Nandita Das and Nawazuddin Siddiqui bring Mantoiyat to JNU
Riya Sharma | TNN | Updated: Sep 21, 2018, 12:29 ISTMake Mantoiyat popular: Nandita
The session with the team was organised at the auditorium in JNU's School of Arts and Aesthetics. But before the session could begin, a large crowd had gathered outside to see the film's cast, so the session had to be shifted outside. Ira Bhasker, Professor of Cinema Studies at the School of Arts and Aesthetics, who conducted the session, began by telling the film's team about the JNUSU elections. "You have come to JNU at a very critical moment, the students' elections have just concluded, and has been swept by the Left. My first question is to Nandita. Manto is not a figure of the 1940s' Indian subcontinent, Manto is a figure of today, for us. The issues that the film is raising will encompass all the issues that we as a community here, and in India, are struggling with," said Bhasker.
Nandita Das at JNU
"If you look at the present, then the common man is marginalised. Unn logon ki kahaniyan bahar nahi aa rahi hain. Sattar saal pehle Manto sahab unki kahaniyan sunate thay humein. What was the impact of violence, what were women feeling, what were sex workers feeling - Manto sahab ne uske baare mein likha tha aur isliye aaj woh bahut relevant hai. Aur unpe 6 muqadame chale, kyunki kaha jata tha ki woh obscene kahaniyan likhte hain. The freedom of expression is under scrutiny even today. Kahin log khud ko hi chup kar rahe hain ki bolenge toh pata nahi kya ho jayega. Humare aaj ke Manto toh kuch jail mein baithe hain ya kuch ko maar diya ja raha hai. So, there is no better place than releasing this film here and now," said Nandita.
Nandita Das and Rasika Dugal at JNU
Urging the students to keep the Mantoiyat alive, she said, "Humein ek dusre ki Mantoiyat jagaye rakhni hai. Bahar ki jo duniya hai woh JNU jaisi nahi hai. Kaash main yahan padhi hoti, par main JNU bahut aati thi, yahan mere dost thay. Aapke yahan ek tradition raha hai Mantoiyat ka. You are lucky, JNU has inherited the kind of spirit where students raise their voices for people that are bebak and they have the strength to be the voice of the voiceless and stand up for their rights. That is Mantoiyat, so make it a popular term."
Nawaz bhai - ek dialogue?
While Nandita spoke mostly about the film, Nawazuddin was repeatedly asked by the students to say a few dialogues from the film. "Nawaz bhai, ek dialogue? Kuch bhi suna dijiye," the students requested. And when the actor obliged, he was greeted by loud cheers.
"Manto maine bas isliye hi ki hai kyunki mujhe lagta hai jo thoughts Manto ke hai woh mere bhi hain," said Nawaz. When the students said, "Thoda tez boliye," he replied, "Arey yaar, mera theatre chuth gaya 20 saal pehle." He continued, "Kuch bandishon ke karan hum woh nahi keh pa rahe thay, humara sochna yahi tha ki character ke through bol payein. Maine paise bhi nahi liye hai iss picture ke liye."
Ira Bhasker, Professor of Cinema Studies at the School of Arts and Aesthetics , JNU
I got to know Manto as a person: Rasika
Rasika, who is playing Manto's wife, Safia, in the film, shared her experience. "I got to play a very beautiful role of Safia Manto. Unke baare mein zyada likha nahi hai toh I thought my work would be very difficult. But Nandita had spent a lot of time with her and Manto's daughters in Pakistan and got to know so many stories. It helped me understand Manto as a person and not just a writer. I have been an avid reader of Manto, but this was one side of him which I had never known," she said.
Before the session concluded, Nawaz urged students to be like Manto. "Iss duniya mein aise bahut kam log hain jinki wajah se duniya chal rahi hai. Nahi toh bas maar kaat hi chal rahi hai. Kuch hi logon ne sambhal rakha hai, aur woh log hi sach ko saamne laate hain. Toh Manto ne humesha usi ka saath diya, aur aap logon ko bhi dikkat hoti hogi par ant mein humesha sach hi jeetata hai," he said.
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