Earth

The second part of a trilogy whose theme is the elements (1996’s ‘Fire’ being the first film), Deepa Mehta’s ‘Earth’ examines the subject of India’s partition as a means to deal with land literally and figuratively. Based on an autobiography, the film mixes romance and social drama, often emotionally wrenching, with a potent finale. The story is told from the perspective of eight year old Lenny, a girl from an affluent Parsee family. The setting is Lahore in 1947, a city in which Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and Parsee coexist in harmony. However the prospect of independence is looming, with the notion of a separate Muslim country, Pakistan, presumably part of the bargain. Initially, the prospect of violent change appears distantly removed from the group of young adults who gravitate around Lenny’s Hindu nanny, Shanta. Almost overnight the mood changes and friends find themselves on opposing sides. Adapted from the book ‘Cracking India’ by Bapsi Sidhawa, the cast includes Aamir Khan, Nandita Das and Rahul Khanna. In English and Hindi with English subtitles.