Saaz - A Haunting Musical. Review on Saaz

A 1998 Sai Paranjpye movie, explores human relationships, in this case sibling rivalry, between two sisters in the field of music. Saaz, which means "melody", focuses on this delicate yet complex facets of human relationship. The entire movie revolves around the long flashback sequences that Bansi has with her psychiatrist, Dr Samarth, played by Parikshit Sahni. Only later on we are in the know about the loss of voice that Bansi experiences, as the events unfold in the movie. The protagonists, Mansi(Aruna Irani), and Bansi(Shabana Azmi), blessed with melodious voices come to Bombay to try their luck in the film industry, after the death of their father and mentor, Vrindavan(Raghuvir Yadav). Mansi, promotes herself at the cost of Bansi, when she finds fame. Here, we are tempted to draw a parallel with the real life story of the Mangeshkar sisters, Lata and Asha. Although, this has been vehemently denied by Asha in an interview. Bansi is kept in check by Mansi and gets her married to an abusive husband. She reminds her that place for two people in the world of music is not possible and that only one can reach the peak. Bansi manages to divorce her husband and goes her separate way after the birth of her daughter, Kuhu(Ayesha Dharkar). Mansi is helped along by Indraneel, a music director. But the sisters turn rivals when Indraneel, picks Bansi as his new protegee. Bansi ultimately finds fame, as she fights to keep her place in the sun against all odds. The sisters briefly unite as they agree to do a program dedicated to their father. Mansi collapses on the stage, after which Bansi comes to know about her illness of cancer. The siblings come together in a heart rending fashion, only to be followed by Mansi's death. A refreshing development in the movie is the appearance of Hemang Desai, played by Zakir Hussain. This comes as a surprise, as he plays the role of an aspiring singer friend of Kuhu, who introduces him to her mother, Bansi. They develop an intimate relationship, not knowing Kuhu also harbors the same feeling for him. Bansi relinquishes her romantic association with Hemang, when she comes to know her daughter's affections for him. This is followed by Hemang's death in a car accident, after which Bansi loses her voice in the state of shock. All this is being narrated by Bansi to Dr Samarth. With his help, Bansi regains her voice and they develop a close relationship. Aruna Irani, plays a different role in this movie as she comes across not as a hardcore commercial artist, but she realistically builds the role of a down to earth character. I liked the role played by Zakir Hussain, the tabla maestro, in this movie. The role of a maverick fitted him like a glove and gave retro music a new meaning. As for Shabana, she plays the role of Bansi with the usual aplomb and poise. Another point of interest is, Zakir Hussain and Bhupen Hazarika together provided the music score in this movie. The best known song in the movie is without doubt Kya Tumne Hai keh diya, which is catchy and which you feel like recalling over and over again. Humor is understated, as when Dr Samarth tells Bansi that his attitude towards music is like that of Aurangazeb. But Bansi catches him off-guard, when she finds that he has stashed away music cassettes in his car and that he listens to them surreptitiously. Also, Javed Akhtar won the National Film Award for Best Lyrics. In the final analysis, the movie is a must-watch if you prefer watching an off-beat film. It reiterates, a statement made by Sai paranjpye herself, when she says that, "Human relationships are my forte. I think I am good at it."