Director: Baba Azmi
Cast: Aditi Subedi, Danish Husain, Naseeruddin Shah
Mee Raqsam, directed by Baba Azmi (a noted cinematographer making his directorial bow) and starring newcomer Aditi Subedi has released on Zee5.
The title of the film literally translates to ‘I Dance’ from Persian and the story is based in a village called Mijwan in Azamgarh District, UP. This is also the birth place of the legendary poet Kaifi Azmi, in whose memory this film is presented by his daughter and renowned actress Shabana Azmi.
The setting of this story against a rural background was important. This story unfolds in 2018, and many themes addressed by this film could easily have been dismissed as dated, had the film been set in a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai or Delhi. However, this intelligent choice lends authenticity to the narrative right away and keeps us invested.
The core story of this film, that revolves around the teenager Maryam (Aditi Subedi) is fairly simple. What really makes it tick though, are the beautiful emotional notes that blend in and become perfectly symbiotic.
Maryam is passionate about dance, and takes to Bharatanatyam in a heartbeat. But here’s the catch. She hails from a staunchly religious Muslim neighbourhood and in these parts, this is still considered sacrilege.
Leading this condemnation is the local head of their community, Hashim Seth (Naseeruddin Shah in a powerful cameo). Frustratingly for Maryam, she finds most members of her own family partaking in Hashim’s ideology and view. Her only pillar of support is her doting father Salim (Danish Hussain), who amidst fierce backlash and stifling poverty eggs her on and gets her enrolled in a dance school.
This film also presents a balanced view of the other side of the story. Maryam feels welcomed at the dance school and really takes to her teacher Uma (an impressive Sudeepta Singh). But not everyone is happy with the arrangement. The admission of a Muslim girl into what is considered a ‘Hindu’ art-form irks a group led by Jayprakash (Rakesh Om), and they would do anything to sabotage her success.
Mee Raqsam presents a wonderful portrait of how dated societal norms and beliefs can quickly derail and dehumanize communities. This is a film that doesn’t shy from asking stinging questions, and has a communal undercurrent that flows throughout. However, to the credit of the writers (Husain Mir and Safdar Mir), we never feel weighed in or burdened by this as viewers.
There are heavy scenes, and some will really pull at your heart strings and make you jerk a tear. One especially that made an indelible impression on me, was of Maryam crying over photos of her recently deceased mother, hiding under her cot. However, the biggest win of Mee Raqsam is that all this gets packaged into a slick, 95 minute run time (Pooraj Kapoor is the editor). The acting is also splendid and beautifully organic across the board, especially from Aditi Subedi who really kills it in a rousing climax sequence.
Mee Raqsam ultimately delivers a positive message at the end. There are problems today we cannot ignore, but a change is being spearheaded by the younger generation, it argues. As Uma aptly states in her concluding speech, freedom is indeed the soul of art. It doesn’t dance to any one religion’s tunes.
Overall rating: 3/5
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