'The Color of Paradise':An eye-opener
-By Swetha Amit
Life comes in varied colours. How humans perceive them in different shades is what makes it interesting and mystifying at the same time. Some view it as a spectrum of the rainbow. While others view it in black and white interspersed with shades of grey. It’s surprising to note certain not so privileged individuals’ ability to view it as a reflection of paradise even if fate did not seem fair to them. These are ironies which make one marvel at such optimism and pity those possessing the grey shades of bitterness and pessimism.
Majid Majidi's‘The Color of Paradise’ is a simple yet endearing story of a visually challenged motherless boy and how destiny unites him with his father. The film starts off with 8 year old Mohammad waiting for his father eagerly to go home for summer vacation. As the boy reaches the village, he is received with immense affection by his grandmother and his two sisters. Little does he realize that what should have ideally been a carefree life ends up as a nightmare of feeling unwanted and unloved?
His father ashamed of his blindness decides to get rid of him by putting him up in a carpentry workshop far from home. And with a selfish motive of marrying a woman in the village much against the wishes of the grandmother. However fate takes an ironical turn when he ends up losing everything he wanted. As he returns to take Mohammad back home, a miraculous venture enables him to realize the true treasure destined for him for life.
The Color of Paradise exhibits the heartfelt emotions of the characters in a way that the viewers cannot help but go moist eyed. Few scenes stand out in this aspect. The beginning scene portrays the father’s reluctance to take him home and is met with a vehement refusal by the school authorities. Another one where the father pours out his frustration to the grandmother stating his ill luck from his childhood of having lost his father and then his wife. And being burdened with a blind son who will be unable to take care of him during his twilight years. One cannot help sympathise with the man for having gone through a lot. Yet resent him at the same time for his ruthless treatment meted out to Mohammad.
Another scene is where Mohammad has tears streaming down his eyes as he narrates in an appalling manner as to how he longed for his father’s love and affection. One of the instances where his miserable plight is portrayed as he reveals his inability to lead a ‘normal’ life.
The movie spells irony all over as one makes several inferences. What the father is unable to see in spite of being blessed with a good sight is seen with great clarity by his blind son. Mohammad viewed life as beautiful and in bright colours despite the fact his world appeared in a stark shade of black. This was depicted in his optimistic view of winning his father’s love eventually. While his father dwelled on grey shades by mulling over his losses.
It was strange as to how the father tried to get rid of his real source of happiness which he failed to see by being ‘blinded’ by selfishness. And yet it was the same person who was returned to him by destiny while the rest of his folks were lost into the jaws of death. Even when he’s washed away into the stream, he realizes that while his entire life is washed away in bitterness. Yet fate decided to bestow kindness on him and a second chance as a ray of hope waited ashore.
A simple tale may not necessarily exhibit ’special effects’ with modern technology. Yet it leaves one with a sound moral which indeed makes one realize that life is truly a colour of paradise.
Written for www.msn.co.in
Majid Majidi's‘The Color of Paradise’ is a simple yet endearing story of a visually challenged motherless boy and how destiny unites him with his father. The film starts off with 8 year old Mohammad waiting for his father eagerly to go home for summer vacation. As the boy reaches the village, he is received with immense affection by his grandmother and his two sisters. Little does he realize that what should have ideally been a carefree life ends up as a nightmare of feeling unwanted and unloved?
His father ashamed of his blindness decides to get rid of him by putting him up in a carpentry workshop far from home. And with a selfish motive of marrying a woman in the village much against the wishes of the grandmother. However fate takes an ironical turn when he ends up losing everything he wanted. As he returns to take Mohammad back home, a miraculous venture enables him to realize the true treasure destined for him for life.
The Color of Paradise exhibits the heartfelt emotions of the characters in a way that the viewers cannot help but go moist eyed. Few scenes stand out in this aspect. The beginning scene portrays the father’s reluctance to take him home and is met with a vehement refusal by the school authorities. Another one where the father pours out his frustration to the grandmother stating his ill luck from his childhood of having lost his father and then his wife. And being burdened with a blind son who will be unable to take care of him during his twilight years. One cannot help sympathise with the man for having gone through a lot. Yet resent him at the same time for his ruthless treatment meted out to Mohammad.
Another scene is where Mohammad has tears streaming down his eyes as he narrates in an appalling manner as to how he longed for his father’s love and affection. One of the instances where his miserable plight is portrayed as he reveals his inability to lead a ‘normal’ life.
The movie spells irony all over as one makes several inferences. What the father is unable to see in spite of being blessed with a good sight is seen with great clarity by his blind son. Mohammad viewed life as beautiful and in bright colours despite the fact his world appeared in a stark shade of black. This was depicted in his optimistic view of winning his father’s love eventually. While his father dwelled on grey shades by mulling over his losses.
It was strange as to how the father tried to get rid of his real source of happiness which he failed to see by being ‘blinded’ by selfishness. And yet it was the same person who was returned to him by destiny while the rest of his folks were lost into the jaws of death. Even when he’s washed away into the stream, he realizes that while his entire life is washed away in bitterness. Yet fate decided to bestow kindness on him and a second chance as a ray of hope waited ashore.
A simple tale may not necessarily exhibit ’special effects’ with modern technology. Yet it leaves one with a sound moral which indeed makes one realize that life is truly a colour of paradise.
Written for www.msn.co.in
Comments
This is a beautiful review to that great movie. You have admirably written it.
Also, I loved your title a lot. Colour of Paradise - AN EYE OPENER!
Cheers to you :-)