Valley of Flowers

Plot synopsis:
A gang of bandits with their leader Jalan (Milind Soman) who have chosen to live an independent life free from oppression amid the wilderness live by plundering the travelers of the Silk Route of their merchandise. They have their own rules and sense of self-righteousness. While divesting victims of their valuables one day, they come across a demonic mask which intrigues Jalan. There amid the chaos, the bandits are suddenly caught unaware by the approach of a woman who calls herself Ushna (Mylene Jampanoi) who claims to know Jalan, having seen him in her dreams and asks him to let her come along. Jalan, in spite of his companions' warnings includes the woman in their band as he is already mesmerized by her unearthly beauty and mysterious and uncanny aura.
Ushna, at first becomes the group's muse and the mode of satiating Jalan's desire, but on their first encounter itself, Jalan falls in love with her and the two begin to share an insatiable passion and more than material longing for each other. Ushna knows a great deal more than the bandits about the landscape and strategic points and helps the men in more than one successful heists becoming Jalan's consort. She proves to be an excellent horse rider, riding alongside Jalan, claims to have seen the ocean, which is unseen and a subject of myth to the men. She also apparently does not have a navel which Jalan calls "The Centre of the Universe". Jalan grows increasingly dependent upon her, their love and passion ascending unscalable heights.
Madly in love, they decide to find out what future has in store for them and visit an astrologer, who informs them that they are not destined to be united. Rejecting this denial, they decide to change their fate and thereby leave the realms of material thefts and direct their attention towards stealing taboo elements such as Fortune and Energy from people potentially rich in them by stealing their shadows, in the attempt to improve their own fate. They explore too far into stealing things "which they have no right to and which are not theirs" and divest a meditating Yogi of his power of Levitation. Jalan and Ushna unite making use of their newly acquired power, to rise in the air during the act which is witnessed by Jalan's group member Jampa La (Jampa Kalsang Tamang). This is followed by a major fallout between Jalan and the rest of the group who accuse Jalan of breaking the group's rules as they perceive Ushna to be a superhuman and hence a precious asset, which according to the rules of the group should be equally divided. This enrages Jalan who accidentally kills Jampa La in the fracas between the two which results in a final split of Jalan and Ushna with the rest, with Hak Chi (Anil Yadav) rebuking Jalan as they part ways.
Meanwhile, the merchants and travelers, seek the help of Yeti (Naseeruddin Shah), a mysterious wise man and the local protector, for protection against Jalan's group. Yeti seems to recognize Ushna at once from the description given by the victims and immediately sets out for the pair of them with his three bounty hunters. Ushna and Jalan make a narrow escape, until finally they are outsmarted by Yeti and his men. Ushna manages to escape on horseback and Jalan falls into the river. Later, Yeti is confronted by Ushna in his tent who questions him of Jalan's whereabouts. Yeti advises her to go back to where she came from as she can never unite with Jalan because of what she is. Ushna rejects this denial a second time saying she loves him too much and that she never does what she is supposed to and vanishes from sight as Yeti begins to gather his Chöd equipments to capture her.
After this short separation, Ushna succeeds in finding Jalan at a monastery recovering from his wounds. The two set off for another monastery Jalan has heard of during his stay at the former one, where the Yogi prepares the Elixir of life for immortality by extracting the breath out of his pupils. Ushna is a bit reluctant and wishes to spend their lives in their natural spans together at the Valley of Flowers, where nobody could separate them. They however manage to steal the Elixir and consume it, preserving some for "days to come". The unfortunate lovers are confronted by Yeti early next morning direct from their sleep and Jalan in his pride of them attaining immortality shoots Ushna to make a display of it and Ushna in spite of having taken the Elixir is killed. Jalan is rebuked by Yeti for having tampered with things they ought not have. Now bereaved from his soulmate, Jalan is doomed to a vain life of immortality.
Then follows a transition of two centuries into the modern times in Tokyo. The shifting of landscapes and ages is depicted by the famous Time-Walk scene as Jalan's feet are shown to traverse diverse landscapes from rocky wildernesses to blooming pastures to war ridden lands strewn with havoc to modern metalled roads, accompanied by sounds describing the various ages in time.
