Praveen Lulekar
The primary thrust of a biopic is always
on hailing its hero. Some do it subtly, some with grandeur. What they also do
along the way is raising a picture of the ideology the person stood for. How
holistic this picture becomes depends on how much the makers delve into the
internal conflicts of the ideology. It is here that films like Gandhi, Sardar
and Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar sail ahead of others.
Lokmanya Ek Yugpurush is
an unapologetic ode to nationalism. The film probably realises the flaws of the
stream of thought and even touches on it. But through minute cinematic
elements, it becomes a political agenda of its own.
The film is the story of Lokmanya Bal
Gangadhar Tilak (Subodh Bhave), a prominent freedom fighter and an early propagator
of nationalism in India. It covers Tilak’s life from 1879 to 1914. Many
historical events take place during the period: his association and fall with
Gopal Ganesh Agarkar (Sameer Vidwans); the foundation of and writings in
newspapers Kesari and Maratha; his alleged tie-ups with the armed
revolutionaries and his periods of imprisonment including that in Mandalay.
The first half is consumed by the
Tilak-Agarkar episode. This is a duel of the conservative and progressive
thought, Tilka supporting the former one. There is a lot of pace to the
proceedings as the duo establishes the New English School and the newspapers
and takes on the British government with vigour. For the film, Tilak emerges
the hero and Agarkar remains a weak, sidelined character. It presents both the
views elaborately, but upholds Tilak’s views through its treatment.
We see Tilak walking on the upper stair
while they take a walk; Tilak standing while Agarkar sits on a hill and Tilak
exercising while Agarkar coughs in the jail. A clear supremacy of Tilak is
established through the frame design. In the Age of Consent Bill episode, the
film commits an innocent mistake of portraying Tilak as a cunning strategist.
For a common viewer, this throws the hero in a negative light. Whether the film
wants to purposely portray the grey shades is unclear. Tilak disrupts Agarkar’s
general meeting and walks off with thumping background music.
The symbolisms get darker as the film
progresses. In the 1896 Pune Plague episode, the British are shown torturing
households. In a sequence where a police officer is raping a woman, a wooden devhara
- the shelf where idols of god are kept - falls down. This is a sad
association of a state of woman’s body with religious purity. Similarly, before
a riot sequence, a dead pig is thrown in a Muslim area. The film neatly shows
how Muslims initiate the riots and attack a procession carrying idols of Lord
Ganesh. A strong reinforcement of the prejudiced view of ‘who starts it’!
The treatment of the film is engaging.
There is ample use of low-angle frames to establish the strength of Tilak’s
character. The overall camera work is pretty fancy with a lot of aesthetic
appeal. The background music is also aplenty but creates a lot of effect. This
technical finesse is supported by a swift screenplay.
Bhave pours his everything in the role.
This is probably the best performance of his career. He does well to raise a consistent
character that is outspoken and bold. Unfortunately, the writing has not backed
it with a concrete ideological structure. Vidwans is exceptional as Agarkar. It
would be exciting to see more of him as an actor.
Lokmanya Ek Yugpurush becomes
a complete political agenda by the end of its runtime. The film does not utter
the word ‘Congress’ though the Tilak was the president of the party and it is
an important part of his political career. The film will definitely be
remembered for its dialogues and staunch stands, but an in-depth look at Indian
Nationalism in films, is still awaited.
m4m: One Time Watch
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