Madhumati (1958) - Dir. Bimal Roy

This write-up is a part of a number of film introductions I did on Bimal Roy's films that were shown as a part of a web event.

Prologue

Madhumati is one of those films that boast of great talent both on and off screen that simply demands to be seen. It is interesting that Bimal’s most commercially successful movie was penned by Ritwik Ghatak who left a few months after writing the first draft and went on to make Ajantrik. He was happy to get Rs. 500 advance in those days; It was perhaps good enough for him to make a film. Roy was very impressed with Ghatak’s unique story which he believed had all the elements to make a commercially successful film with his trademark aesthetics. Critics weren’t happy with Roy who had until then made films on mostly serious subjects on socially relevant themes. Hrishikesh Mukherjee, the film editor and former roommate of Ghatak in Mumbai, convinced Roy to go ahead with this idea. The rest as we say is history. Madhumati became a blueprint for many successful films in the future even though none could capture the sense of mystery and innocence that Roy managed through his directorial vision.

Madhumati in Images

Madhumati begins on a stormy night when two friends get stuck on a road due to a road block. They seek refuge in a nearby decrepit mansion until the driver fixes the car. The mansion is not just eerie but also seems to evoke some memories in our protagonist played by Dilip Kumar. Perhaps, from a past life…

Then starts the flashback which will recount the past life of our protagonist when he was a foreman at a woodcutting establishment at an estate of a village where nature is blessed with all its glory. It’s difficult not to hum a tune in this weather…

In all this beauty though, there seems to exist a nymph that continues to elude our protagonist…

In the meantime, he will try to capture the natural beauty on canvas.

Eventually, he does meet this nymph who happens to be a beautiful village girl named Madhumati which in Sanskrit means “full of sweetness”. Innocent and pure, she moves like the rollicking waters of the river and dances like the trees in the wind. Our protagonist will try to sketch her as well..

He can’t get enough of her beauty and finds himself incapable…

She on the other hand is busy observing the ants who according to her are rushing home, to protect themselves from the arriving rain…

Their tryst would continue like this at the time the shadow of the tree falls on this stone…

Ugranarayan, the landlord of the estate has other plans for this girl though and things are beginning to get difficult for the couple. The girl has a premonition of something bad happening to her so they decide to get married in the most austere fashion.

Unfortunately, Ugranarayan executes his evil plan…

Our hero is distraught as the nymph has disappeared once again from his life..

Ugranarayan on the other hand seems to be enjoying, blowing smoke circles in the air…

I won’t reveal what happens later but we can be rest assured that the cycle of life and death continues…

Does it remind you something?…

Madhumati and it’s theme of reincarnation

Reincarnation of souls is a concept in several eastern religions.
The Bhagvad Geeta in the words of Lord Krishna proclaims:
The soul is never born nor dies at any time. Soul has not come into being, does not come into being, and will not come into being. Soul is unborn, eternal, ever-existing and primeval. Soul is not slain when the body is slain.
He further says:
As a human being puts on new garments, giving up old ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones.

In this story we have characters that reincarnate and some even remember their past lives. Does it have any scientific explanation? No, but it makes for a fascinating subject for the story writer. But even more than reincarnation, the film seems to touch upon the concept of “maya” or illusion which our protagonist faces at various points during the film. Even up to the last scene, he fears losing Madhumati. It is funny to observe that he does find her always as they seem to be united by the bond of marriage that is supposed to last for many lives. They are bound to meet even if they may be in different forms. All these things of course have no scientific basis but are a matter of faith which you either believe or don’t. In reality, it doesn’t really matter. Ghatak and Roy though, use these religious and traditional belief’s successfully to not only touch a chord in the audience but also entertain them.

Epilogue

So what do we make of this film? It has the atmosphere of beautifully shot mystical ghost stories like Ugetsu; some even call it gothic horror. It has a unique story of reincarnation that successfully manages to pull emotional and romantic strings; It has a brilliant soundtrack from Salil Choudhry with evergreen songs; It has characters that are part of folklore like the evil horse-riding Ugranarayan, the mystical nymph Madhumati or the drunkard played by Johnny Walker who is miffed at people who don’t blame the peacock dancing in the woods but always blame him for getting a little tipsy. All in all, it’s a film that is difficult to dislike. At the same time, you may say it’s not a masterpiece, but I say it has its own unique cocktail of pleasure which you don’t get in most masterpieces. I hope you enjoy watching it. Thanks for reading.

Note: Veteran actor Pran who plays Ugranarayan died on 12th July aged 93. This thread is a humble tribute to this great actor.