Door Ka Rahi: Purposeful journey of a lone traveler

Door Ka Rahi:

Purposeful journey of a lone traveler!

In Khopoli my mom used to have a small clinic on the main road through the town. Right across the clinic was a public toilet. On the wall of this dingy place would be a paper poster of the movie playing at the one and only theatre in the town, Goodluck Cinema. Every Friday an employee would come and paste a new poster there. Dad was fond of movies. He would take us nearly every week to watch the movie. I had become accustomed to noting the change of the poster on that wall and would get excited to go see it. 

The craze for movies lasted while I was in India. Once I was in the USA this somehow faded gradually. Now several months go by without watching a single movie. And sometimes years without watching it in a theater. Phones and iPads have brought movies within the reach of fingertips even without a big screen. Today after a really long time I sat and watched a full length movie on the iPad. 

Earlier this week scrolling through social media account I came across a song I was hearing after a long long time. Bekarar dil tu gaaye ja. The video aroused my curiosity about the female singer and the movie this song was from. I found out it was Sulakshana Pandit who sang this song with Kishore Kumar. It was from the movie Door Ka Rahi. The tidbits I gathered during this search got me intrigued about the movie itself and so I decided to watch it. To my delight, I found it on YouTube. So Saturday morning was spent in this indulgence. 

Despite technicolor introduced to movies a few decades earlier, this 1971 movie was made in black and white. It was produced and directed by Kishore Kumar who was also music director, singer and lead actor for the film. The movie’s cast included seasoned actors like Ashok Kumar, Abhi Bhattacharya, Iftikhar, Asit Sen, Tanuja, Padma Khanna and Keshto Mukherjee in small roles. Kishore Kumar’s son Amit Kumar too had a role in this film.

The movie starts with an aged Prashant, the protagonist of the story, played by Kishore Kumar. He is lying alone in sand (or snow) in a vast uninhabited terrain. The story of his life is shown as a flashback. His life begins as an infant abandoned in a temple by the parents. A sage finds this baby and brings him up. He raises the boy with teachings about compassion for the poor and destitute, and advises him to navigate through life without the trappings of domestic attachment. The story walks you through his journey where he meets several people who are facing various challenges in their lives. To begin with a young woman who is in love with him wants to marry him against fierce resistance from her family. He convinces her to settle down in life with someone who is acceptable to her community so that her life is not subjected to unnecessary hardships. He steers himself clear of bondages to keep the promise he made to his guru. There is a leper who is ostracized and physically assaulted by villagers who believe that he poses a threat to the community due to his disease. Prashant intervenes to protect the leper. In another town four motherless young kids are orphaned when their father dies suddenly. Prashant takes them under his wing and delivers them to a caring orphanage that he remains a permanent patron of. There is a poor Muslim family with a young daughter who is stalked and later raped by a rich zamindar’s brother. There is another Hindu family who has borrowed money from the zamindar and is bullied to give up their home and land to repay the debts. Violence ensues during one incident of aggression from the zamindar’s kin and a young boy dies while defending his family. Prashant tries to find them justice. When law enforcement forces are unable to find the culprit  Prashant himself goes and confronts the murderer ( the same person was the rapist of the Muslim girl). He overpowers the bad guy and, although he could have killed him right there, he resists the temptation to take the law in his own hands. Instead he turns the guy over to the authorities for proper legal process. 

From there his journey takes him to the home of a Christian family. The elderly patriarch of this family lives with his young widowed daughter-in-law and trusted servants. He is grieving over the death of his son. Prashant’s unexpected arrival seeking shelter for the night brings joy to the man who sees a glimpse of his late son in Prashant. He requests Prashant to extend the stay for a few days and Prashant honors the request. The old man observes Prashant closely during this time and recognizes his virtues. He believes Prashant could be a great man for his son’s widow to remarry. He puts this proposition to Prashant. A perplexed Prashant is left to making his decision. Monica, the widow, who was until then feeling overwhelmed by the sad memories of her dear husband suddenly realizes that those memories are a gift and not a burden. They are reminders of her commitment to her husband. She suggests thereby that she has no intention to remarry even though she recognizes Prashant to be an honorable man. 

Prashant is thus relieved from the dilemma of making his choice about marrying her at the behest of her father-in-law. He proceeds from there on his solitary journey. 

The story depicts several truths of human life. Whether we are born into a sheltered family or not, essentially from birth to death it is a solitary journey, whether we recognize it or not. The values we live with are influenced by the teachers who raise us. If we are fortunate to meet a spiritual guide we can find and lead our life with a purpose that is higher than just making a living. Seeing the difficulties other people face our hearts should be capable of empathy and compassion. There is always something we can offer to others who are less fortunate than ourselves. Whether it is a compassionate ear, kind words offering hope and encouragement, at least a temporary shelter, physical or material aid and apt guidance, we must do what we can. And while we do this, we should be able to see the person beyond their religion, gender, age, social status or such identities. Respecting the law and fighting for justice is important to set an example for others so society does not become rogue and rogue elements do not become powerful. For that, just being kind hearted and selfless is not enough. You must be prepared to stand up for justice and not allow evil to intimidate or overpower you. Life will put forward choices at every turn and we must understand our goals and priorities when we make our choices. 

There was one scene in the last part of the movie where Monica, the widow speaks to the protagonist and says “ I am a woman. I could be weak and unable to go through life without my husband. Even if he is no more, I have his memories and I can live with them “. 

When she said that, a realization dawned inside me. “I am a woman( therefore) I could be weak” !!! That is just not true. Whichever woman thinks she is weak just by being a woman does not understand fully the strength of a woman. Woman is a unique image of God with all the potential of God within her. How can she ever be weak ? The world with its conventional thinking may continue to look at woman as a weak or inferior entity in the scheme of things but no woman should buy into this theory because it is a lie. Physical/ muscular strength is not the only parameter that defines strength. One who understands this will have it more clear in their head what strength really means. And one who understands what strength means will recognize what a woman is about.

Everything that is inferred from the story of the protagonist about having a higher purpose in life, holding compassion in the heart, treating everyone with kindness and respect, upholding the law, fighting for justice and resisting oppression and evil are inseparable components of strength and therefore apply to every woman just as much as they apply to every man. There must arise a conviction in any man or woman, by which they remain aware of the full potential within themselves and others.This understanding must never be allowed to fade from the mind. That is the true awakening. 

It was a meaningful movie with a beautiful message. And the songs were beautiful too. One becomes aware of the extraordinary multifaceted talent of Kishore Kumar as one watches the movie. A highly recommended watch. 

Saree is a mul cotton with Ajrakh print paired with a cotton blouse with indigo ajrakh prints.