In Japan, Jalan goes by the identity Jalan Otsal, the controversial Indian doctor who is a legalized practitioner of euthanasia and owner of the firm Valley of Flowers Corporation. He is despised by the people of the city and is stalked everywhere by protesters demanding him to leave Japan and leave death to Nature. Jalan creates news again by jumping from the 62-storey and yet surviving without even a scar, which is telecast live in the local news channels. Sayuri (Eri), the reincarnation of Ushna in this age, who is a singer at a pub is stopped during a performance by this telecast going on in the pub's television and she immediately rushes to the Police Station to rescue Jalan. They board a subway train where she tells Jalan that she has been serving her Karma ever since, this is her fifth reincarnation and that she has remembered him in each one of them, right from her birth, with the pain of separation and her aeonian longing living on with her soul and finally now she can't stand it anymore. Jalan and Sayuri unite in the empty train and rush to a temple where he gives her the Elixir he had preserved earlier. In the morning they wake up to find Yeti who reminds them of the Laws of Karma and Impermanence and of the Buddha, "the one who can turn conflict into collaboration" and gives Jalan the symbolic White Flower. Sayuri starts to flee taking Jalan with her but they are hit by a flower delivery truck. This time Jalan is killed and his body is shown lying amid the flowers fallen from the truck. Sayuri rushes to Yeti in anguish and demands to know why he did this when he had promised her more time with Jalan. Yeti consoles her saying that true love lies in sacrifice. He says that he is just carrying out his duty to restore the balance. Sayuri breaks down at his feet and slowly dissolves in a sea of fumes. Yeti performs the symbolic Chöd rituals of parting by playing the Damaru and blowing the Kangling. He then retrieves the Demon mask which Jalan had found earlier in the movie when Ushna had appeared, from where Sayuri dissolved into fumes.
The movie closes with Yeti fixing the mask upon a stone statuette which is revealed to be its detached face. He wipes off tears from its eyes and walks away as the sea waves lash upon the shore where the two similar statuettes stand on either side of a Torii at the entrance of a cave.
The film has a lot unsaid, unexplained, left to the speculation of the viewers which triggers a lot of research and study into the various cultural, mythological and religious elements incorporated in the film. This mystery element in itself is the flavor of Pan Nalin movies along with the remarkable influences from Buddhism and Buddhist Philosophy. Breathtaking landscapes of the Ladakh plateau, which is another characteristic, adds further to the mood.

Tags: romantic

Review:
Valley of Flowers has gorgeous male lead and two lovely leading ladies.
Pan Nalin has a talent for discovering talent; in Valley of Flowers he gives a break to French-Chinese Mylene Jampanoi (watch out Zhang Zyi and Sophie Marceau!!) and Japanese Eri.Vertigenous landscapes and skyscrapers, superb casting, sublime costumes, subtle lighting and mysterious music makes Valley of Flowers an exceptional cinematic experience.The story, warning -stay awake!
The film is a great long saga running full 2 hours and 35 minutes, from early 19th century to contemporary Japan.
Allow your mind to be open to feel this mind blowing film.It successfully encompasses themes of love and sacrifice, mortality and karma.
It starts like an "Eastern" (a Western from the East) and towards the end drifts into poetic Asian images.Given the length and the content of the movie, it is likely to suffer distribution problem.
Besides Valley of Flowers invents its own "genre" -thus it is non-classifiable.It is not often that such films are made, slightly ahead of its time -Valley of Flowers will neither be commercial enough for Hollywood nor "arty" enough for auteur driven festivals.But Valley of Flowers, personally speaking, will have an important role to play in evolution of Indian and Asian cinema.Don't miss it!.
Yesterday I had an opportunity to attend the private screening of integral version of Valley of Flowers (155minutes!!) in the "chick" Planet Hollywood on Champs-Elysees in Paris.
