Release date:
|
February 3, 2017
|
Director:
|
Zaigham Imam
|
Cast:
Language:
|
Neelima Azeem,
Danish Hussain, Mohammad Saud, Ishaan Kaurav, Bhavna Pani, Pawan Tiwari,
Aditya Om, Voice: Jaya Bachchan
Hindi
|
Alif is the story
of a Muslim boy torn between tradition and evolution, the cliquishness of his
own people and prejudice from the majority community.
The film kicks off
in Varanasi where we discover that little Ali’s dad had, decades earlier,
forced his sister to go to Pakistan, fearing for her safety during the
post-Partition riots. Zehra discovers on going there that the evil her family
sought to save her from is no less in the new country. Much later when she
returns to India as an older woman, she persuades her brother to pull Ali out
of a madrasa and send him to a modern school where he will get a modern
education.
What follows is an
exploration of the brutal politics that kept her away from her motherland all
these decades, and Ali’s simultaneous struggles against a hate-filled teacher
in his new school while his father is reviled by the local Muslim leadership
who fear a loss of their hold over the community if others too are inspired to
quit madrasas.
The basic storyline
has the potential to be turned into a heart-wrenching film. Zehra’s anguish,
Ali’s innocence and trauma, his father’s pain – how can a viewer not be moved
seeing it all? The story at the heart of the film certainly has emotional heft.
It is ruined, however, by inept direction, inadequate writing, jerky editing,
amateurish cinematography and pathetic quality all around.
Alif draws its
title from the first letter of the Arabic alphabet. The name is an indicator of
the film’s goal to promote education among Muslims and to build awareness about
Muslims among the larger populace. Sadly, Alif does a disservice to its own
aims with its low standards. At one point, for instance, it fails to explain
the meaning of a religious pennant that gets confused with a flag of Pakistan
at a crucial juncture in the narrative.
The redeeming
factors in the film are the guileless conversations between Ali and his close
friend played by Mohammad Saud and Ishaan Kaurav who seem to have acting
potential that is worthy of being explored. Their sweetness and the poignancy
that pervade their child-like chatter elicit smiles and the occasional tear.
Neelima Azeem as Ali’s aunt is wasted in the film – she tries, but her natural
ease before the camera is overshadowed by the unsatisfactory writing. The rest
of the cast is a mixed bag that includes some seriously lousy actors.
Alif is proof, if any were needed, that good
intentions need good writing, good direction and good production values to be
translated into a good film. This is an important story. It just needs to
be told in a better film.
Rating
(out of five stars): 0.5
CBFC Rating (India):
|
UA
|
Running time:
|
120 minutes
|
This
article was also published on Firstpost:
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