ChicRawIdol A brilliant film that helped define a genre

Bergorks If you like to be scared, if you like to laugh, and if you like to learn a thing or two at the movies, this absolutely cannot be missed.

Freeman This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

edwardmbrown This film takes on a tragic theme-- the plight of widows in India. Unfortunately it is so riddled with clichés that, for me at least, it's impact was undermined. An eight year old girl wakes up to be told by her father that she is a widow. She is taken to an ashram to live with a group of mostly old women, also widows. Among them is a young, beautiful and rather European looking widow. There is a love story with a handsome, idealistic man, who is willing to break taboos to marry a widow. Set in 1938 the film tries to portray the conflict with old traditions and modernity. Gandhi even gets a cameo. While Water is beautifully filmed, in the end I felt that I had watched a piece of glossy propaganda, albeit for a good cause.

180205 180205 Imagine being a widow at the age of eight and having to live the rest of your life as an outcast in renunciation. The movie "Water" explores this aspect of Hinduism that is viewed as sinful in western culture. "Water" takes place in India during the year of 1938 when laws existed to give widows the freedom of marriage, but however, as said by one character "We do not always follow the law when it is inconvenient." Torn, Chuyia(Sarala Kariyasam) was forced to live in a ashram controlled by other lifelong widows. In the ashram Chuyia befriends a beautiful widow named Kalyani(Lisa Ray) who was the only one allowed to have long hair. This was because the leader of the ashram Madhumati(Manorama) made arrangements with pimp Gulabi(Raghuvir Yadav) to supply Kalyani to their wealthy clients as a source of income. Chuyia later meets another older widow named Shakuntala(Seema Biswas) who was rather wise and questions the foundation of widowhood. One day Kalyani and Chuyia run into a man named Narayan(John Abraham), upon seeing Kalyani he immediate falls in love. Narayan is a young and charming upper-class follower of Mahatma Gandhi. He later gives the most pragmatic explanation for the practice of widowhood: "One less mouth to feed, four less saris, and a free corner in the house. Disguised as religion, it's just about money." Through countless amount of attempts and huge amounts of effort, Kalyani finally starts to converse with Narayan. Shortly after, they decide to get married, this angered Madhumati who then cut Kalyani's hair and locked her in her room. After a long debate with herself, Shakuntala demands for the key to Kalyani's room and frees her. Narayan takes Kalyani on a small rowboat to his house to meet his parents, however Kalyani immediately recognizes the house and the house of one of her clients, she orders Narayan to turn around. The embarrassment and grief was too much for Kalyani to handle, therefore she committed suicide by drowning herself. Meanwhile, Madhuati send Chuyia away with Gulabi to be prostituted as a replacement for Kalyani. Upon realizing, Shakuntala runs to the shore to try and prevent the worst, but only in time for Chuyia's return. Shakuntala is destroyed by this and cradles Chuyia in her arms while she spends her nigh sitting at the shore. While walking through town with Chuyia she hears about Gandhi's departure at the train station, Shakuntala follows the crowd to receive his blessing before he leaves. As an act of despair Shakuntala runs along side the train asking people to take Chuyia with them and put her under the care of Gandhi. Luckily, she spots Narayan on the train and gives Chuyia to him, the train departs leaving Shakuntala behind in tears and taking Chuyia into a hopefully brighter future. An aspect of Water that I liked was how they involved the young girl and the experience seen though her eyes, so that all the viewers can in a way empathize with Chuyia. I feel that the movie would have been good enough with Chuyia's story along but the romantic aspect of Kalyani and Narayan just added to the emotions felt during the movie. The love story does not end happily which helps set the mood of there still being a glimpse of hope at the ending. In my opinion, I really like how the romantic aspect was incorporated into the movie, but more so I like the way Shakuntala was questioning the very morals behind the underpinning of her society. Although the romantic aspect were good, I fell that they could have been developed more. To be honest, I was a bit disappointed when Kalyani drowned herself, I was hoping for a more hopeful ending to the romantic aspect of the story. For example, once they are married Kalyani takes Chuyia with her to start a new life elsewhere.

Hauton Tsang Although slow-moving at first, Water eases the viewer into a world of oppression, drugs, and unfairness. Chuyia's naive attitude towards the widow houses highlights the injustices endured by widows in India. In particular, her question about where the men widows are highlight the sexism present in traditional Hindu customs. Only women have to endure the tragic life that is being a widow. The environment of the widows gradually worsens, with the themes of tradition, drugs, and prostitution being highlighted in the movie. This contrasts with the life of luxury that the upper class and Brahmins live. However, despite all that, at the core of the story is a love story between Kalyani and Narayan. Despite the surrounding environment, their love gives them hope and strength. In a stunning plot twist, realization and circumstance crush the hopes of Kalyani and Narayan's love. Their sad tale ends with Kalyani's suicide, and Chuyia taking her place to be ferried across the river as a prostitute. Shakatula, Chuyia's friend, sends her away. She realizes there is no future for Chuyia in the widow house anymore.This movie effectively utilizes a slow pace and build-up of the story so that we as viewers can better relate to the characters in the story. When the horrors of the widow house are slowly revealed, a sense of empathy is felt. When the cause of the horrors are revealed to be the result of systematic corruption of laws and outdated tradition, it brings out a sense of anger. The tragic love story and the ending captions just amplify this sense of injustice, forcing people to realize that these unfair Hindu customs need to be changed.

Ersbel Oraph Such a wasted opportunity!Such potential!All wasted on a cheap love story. With a ethnic backdrop. A bleached backdrop.You have a prepuber girl at the end of life. Already been married, buried a husband and now awaits death together with other women, both old and young, but not that young. And this drama is dulled with images of child games.In the 21st century you still have group rape, yet the pariah can move around freely. The women are poor, but not that poor. Nobody is starving. The atrocious scenes where they burn the dead bodies are idealized with candle lights and night on the river. The stench and body parts are nowhere to be sensed.It took me almost one hour to notice this is a themed soap opera. Where people are clean and shampoo daily. Where everything is deodorized and gods are left untouched. It's not about religion turning people into beasts, it's about helping a poor soul in a sea of sorrow. Disgusting!It could have been a clean love story. Life in a Metro type. At the end I was grateful for not having the happy singing and dancing that goes in almost every Indian movie. But having every scene with at least two large swastikas made even that ray of light vanish. I lied. After less than a hour and a half they start singing, dancing and smiling.Contact me with Questions, Comments or Suggestions ryitfork @ bitmail.ch