''Saankal'' () is a 2015 Indian

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

-language

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

and

social problem film A social problem film is a narrative film that integrates a larger social conflict into the individual conflict between its characters. In the context of the United States and of Hollywood, the genre is defined by fictionalized depictions of s ...

written and directed by Dedipya Joshii. The film stars Chetan Sharma, Tanima Bhattacharya, Harish Kumar, Jagat Singh, Samarth Shandilya and

Milind Gunaji Milind Gunaji (born 23 July 1961) is an Indian actor, model, television presenter, writer and author, most known for his roles in Marathi and Hindi cinema. He made his first film appearance in 1993's ''Papeeha'' and has since performed in over ...

. It focuses on the impact of

forced marriage Forced marriage is a marriage in which one or more of the parties is married without their consent or against their will. A marriage can also become a forced marriage even if both parties enter with full consent if one or both are later force ...

traditions prevalent within rural Indian communities. The film was released in August 2015 and went on to win numerous awards, including Best Female Lead and Best Foreign Film at the 20th Indie Gathering Film Festival.

Synopsis

26 year-old Abeera lives in a village in the

Thar Desert The Thar Desert (), also known as the Great Indian Desert, is an arid region in the north-western part of the Indian subcontinent that covers an area of in India and Pakistan. It is the world's 18th-largest desert, and the world's 9th-large ...

of India. She is forcibly married to the significantly younger 11 year-old Kesar due to the village's deeply-seated traditions and taboos, and must now grapple with the negative impact of this event.

Background

Director Dedpiya Joshii stated that the film's depiction of forced marriage is based on real-world conditions that are still prevalent in Indian rural communities. These conditions can be traced to prior practices in villages that sought to prevent marrying outside of the community, in order to maintain genealogical purity. In the aftermath of the 1947

Partition of India The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Dominion of India, Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The Union of India is today the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Paki ...

, marriages between cross-border communities were disrupted, which further limited the marriageable population in these communities. This prompted village councils to force marriages between mature-age women and prepubescent boys in order to prevent population decline.

Cast

* Chetan Sharma as Kesar (Adolescent) * Tanima Bhattacharya as Abeera * Harish Kumaar as Usmaniya * Jagat Singh as Kesar (Youth) * Samarth Shandilya as Kesar (Child) *

as Apoorva Shingh Bhati

Awards and accolades

* The Indie Gathering - August 2015, Cleveland, Ohio, USA (Awards - Best Female Lead & Best Foreign film). * Russian International Film Festival, October 2015, Online. (Awards - Best Film & Best Actress). * Shaan E Awadh International Film Festival, November 2015, Lucknow. (Awards - Best Film, Best Actress & Best Director). * California Film Awards, January 2016, USA. (Awards - Gold Award-Foreign Film Competition). * Kalyan International Film Festival, February 2016, Kalyan, India. (Awards - Best Story). * Nasik International Film Festival, February 2016, Nasik, India. (Awards - Best Noteworthy). * International Open Film Festival, June 2016, Dhaka, Bangladesh. (Awards - Best South Asian Film). * Hariyana International Film Festival, September 2016, Hisar, India. (Awards - Best Actress & Best Story). * Calcutta International Cult Film Festival, December 2016, Kolkata, India. (Awards - Best Women Film).

References

External links

* *{{Bollywood Hungama movie, 5624905, Saankal 2015 films Indian drama films Films set in Rajasthan Films shot in Rajasthan Films about social issues in India Child marriage in India Fictional child brides and grooms