THE GOOD, BAD AND UGLY OF SOCIETY
“Neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both”, wrote C. Wright Mills, a reputed American sociologist.
“ನಾಗರಹಾವು”– ‘Naagarahaavu’
or, ‘Cobra’, in English– is a 1972
Kannada film, an evergreen classic that delves into the tangled world of relationships
within the macrocosm of society. It explores how human relations shape lives,
events and personalities. The movie melds together three stories– Sarpa Mathsara, Ondu Gandu Eradu Hennu and Nagarahavu– of novelist, TR Subba Rao, popularly known as TaRaSu.
The social drama won a plethora of awards; it was profusely
successful at the box-office and was critically acclaimed as well. This film was remade in Hindi (Zehreela Insaan), Tamil (Raja Nagam) and Telugu (Kode
Nagu).
The film
revolves around the relationship of the male protagonist, Ramachari
(Vishnuvardhan) with his childless school-teacher, Chamayya Meshtru (KS Ashwath). Chamayya, and his wife, Tunga (Leelavati), treat
the mulish, stubborn Ramachari, as their own son. They go out of their way to guide
him and to correct his deviant behavior. Ramachari too holds his teacher in
high esteem.
But then, loose
cannon Ramachari is notorious for his rage, which often lands the unruly, grouchy
fellow in trouble. Each time Chamayya fends for him and bails him out. At the
behest of others, Chamayya intervenes and gets Ramachari to sacrifice his love
for Alamelu (Aarthi), who then is betrothed to someone else.
In due course,
Ramachari falls in love with Margaret (Shubha). So, does society permit their
romance to blossom? And does Ramachari, an orthodox Hindu, find marital bliss
with Margaret, a devout Christian?
That is the rest
of the heart-wrenching drama.
The
flick is brilliantly directed by virtuoso
Puttanna Kanagal, who could amalgamate effortlessly creative elements and commercial aspects in his motion pictures. He
was the master of ‘mainstreaming’
offbeat themes. His simple, linear screenplay engages and enamors the audience.
Thespian
Vishnuvardhan is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING in his role; he fits the character like a
hand in glove. So too the others in the cast, which includes Aarathi,
Ambareesh, Shubha, KS Ashwath, Leelavathi, Lokanath, Shivaram, et al.
Vijaya
Bhaskar’s musical compositions set to lyrics of stalwarts Chi. Udaya Shankar,
Vijaya Narasimha and RN Jayagopal, each one a literary giant, are truly extraordinary. Little wonder then
that it was a musical blockbuster.
The
camerawork of Chittibabu for ‘Baare Baare’
is first class; the ‘slow motion’
picturization is an audio-visual delight.
The editing too is topnotch.
The film’s underlying
theme is that people are neither totally good nor utterly evil. Interpersonal
relationships, not just situations, drive human behavior. That is why TaRaSu’s literary masterpieces take the
cake, more than everything else in the film!
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