Manto’s spot-on cast, effortless screenplay leave you mesmerised

PRODUCER: Abhishek Ranjan CAMERA PERSON: Abhishek Ranjan EDITOR: Kunal Mehra “_Agar aap mere afsaanon ko bardaasht nahi ker sakte to iska matlab ye zamaana hi nakaabilebardaasht hai_ !”

Manto – a man who never minced his words. A defiant brave voice who held a mirror to society. A writer who had inexorable courage to expose and explore the frighting brink humanity can

reach. His obvious lack of obsequiousness irked some, but Manto shunned social niceties and smug intellectualism. Instead, through his powerful stories, he reached out to those relegated to

the margins, exposing society’s decomposing moral compass. And till the very end, he could not come to terms with the “batwara” or partition that took away his Bombay, his home and his

friends. > Nandita Das, in her 112 minutes cinematic tribute to the great > writer, delicately and expertly tries to bring alive a tumultuous > phase in Manto’s life. His brief stay

 in Bombay before moving to > Lahore, and the charges of obscenity he has to fight against in > court for his powerful story ‘_Thanda Gosht!’_ It’s an ambitious set-up, no doubt, but

masterfully executed by cinematographer Kartik Vijay who paints the frames with sepia-toned nostalgia, thus recreating the 1940s. A man tormented by the horrors brought about by the

Partition, we attempt to make sense of Manto through the little snippets of his life thrown our way. There are so many little gems – his close friendship with the reigning superstar Shyam,

his quick repartees with Ismat Chugtai, the trouble he faces while trying to extract money from film producers and magazine owners, his love for his family and the aching loss of what he

considered home always gnawing away at his heart. > Das’s screenplay seamlessly stitches together Manto’s life with > those of his characters. Stories such as ‘_Toba Tek Singh_’ and

‘_Khol do_’ are woven around the palpable anguish that Manto experiences. > The biggest coup is the casting – Nawazuddin Siddiqui once again > effortlessly gets under the skin of the 

role, his full-blooded > commitment to each character truly makes him one of the finest > actors in the country today . As Manto’s soft-spoken and always supportive wife Safia , Rasika

Duggal doesn’t miss a beat. Tahir Raj Bhasin as the yesteryear’s superstar Shyam Chadha gives an impressive performance. Equally fabulous are the other actors roped in, literally a

constellation of talent that lifts the film. Most appear in cameos, but are impeccable and supremely effective – right from Divya Dutta, Ranvir Shorey, Rajshri Deshpande, Shashank Arora,

Vijay Verna, Tilottama Shom, Paresh Raval, Chandan Roy Sanyal, to Javed Akhtar, Rishi Kapoor, Neeraj Kani and even a brilliant Bhanu Uday who plays Ashok Kumar. Some might argue that the

film could overwhelm those not acquainted with Manto’s work, but with its evocative portrayal, the film ‘_Manto_’ will leave you mesmerised, and more importantly will make you want to reach

out and read more of him. It’s an experience that doesn’t get over with the movie and that is the film’s biggest strength. We carry a little Manto in our hearts as we step out of the hall,

just the way it should be. Published: 21 Sep 2018, 10:04 AM IST