonderful job in the role of a Muslim lawyer. What is the story of the film? 60-year-old Mansoor Ali Khan Sanjari (Annu Kapoor), a Qawwal from Lucknow, already has 11 children. His first wife died after giving birth to 6 children. He marries Rukhsana, who is 30 years younger than him, again and has 5 children. Rukhsana becomes pregnant for the sixth time. Khan sahab proudly says that ‘if there is a census next year, then there will be two of us and twelve of us in this house.’ Not only this, Khan sahab is neither educated himself nor does he let his children study in government or non-government schools. He has interpreted Islam as per his convenience. The problem arises when the lady doctor declares that if Rukhsana is not aborted, she may die while giving birth to the child. Khan Sahab’s elder daughter Alfia courageously files a case in the Lucknow Bench of the Uttar Pradesh High Court that her stepmother should be allowed to have an abortion. From here the film takes a new turn and during the hearing of the case many heartrending stories from within the four walls of the house come to light that due to the religious fanaticism of the head of the family and his arbitrary interpretation of Islam, it is becoming difficult for women to breathe in crores of Indian families. The film ‘Humare Barah’ is a family film which everyone should watch. Without hurting religious sentiments, director Kamal Chandra has used emotional melodrama to tell his point clearly. The story of ‘Humare Barah’ may be based on the Muslim society but everyone needs to learn a lesson from it. Writer: Ajit Roy (Senior journalist and film critic)

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