A journey not defined

Rating: 10/10 (20 March 2017)

What happens to your life when God pushes you back to the darkest corner of the wall?
What happens when you are lost, helpless, broken and don't have any idea about when the situation will change, or even the faintest assurance that the things will at all change.
What happens when you know that the people you love the most, your family, is going through the same amount of pain as you, and you can do nothing about it, absolutely nothing. For twenty-five years.
Life then becomes an unending pain. A vacuum of existing in the present and living in the past. And ultimately an elongated search, for the real self within.
It is this desperateness, Lion, the movie, will pull you all into.
The story of Saroo Brierley. A tale of immense human courage, of how a little boy faced unimaginable difficulties and survived through,with admirable poise and a mature calmness way beyond his years.
Little Sunny Pawar aka Saroo, rules your heart from Shot one. You smile,when he beams back love at his proud protective elder brother. You laugh at his little mischiefs,when he is able to behave like a child in the few truly happy moments of his life. You are then on the edges of your seat when he's about to fall into traps, and you sigh with relief when he assures us, time and again, that he's smart enough, to manage on his own,without anyone's help.Thank you very much.
Your heart goes out to him when he keeps searching for his brother and mother in a strange crowd. He matter-of-factly states to all that he needs to see his mother. But when he understands,that it is no more possible, he accepts, with an admirable composure and moves on.Perhaps it was for this attitude, that even God stopped testing the little boy and gave him what he deserved at last. Love.
It is difficult to hold the attention of the audience when the story is known to all. But the adept direction of Garth Davis hooks you from the word Go.
What is more amazing here that since we know that the characters are all true and somehow it is that realization which makes us go through a plethora of emotions. We gasp with shock at the unexpectedness of how real people turn out to be, in this cruel, blood-sucking world. So much so that you start suspecting even that second glance from a stranger, be it a friendly man or a motherly woman. Because you know, that everybody out here is at a war of their own, struggling and fighting, to exist, and if lucky, rise above. Be it at the mine site breaking stones, or stealing coals and risking your life for a packet full of milk for your little brother. Be it a child trafficker selling her body and soul to a pimp or a policeman who supplies helpless children to powerful men. Everyone is fighting their invisible wars and hoping to win.
But the ultimate war here is the war within.Brilliant actors Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman portraying the tussles inside with such grandeur that I hear quite a many sniffs in the audience throughout the screening. Our favorite Deepti Naval, in a little cameo, shines in a silent moment of just expressions, when Saroo for the last time, asks for his mother.
The first half of the movie rests on the little shoulders of Sunny Pawar, who comes across as a real discovery.I sincerely wish to see more of him, not just as a child actor, but as a strong 'character'. Because he certainly has, the ability.
The Cinematography by Greig Fraser is sheer painting. Right from the first dissolves, of the scenic Australia to the powdery plains of Khandwa, the deeply emotional story of Lion has a very passionate camera following it throughout. Thank God for that. A tumultuous train journey captured with brilliant use of camera and picture perfect frames using just natural lights need special mentions.
Outstanding editing work by Alexandre de Franceschi, bring alive the childhood of Saroo when he finally meets his mother after twenty five years of separation. And as happens always in our real 'worldly' life, nothing did remain the same ,other than a mother's love and a few cherished memories.
Go and watch Lion, if you haven't already. You will learn a thing or two about the rules of life. The turmoils and tests we all must go through, to survive with our heads held high. The 'hearty' use of our intelligent minds, which is needed for all, to make quick decisions and escape pitfalls.And the grace we all must show, at all times, before accepting,that whatever happens, always does happen, for only the best.