• The film explores themes of abandonment, the impact of rural migration on the elderly, and the harsh realities of life in neglected villages.
• Non-professional actors Padam Singh Kapri and Hira Devi bring authentic emotions to the lead roles, enhancing the film's melancholic realism.

What looks like a slice of heaven to an outsider, is a hell of loneliness and desolation to an old couple living in a remote village in Uttarakhand. Vinod Kapri's Pyre tells the story of a helpless old age that would be tragic anywhere, but is more so when the setting is a village that has seen such a steady migration of people, that hardly anyone is left in the crumbling homes.

As a character says, that a place that has no electricity, water, roads, hospitals, schools is bound to be abandoned.

Padam (Padam Singh Kapri) and his wife Tulsi (Hira Devi), he in his 80s, she in her 70s, live a hardscrabble existence that has etched deep lines on their faces. Padam has a flock of sheep, the wife cooks and keeps house.

Their only son Hariya left 28 years ago and never contacted them again. The two have barely anything to say to each other. They either sing folk songs, or bicker. His drinking, her smoking, or anything that they can think up to quarrel about.

Still, the care and affection can be seen in their eyes.

Struggle for Survival

The couple is dependent on two young men, Laxman (Subhash Chandra) and Jeevan (Shubham Chaudhary), who can be summoned by the tooting of an alpine horn, to carry Tulsi to the hospital when she is ill.

Padam pays the men and the doctor with goats.

The kind helpers are also preparing to leave, and Padam is terrified of what will happen when they go. They won't even have four shoulders to carry their bier for their funeral. He suggests to his wife that they both jump off a cliff and end their lives, but she refuses.

Flicker Of Hope And Despair

Then suddenly, the friendly postman, Bishan (Sadab Khan), brings a letter from their son, announcing a visit. They are thrilled; they bathe and wear their best clothes.

Tulsi cooks a feast for their meagre collection of neighbours. Hariya does not arrive, but a flickering hope is lit -- that they have something to live for. When Hariya does not come even after a second letter, and both Jeevan and Laxman go away, Padam starts building two pyres outside their home.

The ending is so heart-breaking that viewers would be blinking back tears.

Authenticity And Setting

The story is simple but also hauntingly melancholic, stopping much short of the shrieking melodrama so many films about aging resort to. At its core are the two non professional actors who play Padam and Tulsi, bringing an authenticity of emotions that experienced actors could not have managed.

Padam Singh Kapri is the director's uncle, a retired army havildar; Hira Devi, a local farmer, demanded to be cast when she discovered Vinod Kapri scouting for an actress for the lead part.

The stunning Kumaoni location, lovingly captured by Manas Bhattacharyya's camera, also hides the tragedy of a land and its elderly residents, left uncared for. The hills are green and majestic, with the mists rolling in, but there are also storms and lashing rain that can cause decaying roofs to collapse, and aging breaths to hitch in weak lungs.

Pyre is a sad, fatalistic, slow-moving film, but with memorable moments that linger in the mind.

Pyre Review Rediff Rating: