There are very few films which can easily be rated as an achievement made in the expressive medium of cinema, which dare to explore the hidden unconscious persona of we humans, when caught in an unexplained or unexpected situation of life. These are the films required to be seen as a friendly teacher from whom we can learn some precious lessons, which otherwise may not be available to us from anywhere, even in a lifetime of more than 60-70 years.
One of such important films is EK DIN ACHANAK talking about a rare unfortunate happening in a family which gets interpreted in various ways and then reveals the inner real being of all its members who otherwise were happily enjoying life together. Directed by the acclaimed maestro Mrinal Sen, this can also be called a psychological analysis of a middle class family who all of a sudden find their respected key member missing without any kind of information with anyone.
Based on a Bengali novel, Beej by Ramapada Chowdhury, it is the story of a retired professor who goes on his regular walk one pleasant rainy day and then disappears never to return back. The wait turns painful when days become weeks and weeks turn into months without any sign of his comeback. The small family left alone including his wife, two grown up daughters and a young son, find it difficult to live without their beloved father and are unable to understand any reason behind his sudden disappearance.
With a slow paced yet convincing depiction of the trauma faced by them all, the film introduces the viewers to the character of that missing professor through various flashbacks wherein every person is interacting with him in his own different way as per their individual tuning. As time passes by, the chances of his return become dim and accepting the fact everyone gets back to his own business half heartedly as life has to move on.
With the missing factor being there, after a while some new revelations get discovered about the professor’s unique personality which in turn makes way for several unexpected conclusions about his personal life, his pure character and his peculiar behavior. Now the moment few dark or grey ideas enter the minds of all the family members and friends about the professor’s character, suddenly the ugly side of the human psyche surfaces on the front and they all start thinking negatively for their own respected and honorable head of the family without any proven facts.
A young attractive woman (an old student) coming to meet her professor as a loyal disciple makes them think that Was he having a shameful affair with that lady? Few untold truths about his profession make them imagine that Was he now not doing well in his academic career? Or Was he a plagiarist who used to copy his content from some other sources?
As a result, within few days, the loved father figure turns into a suspicious personality in the eyes of his beloveds and that’s what life does to all of us in such difficult situations when we tend to think otherwise against our own inner beliefs.
But as they say, TIME is the biggest teacher of them all, after a while each family member starts contemplating on his sudden questionable thoughts and goes through a new inner evolution meeting their own ugly self like never before. Their whole existence goes through a sacred transformation and they eventually realize that how far they had gone in their insane thoughts blaming their loving father in that avoidable manner, who was not with them anymore.
With such a thought provoking conclusion, EK DIN ACHANAK is surely going to be a difficult film for many of the young viewers as its exactly like watching a mirror bluntly displaying both sides of our naked actual persona without any hiding. And in reality that’s exactly what happens with all of us without any doubt, when we go on thinking to some extreme unpleasant levels about our own close members of the family or friends and later tend to get rid of all those thoughts by deliberately pressing the ‘Delete’ button of our system hurriedly. These random thoughts related with Death, Love and Sex are always there as a natural phenomenon at the back of our minds unconsciously and if anyone refuses to accept this truth then he or she must have already reached the ultimate divine destination as it seems.
So if you really wish to experience this life teaching, refreshing catharsis then do watch EK DIN ACHAANAK as a must like an essential enlightening dose and don’t miss it.
Directed By Mrinal Sen
Music : Jyotishka Dasgupta
Starring : Shabana Azmi, Shreeram Lagoo, Aparna Sen, Roopa Ganguly, Uttara Baokar and more.
Tags :
Ek Din Achanak (1989), Movies To See Before You Die Suspense Drama, Important artistic off beat films made in Hindi Film Industry, must see films list by bobby sing, Art Wave Cinema of the 80s in Bollywood, Meaningful Hindi Films not to be missed, Mirnal Sen Films, Most Valued Films of Bollywood.
