Inspired by the life of Hansa Wadkar, the Movie ‘Bhumika’ can serve as a good case study for both aspiring and professional screenplay writers. If the filmmakers want to live with their ideas they should critically analyse Movies like Bhoomika. When thought and feeling synchronise in the mind of a creator, the scenes will materialise accordingly. Director Shyam Benegal proved through this film that thoughts and feelings come together to form an emotion.
Coming to the Bhumika story, Usha’s mother, who is a Devadasi, marries a Brahmin who becomes addicted to alcohol and dies. The burden of the family falls on Usha. Keshav, a distant relative, notices Usha’s musical prowess and helps her become an actress. An actor Rajan falls in love with her, but she marries Keshav. After marriage, Keshav tortures her and forces her to continue as an actress for the sake of income. But, Ushs prefers a married life without the pressure of work. In the end, after a failed suicide attempt, Usha marries a business man who is already married. She encounters more complications with her second husband. He enforces strict rules which restrict women from crossing even the threshold of the house. In the end, the narrative is about whether ,Usha escapes this cage and seeks another nest.
The film reflects travails of women and their heart breaking lives in a male-dominated society.Bhumika screenplay enlightens every film maker that there should be a chronological order for biopic genres.
By Prakash Surya