Char adhyay NFDC, Doordarshan present ; script, Kumar Shahani ; dialogue, Udayan Vajpeyi ; direction, Kumar Shahani.

Originally produced as a motion picture in 1997

Based on the novel by Rabindranath Tagore

Cinematographer, K.K Mahajan ; editor, Sujata Narula ; music, Vanraj Bhatia

Nandini Ghosal, Sumanto Chattopadhyay, Kaushik Gopal, Ramchandra Pratihari

One of the most experimental films made in the Indian cinematic horizon, Char Adhyay, by auteur Kumar Shahani, is a poignant tale on the adverse effects of nationalism and patriotism. Based on Tagore's novel of the same name, the film, as the novel, shows the destructive potential and hypocrisy of any belief system that is followed blindly and that places itself above the human needs of its followers. Set in the terrorist phase of the Indian freedom movement, it tracks the story of Ela, who has become a living mascot and metaphor of the nation for a group of armed revolutionaries. Though happy at first, she begins to question this and the movement when one member of the group, Atin, resists and expresses his revulsion towards this indoctrination. The two fall in love, but, would a group, blindly sold to an ideology, allow the simplicity of this beautiful love? Char Adhyay, the film, is a nuanced, restrained interpretation of Tagore's work that both complements and accentuates the novella.

DVD, NTSC, all regions.

In Bengali; optional subtitles in English.