#Neerja : “ Zindagi Badi honi Chahiye Lambi nehi” said her
screen idol Rajesh Khanna in Anand. Neerja Bhanot lived only for 22 years and
363 days and then she became a legend. Youngest to receive Ashok Chakra,
India’s highest peace time gallantry award, probably among a handful few to receive
awards from three governments, India, Pakistan & USA, Neerja Bhanot lived
an extra ordinary life displaying finest qualities of human spirit. Faced with
an extremely adverse Hijack situation she demonstrated most conspicuous
courage, indomitable gallantry, unparalleled compassion and quick presence of
mind to save 359 lives while sacrificing her own. She went beyond the call of duty.
She stood her ground supervising the safety and welfare of her passengers, when
she could easily have been the first one to jump off the ill fated Pan Am 73. Neerja’s
life was an extraordinary tale that needs to be retold, especially during the
times when jingoistic nationalism is peddled in the name of courage and
patriotism.
Director Ram Madhvani takes the difficult task of telling a
story which is already in public domain and does a fine job of balancing
between taut storytelling and restrained melodrama. The film opens with shots
cutting back and forth between showing Neerja’s life and the terrorist’s
preparation, creating the necessary tension. It invests in building the
character of Neerja . It uses flashback to show her troubled marriage, the
father- daughter bonding and her steely resolve to create her identity. It
beautifully captures the inner vulnerability behind a composed exterior. There
is an inherent honestly in the way the narrative has been set. The crisp editing helps the pace of the film
and captures the anxiety. To Madvani’s credit it has no unnecessary song and
dance sequence that stalls the progress.
Sonam Kapoor as the protagonist is a revelation. No matter
what happens from here on, she will always be remembered as Neerja. She sinks
her soul into the character and transforms herself. It is difficult to imagine anyone else as
Neerja. She portrays multiple emotions with aplomb. She makes the character
believable. Her portrayal of Neerja underlines the fact that, it is the
ordinary people, who under adverse situation have the potential to become
extraordinary. Shabana Azmi and Yogendra Tiku as Neerja’s parents play out
their part quite beautifully portraying the helplessness and pain of parents
who lost their effervescent child. And then it is the hijackers who make you
terrified with their madness.
It is a pity that, it took three decades for Bollywood to
tell this story of supreme sacrifice and gallantry. But, then, it’s a relief
that finally when it decided to do it, they managed to do it beautifully,
hitting all the right nodes. If you have decided to watch just one movie this
February, make sure it is Neerja. I will go out with 4 out of 5.
May the spirit of Neerja inspire us to go beyond the call of
our duty, may it help us understand the meaning of humanism , may it make us
overcome fear and be “ Brave” in its true spirit and give us the courage to
stand for what is right !
“Goodbye Darling... Please Keep Coming”
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