FEAR AND GUILT FOR A CRIME NOT COMMITTED

The American President Franklin D. Roosevelt said prudently…and profoundly too: “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Easier said than done, for often fear is the fallout of the unknown. 

“ಅನ್ವೇಷಣೆ” (‘Anveshane’, which means: ’Quest’) is a 1983 Kannada movie, which takes a peek at fear-induced behavior. The plot of the neo-noir art film is about how folks cope with uncertainty. Critically acclaimed, the flick won a few awards too.

Shyam (Anant Nag), a travel agent, is in blissful wedlock with Revathi (Smita Patil), a school teacher. They are blessed with two little, adorable girls in their tweens. The typical middle-class family lives in a housing complex with several other tenants. Some of the neighbors are prying nosy-parkers. Few men in the colony are goofy busybodies; others are perverts having roving eyes. The womenfolk are loud and garrulous; and, annoyingly inquisitive.

Both Shyam and Revathi toil hard to make both ends meet. The two follow a set daily routine of getting the kids off to school and heading out to work. All of them return in the evening. The house during the day is kept under lock and key.

One evening when the couple returns home, they find the corpse of a murdered man, Shekhar (Sunder Raj), in their living room.  Scared out of their wits, the two spend a sleepless night wondering how to get rid of the body. Soon a foul stench begins to emanate from the dead body. Thus, disposing of the corpse discreetly becomes a priority.

The couple then embarks on a quest for getting to the bottom of things.

So do they manage to crack the bizarre murder mystery?  

Director T.S. Nagabharana has churned out a classic on a low budget. The engrossing script that he has penned along with Girish Karnad enchants.  The pace of story-telling is brisk. The narration strikes harmony between the pragmatic and the phantasmic. However, Nagabharana has left too many questions for the imagination of the viewer; and, the climax is rushed.

Vijay Bhaskar’s music is okay; but, the sound effects are loud and jarring, at times. S Ramachandra’s cinematography enhances the suspense. Editing is fine.

Smita Patil and Anant Nag are in pivotal, powerful roles. The former is BRILLIANT in her portrayal of a timid, terrified housewife. She blends naturally into her dewy, deglamorized role. Anant Nag is at his emotive best amidst all the chaos and confusion in the narrative. Girish Karnad, Sunder Raj, Ramesh Bhat, Balakrishna and others have lent able support.

In short, this well-crafted drama is about the off-kilter response of ordinary folks faced with extraordinary challenges. It showcases the fear, stress and desperation of the common man under taxing circumstances.

I rate this suspenseful crime drama: 7.5 on 10!


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