Director: Musa Syeed
The setting of this movie is immensely important, but not for the reasons you might expect. It's set in Kashmir, a disputed region between India and Pakistan, a place of heavy political conflict. But it's not the political conflict that is the main "issue" of this film, instead it is a lake, a lake that is being slowly dirtied and destroyed. The politics that make Kashmir such a dangerous place to live are seen not only as a problem because of the obvious reasons, but also because the politics are distracting us from the real problem at hand, which is the degradation of the area environment.
It's an incredibly refreshing message. But the film only succeeds at making it ring true because of the neo-realist style. Taking a lot of influence from the neo-realists of post-war Italian directors, the film has a documentary feel to it, but is not afraid to include poetic and lyrical moments that just add to the audiences affection for the characters and the environment. The region of Kashmir, and especially the lake that is at the center of the story, is captured with so much beauty by Syeed's camera. It's important to remember that this is not a movie that has beauty for beauty's sake. Capturing the mountains and lakes of Kashmir in all of their natural beauty is important because if no one takes any action, this footage might be some of the last we see of this place of beauty.
Grade: B+
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