Praveen Lulekar
Every generation has its heroes. And
each group of followers follows two broad streams – those of revolution and of
service. In the post-independence era, we have mostly been influenced by
charismatic political leaders that adhered to the aggressive mode. Conservators
of the second thought did what their ideology told them – serve the ignored.
They never sought limelight and never spoke unless their work demanded them to.
The Amte family has been one such
lineage of social servants. Dr. Prakash Baba Amte – The Real Hero is
more a tribute, at most a representational biography of one of its member’s
work. It honestly and effectively conveys the work of Dr. Prakash Amte and his
wife Dr. Mandakini Amte. With more detailing and craft, this would have been a
phenomenal film.
The Amte couple shifted to Hemalkasa
village (in Vidarbha, Maharashtra) in 1973 to serve the tribal community there.
From building their own mud-house to manufacturing all the amenities for the
hospital, they raised the set up on their own in the jungle. There were
daunting tasks that were not limited to medical operations – winning the
confidence of the tribal community, adjusting with their blind faiths, with
Naxalism, fighting with illiteracy and the continuous disappointment by
government machinery. They not only overcame this, but also achieved an
all-round development of the area through the Lokbiradari Prakalp.
The film had the challenge to show this
huge work that is spread across 40 years. It has chosen to use the flash-back
mode to show the events. So the narration is not linear. A long episode about
Naxalism is placed in the beginning and the film takes a while to hit the
point. It then suddenly switched to the linear mode, where we see the story
right from the arrival of the Amte couple in Hemalkasa. So the chapter-wise
distribution is thrown away and we get into a narrative mode. Thanks to a
smooth screenplay, this hiccup is not noticed. The film’s mood also remains
uniformly calm.
The result is that, though a little
clumsily, all the aspects of the Amtes’ life get covered. Director Samruddhi
Porey chooses to focus on two major aspects – the difficulties in medical
treatments and Dr. Prakash’s love for wild animals. Both the things come in
aptly elaborative episodes. But when compared to Prakashvaata, Dr.
Prakash’s memoir from which the film borrows abundantly, they remain
representative. Though there is time constraint, a simpler formula would have
been to choose the most intense episodes. The operation of a man attacked by a
bear, for example, would have helped the film a lot.
Porey also inserts dramatisation, which
seems to be the director’s view of looking at the film medium. Her initial shot
of Dr. Prakash walking out of the water along with a superimposed tiger is a
clear sign of her fascination for drama. Another example is the episode of Dr.
Prakash deciding to wear only an inner vest comes after he sees a child
shivering in cold. In the book, this comes as his practical decision so that
the tribal people could identify with them. This somewhere harms the character.
Dr. Prakash is simple, empathetic and soft, but he is not impractical. One
thing the film finely conveys is that he is a man of action.
Porey also misses out on an opportunity
to underline the work of the whole family through Dr. Prakash. The book details
out the contributions of Dr. Vikas (Dr. Prakash’s elder brother) and Baba Amte
in the work at Hemalkasa. There is a beautiful homogeneity, brought about by
details, to the book that the film lacks a bit. Porey could have avoided the
Naxal episodes and the love-story part to dedicate more time to these details.
Nonetheless, the film is informative and
moving as an independent work of art. Nana Patekar and Sonali Kulkarni bring
out the characters to life masterfully. Watch it to understand that
selflessness is actually a human possibility. Even if following their example
would mean a sacrifice we are incapable of, let us be humble towards what we
have got.
m4m says: A must watch
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