Sarah Gavron's “Brick Lane” is a tender, touching portrayal of a Bangladeshi woman in London longing for home. We are so used to the Punjabi immigrant experience in popular culture (think aloo gobi and “Bend it Like Beckham”), that to have Bengali and Rabindra Sangeeth gives the film a different look and feel.
In fact the film is all about surprises, about the googly when you are expecting a straight ball. As film critic Roger Ebert says: “Brick Lane tells a story we think we already know, but we're wrong: It has new things to say within an old formula.”
The movie begins in Bangladesh where a young Nazneen and her sister cavort in the jewel green fields and splash in twinkling streams. The girls' life changes on the death of their mother and 17-year-old Nazneen is married off to Chanu Ahmed, who is at least 20 years older than her and works in London.
The sisters are separated but write regularly to each other. In London, Nazneen misses home and her sister even as she goes through the motions of domesticity.
The couple have three children. The first one, a boy, dies in infancy. Shahana, the elder daughter, has assimilated so well into the British way of life that she cannot relate to what her father says. Bibi, the younger daughter is biddable.
When Chanu resigns after being passed over for a promotion, Nazneen takes up hemming jeans for a pound a piece.
Her life changes with the entry of Karim who brings her the clothes to hem. Love blossoms between the two. There is talk about leaving Chanu and getting married. The 9/11 attacks increase racial tensions and also is a catalyst for Nazneen to negotiate the minefield of expectations and desires.
“Brick Lane” is exquisitely shot and extraordinarily well acted. Satish Kaushik, who we are so used to seeing being the jolly good fellow, is a revelation as Chanu.
He is not an unfeeling, unbending patriarch. His exchanges with Shahana and Nazneen reveal heartbreaking nuances and sensitivity. When he says: “Anything is possible when you are young. Then you get older and the thing about getting older is that you don't need everything to be possible anymore, you just need some things to be certain,” your heart goes out to him.
Tannishtha Chatterjee is spectacular as Nazneen. She lights up the screen with her looks and performance. She portrays the still centre of her turmoil with splendid ease. “Brick Lane” offers a wonderfully warm viewing experience.
“Brick Lane” will be aired on UTV World Movies on June 27 at 8.30 p.m.
