Movie Review: Tahaan

Film Festival viewing

Rating: 2.5/5

Cast: Victor Banerjee, Sarika, Purav Bhandare, Sana Shaikh

Director: Santosh Sivan

Tahaan (Purav Bhandare) is a young boy who lives in war torn Kashmir with his mother Haba (Sarika), grandfather (Victor Banerjee) and sister Zoya (Sana Shaikh). The three live in the eternal hope that their father who has been missing will return some day.

In the meantime Tahaan loses his grandfather and in order to repay the family’s loans Haba decides to sell all their belongings including Tahaan’s donkey. Now the little boy has just one aim to get back his donkey Birbal. When he returns with the family’s little savings to buy it, he realizes that it has been sold to a trader Subhan Darr (Anupam Kher). Subhan Darr has numerous mules and donkeys that he uses to go across Kashmir to provide people with their goods.

Tahaan begins to work with Subhan Darr. But soon he realizes that he won’t be able to get Birbal back as Subhan has gifted it to his nephew. Disheartened he begins to go back home when he meets a teenager who lures him with the promise of returning his Birbal in return for some help. The help is transporting a grenade hidden amongst Subhan Darr’s goods.

Tahaan agrees and hides the grenade and takes it across for the teenager who is actually a part of a terrorist group. Right at the end, the teenager tells Tahaan to throw the grenade at an army camp and just when innocent Tahaan is about to do it, he sees his missing father in that camp. He runs with the live grenade towards a river running close to the camp and throws it in thereby preventing a blast.

Tahaan works on some levels but disappoints at most. It beautifully depicts the scenic locales of Kashmir. The little boy Purav has done a great and endearing job. But the overall execution of the story makes it feel more like a documentary rather than a story. Sarika plays mute in the film and still comes away with one of the most powerful performances.

All in all Tahaan will find it difficult to find takers at the box office. However it is a good watch for those who like their take of alternative cinema which innocently portray the fear and wrath faced by individuals in war torn areas.