Dhuin Movie Review

Achal Mishra’s second feature film Dhuin is as simple and thought-provoking as his first feature Ghamak Ghar. Very similar to his previous work, Achal’s new film is loose on narrative but rich in meaning. The film revolves around Pankaj, a theatre artist who wants to live out his acting dreams in Bombay but is restrained by circumstances at home. I recently attended a film workshop where we talked about what makes a good film. A point that kept circling back was that the purpose of the film is to make us relate to the protagonist and create an environment where the struggles of the protagonist feel mine. Achal Mishra and his cinematographer create a world where we feel trapped, just like Pankaj.

The film starts with Pankaj performing a street play on Darbhanga railway station. An angry Pankaj rants about how he is made for greater things than these municipality street plays. As the film progresses, we see the tribulations deterring his dream life; an uncertain future and an ailing father who passive-aggressively asks him to get a real job. Pankaj has a sense of superiority; he is confident about his acting talents and knows he can make it big if only he could get to Bombay. Although his troubles are real, there is an unsaid hesitance in Pankaj that stops him from going to Bombay. This portrait of Pankaj is what works well for the film and will resonate with many viewers. Who hasn’t thought of their potential and wondered what life could have been if they had the resources? The mundane life is captured beautifully only to make us reflect on our own limitations. Pankaj is always travelling in the film, but he never seems to reach anywhere. Much like a drifter, he is a prisoner of his circumstances. Achal’s use of symbolism makes the mundane touch the realm of philosophical. From the first scene, Pankaj is surrounded by trains, the whistle of the train becomes synonymous to the background score, dialogues are muffled by the noise of trains running on the tracks, and yet he cannot board a train to Bombay. Maybe the director is trying to remind us of the opportunities all around us that we are too afraid to take.

My favourite scene is where on a dusty playground, Pankaj meets some filmmakers who are working on a docu-fiction film on the heritage of Darbhanga. A curious Pankaj is met with a wall when he tries to participate in the discussion about Abbas Kiarostami’s films and workshops. They mockingly advise Pankaj to watch airplanes from the tree. Achal Mishra brilliantly pays homage to Kiarostami, who has clearly inspired his film Dhiun. Still, at the same time, he tries to expose the pseudo intellectualism of the art industry that looks down upon anyone who doesn’t have the same palette for high art. But in an earlier scene, when a friend asks Pankaj how to cry effectively in a scene, he explains rudely he mastered that skill through relentless practice. Pankaj is guilty of the same crimes he accuses the other senior actors of. The protagonist has been brilliantly painted in grey through subtle dialogues and visual imagery.

The camera maintains a distance, and when it does go closer, it leaves us with a haunting silence questioning our life choices. The cinematographer Anand Bansal draws you in with his muted colors and long shots. The film is not shot with a typical 16:9 cinematic aspect ratio; the odd choice for a 4:3 aspect ratio also hits us subconsciously. It doesn’t let us stoop into our generic assumptions and makes us aware that we are watching something different here. The eyes take some time to adjust, but soon enough, it draws you into the slow and suffocating world of Pankaj. Through his film Dhuin questions his characters, his viewers and even himself as a filmmaker. In a scene, a character asks Pankaj if he thinks limitations are good for an artist; I felt the filmmaker was questioning himself. Obviously made on a small budget, I felt Achal used his limitations creatively to evocatively convey the story of Pankaj that will resonate with the viewers irrespective of their backgrounds. In my opinion, Achal is the Kiarostami of Darbhanga.

Watch the trailer here

Dhuin is currently playing at the Mumbai Film Festival.