I was speaking about Utsav, a Bollywood movie, with my wife. I liked that movie and asked her what your take is? She said it was ok. I asked her to watch it again. She was curious – what was so special in in movie that you are asking me to watch it again? I told her –

In the movie there was a thief – Sajjal. Nothing apparently to learn from an outlaw. However, he was a creative thief. Wherever he stole from, he made creative designs of breaking-into a home. When he goes to steal, the hole he makes in wall is in some design. If he is not satisfied he improves it and once that is done, he proceeds to his actual job of stealing. Creative person can be creative in whatever situation. Not just that, when Sajjal was hired to rescue one of the leader of revolution (Aryak), there too Sajjal did things creatively. The hirer – Kulbhushan Kharbanda – had his heart in his mouth but the thief does not change his attitude and approach.

Kharbanda – one of the revolutionary – makes team out of some very random gems, the other lesson was this to me. Interestingly many of his team members were outlaws or for example – a chronic liar (Annu Kapoor) and the thief.  This liar creates stories to save himself from his tough situations – such as once he saves himself at Vasantsena’s (Rekha) the courtesan brothel by telling a lie about being a representative of Charudutt. I think there is another perspective –revolutionaries are always considered as outlaw! Isn’t it? What Annu Kapoor learns from this incident is another lesson in itself – Annu Kapoor learns – “If a man’s name can save him from going to jail, reciting almighty God’s name will surely save him from live and after lives and so on.“

Vasantsena has another interesting lesson to teach us. She falls in love with Charudutt a poor artist – who is already married and have a small baby boy. The last scene of the movie is the most stunning to me. Vasantsena is pursued by Samsthanak (Shashi Kapoor). Shashi Kapoor played the role of a mad lover of Vasantsena so well that I hated him in the movie, also I could not recognize him until I saw the list of artists. In the poster he is seen above the title of movie.

Samsthanak is so madly in love that he keeps on repeating her name at his various appearances on screen. However, Vasantsena is scared of him, she wants to run away from him – in Charudutt she finds solace. Both kind of fall in love, however, in the end when Charudutt is released from the death sentence – on the gallows literally – he runs to his family. Both his wife and Vasantsena are also running happily to hug him; he grabs his wife and not Vasantsena. It kind of breaks Vasantsena, what she learns from this is – i. accepting that Charudutt has a family, ii. She must accept their family and do not get into it, iii. She must love what she has and accept the love showered on him by Samsthanak. The last scene is very touching. After the revolution, Vasantsena’s brothel is empty. In last scene she opens the door and takes Samsthanak in – who has been beaten by citizen. Love needs to be unconditional, if there is a desire thats not love, that is business.

Needless to talk about Amjad Khan who plays the role of Vatsyayan author of Kama Sutra, he acted contrary of his image of a villain. Vatsyayan is searching for his different Kama Sutra asanas and therefore he is at the brothel. Indian philosophy had immensely different perspective even on super consciousness. Vatsyayan’ was from sex to super-consciousness. He says once – “Love, for me, is contemplation and not indulgence“

What did you learn from Utsav?