I liked the Fountain as well but it is Valley of Flowers sent my brain spinning.The reason I mentioned the Fountain is because I was struck by the similarities of the theme in these two movies love across ages, death and immortality, man's fight against time Human beings in constant state of seeking equilibrium in love, life, nature and human nature.Both Aronofsky and Nalin are known for invading the unknown realms of the real and surreal world.
Though Valley is just a second feature of Pan Nalin, but the maturity he displays in handling of his subject matter is truly astounding.
Valley of Flowers is truly an independent film compare to giant 35million dollar Fountain with star cast.
However, It is Nalin's film, which stirred me so deep, I felt a true sense of unearthing and that made me write, my very first comment on IMDb. I know nothing about Buddhism or Yeti or Tibet or Himalaya.
Of course the Himalayan parts are breathtaking, like in his earlier Samsara (2001), but here the "landscapes of faces" of Bandits are awesome.
Costume and Production design are top-notch, aesthetics better and higher than many multi-million dollar Hollywood blockbusters.Nalin's cinematic sense, and certain trance like camera movements are evocative; his girls are divine (even though they are playing demon).
Again like in Samsara, Nalin discovers Mylene Jampanoi; a French Chinese actress gets a break to do her first feature.
Indian actor Milind Soman is less impressive but Naseeruddin Shah again proves his talent as one of the greatest actor of Asian cinema in his brilliant interpretation of yeti.Nalin also proves his talent as an extraordinary screenwriter, he wrote both Samsara and Valley of Flowers.
His dialogs and editing is constantly breaking rules must mention an amazing scene of hero's "time walk" in Valley of Flowers with simple cuts on pair of feet walking from early 19th century to modern day Tokyo.
This scene in itself is a cinematic poetry in the realms of Rilke or Rumi.I've been professor of Japanese Culture and society and dealt with many of the themes of Pan Nalin's movies.
Nalin's portrayal of modern day Tokyo makes keen observation about existence of superstitions, demon and notion of death in Japan.
Nalin manages to penetrate the layers of modern day Japanese life very effectively.
Unfortunately, in the Fountain, Aronofsky fails to display similar command in scenes of ancient Spain and modern day medicine episode.Again it is amazing coincidence how Aronofsky and Pan Nalin, both these young filmmakers chose their hero in modern times to be a Doctor.
Controversial Dr. Zinelli of Dignitas of Zurich who assisted several people in their voluntary death inspires Nalin's modern day hero.
Again Nalin's episode in modern day Tokyo leads to a sublime conclusion of the story where many twists are revealed, love and lovers are sacrificed -in some of the most poetic and memorable scenes in history of modern-Asian cinema.I ask this question several times to myself why the festivals like Cannes, Venice, Berlin or Pusan have failed to highlight this talented filmmaker from India.
I am sorry to say there have been many others in between like Mira Nair or Shyam Benegal or Das Gupta but Pan Nalin is beyond, he is in another league all together.
Valley of Flowers got me all excited, as it was the very first public screening in Delhi's packed Siri Fort Audi where audience was spilling all over the floor...
Pan Nalin with his second feature (after Samsara) makes a very bold step in unexplored territories and comes out strong as a scriptwriter with guts, a director with exceptional talent and a filmmaker to watch out for.
Rarely a theme of love, longing and immortality has been so well depicted before.
Valley is a hymn to harmony in nature, balance among demons and humans, good and evil, life and death, black and white.
Because Pan Nalin allows audience to interact with this epic love story in honest manner.There are breathtaking moments in Valley like appearance of Ushna, levitated lovemaking, valley of silence, time-walk and final climax in Japan.
Towards the end the entire resolution of the saga happens in modern-day Tokyo and that is destructive and divine like most Asian myths.
Pan Nalin's regard on Tokyo and Japan is very sensitive and subtle.Watching Valley is truly a cinematic experience of unforgettable kind I highly recommend to those who love traveling beyond mainstream.
