In the most traditional of terms, they say: a live elephant is worth a hundred thousand, but a dead one will make you a million and half. Bring in a bit of society and religion, and the deal will earn you riches you would not have imagined.

In the political satire Dekh Tamasha Dekh, Shafaat Khan, in the direction of Feroze Abbas Khan, has tried to portray a similar tale of political confusions to the audience. Here is a story which shows how the value of human life is actually a translation of the religious sect they follow, and how some perpetrators ignite the fire of hatred even when there is no wood to burn, only so that they themselves can have the petty interests furthered.

A scene from movie, "Dekh Tamasha Dekh". – Courtesy Photo

Hameed aka Krishna aka Taangay Wala is a poor drunk who dies when he is crushed under the weight of a hoarding belonging to Muthaseth, a businessman. The death of the poor drunk, otherwise a matter of interest to no one, leaves the whole village set to meet its once unimaginable fate. As soon as the Taangay Wala dies, the village that has both Hindu and Muslim residents, is caught up in communal dispute over whose side the Taangay Wala belonged to; both parties leave no stone unturned in order to prove their ownership of the dead drunk. Miscreants, who are observing this situation closely, eye an opportunity with the local media playing the role of fuel for the fire. This results in violence in the village that soon becomes inevitable. In traditional Hindi terms, everyone wants to wash their hands in the running Ganges.

Dekh Tamasha Dekh is no ordinary Bollywood flick. It is in fact a reflection of the South Asian society, where politics is merely a mix of religious bigotry and the subterfuge of divide and rule. Shafaat Khan and Feroze Khan have unveiled a social wound long unattended, and so, too, consciously. In the name of civilization, this wound, this evil infection, keeps spreading the cancer of hatred in silence. There always comes a time when there is no need of diagnosis; when one look around is enough to tell that the hatred has seeped into all parts of the social and political existence of a society. Sadly, that is only the beginning.

A scene from movie, "Dekh Tamasha Dekh". – Courtesy Photo

There is no protagonist in the motion picture. The story actually revolves around a dead man. It is the screenplay of the film that is the heart and soul of it. The film begins with introductions of the characters. We have the newspaper owner Muthaseth, a businessman; then we have Editor Kulkarni, who does not move an inch from the truth and the right; the ambitious reporter Rafique who worships only truth; Fatima, the widow of Hameed; their daughter Shabbo; their son Anwar; the corrupt police constable Sawant; the honest and just police inspector Wishwas Rao; the Hindu extremist Bandekar; Shabbo’s lover Prashant and others. All of these characters keep appearing scene after scene and the story moves on. Somewhere in between, the story also covers the families affected by the violence.

A scene from movie, "Dekh Tamasha Dekh". – Courtesy Photo

Director Feroze Khan has also shown us some stereotypes in the form of some scenes and characters, which are found in real lives in the South Asian communities, such as the newspaper owner Muthaseth who treats his dog and the newspaper editor Kulkarni similarly. It is evident that the director is targeting the undignified flatterers in the society. Another such scene is where during his speech to the audience, a religious preacher speaks of virgins to get the audience’s attention. The banner behind the maulvi, too, speaks tons through the way the camel and the palm tree are shown painted. The scene where both Hindu and Muslim leaders are shown sharing laughs and joking about is also quite a mirroring of our contemporary political situations as well as political history. Another interesting scene is when the marketing manager of the same newspaper says to Rafique the reporter that since he is a Muslim and a good poet, he should only stick to poetry.

A scene from movie, "Dekh Tamasha Dekh". – Courtesy Photo

The most interesting part is how the whole story completely ignores the actual kin of the dead drunk, Hameed aka Krishna. Except for the dead Taangay Wala’s family, the whole village apparently cares more about whose side he belonged to.

Director Feroze Abbas Khan is unmasking the opportunism and hypocrisy that lie beneath the veils of religiosity in politics. The timing of the release date is also to be appreciated, since the film is released during Indian general elections. It is not a comedy, however, it can be categorised as a satire.

A scene from movie, "Dekh Tamasha Dekh". – Courtesy Photo

The film has a unique ending where the director teaches the public how to deal with such circumstances. Although the ending is a bit far-fetched, but it cannot be termed impossible. For those who put aside their conscience and wits when anything related to religion comes up, it is a lesson for them that they ought to practice tolerance and not let extremism get the best of them. Another interesting thing about the film is that there are no songs, nor is there any dramatic background music. To earnestly maintain the seriousness of the topic it covers, the film uses only natural sounds instead of music and songs.

One suggestion: some of the scenes in the film are long, but do not get bored. The essence of the movie lies in its continuity and the ending. You will not be disappointed.

Directed by Feroze Abbas Khan; Produced by Suni A. Lulla, Feroze Abbas Khan; Written by Shafaat Khan; Cinematography Hemant Chaturvedi; Editing by Sreekar Prasad.

Starring: Satish Koshik (Muthaseth), Tanvi Azmi (Fatima), Ganesh Yadav (Sawant), Vinay Jain (Wishwas Rao), Sharad Ponkshe (Bandekar), Apurva Arora (Shabbo), Jaywant Vadekar (Sattar), Angat Mahaskar (Rafique Sheikh) and Dhiresh Joshi (Kulkarni).

Read this review in Urdu here.

Translated by Aadarsh Ayaz Laghari