My first venture into Indian foreign films was the Bollywood movie, 1920. This horror flick, released in 2008, is a story of revenge, love, and redemption. Bollywood is a term that refers to the film industry in Mumbai, India. The films are in the Hindi language, although some English words and sentences are used. Lavish song and dance numbers usually appear in these movies.
The movie 1920, set in that very year, tells the tale of a young architect and his wife. Hero Arjun Singh Rathod elopes with his girlfriend, Lisa. His father opposes the marriage and actually tried to burn Lisa alive. Lisa is the daughter of an Indian woman and a British man; and Arjun’s father feels that she is not worthy of his son. Arjun, a devout Hindu, rebukes his father and his God. The couple is married, and eventually, Arjun takes on the project of demolishing a mansion and building a hotel on the grounds. His new wife is fascinated by the mansion, but is also frightened by it. Little by little, Lisa is taken over by an evil entity. Arjun eventually discovers that his wife is the reincarnation of one of the mansion’s previous inhabitants, a beautiful young woman named Gayatri Devi. The spirit held within the mansions walls has waited for years for his revenge on Gayatri. A spiritual battle ensues for the soul of Gayatri, who is now Lisa.
The film relies heavily on mood, including contrasts in colors used in the film. The sky was used as a backdrop to the emotional setting of the scenes. A bright sky indicated scenes in which happiness and morality prevailed. For example, in Arjun’s first scene, he prayed the Hanuman Chalisa on a beautiful sunny day. When he brought home news to Lisa of his promotion, the sky again was bright. However, when the couple took their first look at the mansion they were to occupy, the sky was filled with dark clouds.
Lighting in the film added greatly to the emotional impact. The lighting effects within the mansion correlated with the color of fire, utilizing the warm colors of oranges and yellows. The lights highlighted only what need to be seen; a character’s face, motion in the room. One interesting effect occurred when Lisa first encountered the entity. As the evil moved towards her, all the candles extinguished according to its movement.
1920 seemed to provide much about the morality of faith. Lisa was a devout Catholic; she engaged the help of a priest to assist her with the dangers of the house. She first met the priest when she was walking, and noticed the chapel had a bent cross. My thoughts after watching the second time, was that this symbolized the imperfections of the priest’s faith. The priest was ultimately unable to exorcise the evil that dwelled within Lisa.
Arjun had been a devoted Hindu, a follower of Shree Hanuman. The Hanuman Chalisa is a song that praises Lord Hanuman as a supreme example of devotion to God. Yet, Arjun lost his faith; he did the exact opposite of the deity venerated in the song he sang in his first scene. Only upon his second screen recitation of the chant was he brought back into the fold of his religion, and strong enough to defeat evil.
One other character, a manservant, plays a sort of Judas role in the film. He is paid with a bag of coins to keep information from the newlyweds about the evil in the house. His guilt eventually gets the best of him, and he confesses and repents once Lisa is possessed.
A long flashback is set more than halfway through the film to explain the presence of evil that existed in the house. A wounded soldier is helped by Gayatri. Eventually he is found to be a traitor, who sold information about Indian soldiers to the British. Gayatri seduces him in order to keep him there until her father and other soldiers arrive. He is hanged, but not before threatening Gayatri.
Conflicts in the film are both external and internal. The external threats come via Arjun’s father, then by an evil spirit in the mansion. Lisa is conflicted over her desire to leave the house; she is afraid it will ruin her husband’s happiness and his career. Arjun, although rejecting his God, does not wish to keep Lisa from her faith. He continues to struggle with his anger throughout most of the film. The audience is aware that both of the characters are essentially good people. We understand the reasons behind their conflict.
Music in this period piece varied. Much of the background music was sinister, as one would expect with this genre. Lisa discovers a piano and plays a beautiful, very emotional piece originally written by Gayatri. Two Hindu-language love songs were used to illustrate the couple’s feelings. Arjun, visiting the man who handled the mansion’s business, was treated to a night on the town. He was taken to a club by this caretaker. The solitary song and dance number, sung by a belly dancer and numerous background members, warned of the dangers of being infected by poison. Directly after that, Lisa becomes gravely ill.
At the end of the film, Gayatri was symbolically released from her pain, and her portrait was taken away from the house. Arjun and Lisa were again happy. Primarily, the movie conveyed the idea that good overcomes evil. Arjun originally turned his back on God because of the acts of bad people; he came to realize that God was his ally and allowed him to prevail and save that which meant so much to him. To me, the movie reinforced the idea of God as a benevolent essence, not responsible for the atrocities people commit in his name. God doesn’t give up on people; they give up on God.
References:
Boggs, J. Petrie, D. The Art of watching films. (2008). McGraw Hill Companies.
Internet movie database-1920. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1301698 on 3/20/10
Shri hanuman chalisa. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://classroom.ecollege.com/re/DotNextLaunch.asp?c ourseid=4023359 on 3/19/10