I am probably the only person who has seen TWO Valley of Flowers the one I saw in Delhi and second I saw today here in Turkey at the Gala premiere of Eurasian Film Festival where Valley..
is competing with some of the best films from Europe and Asia.In Delhi I had really loved the movie -thus here in Antalya I wanted to go and see it again with friends but little did I know that the film was violently butchered down by good 40 minutes from its original version!!Here, I disliked the film.Does anyone know why?
And I agree with other comments that the film will have tough time finding its audience.
And ChomChom from India should not generalise, I was also present at the very same screening and me and my friends loved the picture.Pan Nalin's Valley of Flowers would surely add a new angle to many Buddhism based movies.
Valley has Japanese MANGA like quality and interwoven web of deep Asian philosophy.
Followers of Eastern Religion and Philosophy will be able to point out these symbols.Another reason I loved Valley...
Like Jelan and Usna of Valley of Flowers.Nalin manages to render his story with shades of greys and black.
However he leaves you with unforgettable impressions, poetry, ideas...If you do get opportunity to see Valley's Director's Cut don't miss it.
However, If you are going to see the butchered version of 2hr then you better visit the official website of the film (www.valleyofflowers.com) and understand the story and background.
Forty plus years ago, when I sat in a third run theater on Hollywood Blvd watching Lawrence of Arabia, I knew that my life must change and that I had to get out there, into the world, and enjoy what it had to offer.
It is a story that I would not believe could be told on film being down and dirty exotic real life and at the same time an uplifting spiritual experience.
I might sound biased but first of all I love all kind of love stories in cinema.Valley of Flowers is a great love story -the one where magic plays a role.And I have a passion for exceptional love stories and romances.
Valley of Flowers makes you dream.
The film has great production value and specially the costume design is exquisite!Extra bonus, it is inspired from Alexandra David Neel's book.
Thus it is real treat for the fan of Alexandra's dark world of magic and mysteries of Tibet and Himalayas.In Japanese part of the movie when film slides into modern world from early 19th century, there is also a wonderful scene with BARDO (Tibetan Book of The Dead) based euthanasia.Its great concept: what do you do once you become immortal and you can not die -help others die.It's not so often we see in cinema Asian interpretation of love.
Valley of Flowers is to be watched with open mind.
It is not an easy film, mind you.Valley of Flowers is slow and I like slow movies -I cant bear Hollywood's fast cutting any longer.The only problem with valley of Flowers is that it is loaded with too many great ideas and concepts -many don't succeed.
Maybe it is an over-ambitious adventure from writer director Pan Nalin whose SAMSARA is my all time favorite film.
SAMSARA is in my list of "10 movies to watch before you die."Sorry, Valley of Flowers is not in that list but its a brilliant attempt towards unknown.
Pan Nalin is a rising sun of the east -in just two feature films he has proved talent worth of five features.
I agree, he is a filmmaker to watch out for.For Valley of Flowers; If you live on popular cinema then avoid it.
are we crazy to love this film?.
Being in St. Petersburg, in Russia of today, films like Valley of Flowers are really welcomed.
Like some other viewers I did find the film long.
It plays beyond two and half hours and apparently theatrical released version is shorter by some 30/40 minutes.I've immensely enjoyed this stunning film.
I'm happy to ignore the weaknesses in editing and acting but my full marks goes to its daring originality, innovative theme and unexplored locations.Somehow, the film compelled me to return to the cinema for a second viewing.
Second time, to my surprise, I enjoyed the film even more.
And I did not even find it longer.Personally, I have not heard about this director or seen any of his earlier films but one thing is certain that his command on the craft of film-making is of top level.
His grasp of cinematic styles and sound design shows sensitive and perceptive mind he posses.He truly masters the valley of silence sequence in the film.
And manages to keep the spectators on the edge of their seat.Another great achievement is "time walk" sequence, creation of the character of Yeti also deserves a special mention.Two Ushnas are Devin and sexy.
The last image of Yeti's feet taking a "time walk" but in the opposite direction -the nature's balance is restored- is one of the most satisfactory and subtle end in recent cinematic history.Like others, I fail to understand why no one is talking about this film?
Thus I would only add that Nalin has played with very dangerous theme and cinematic structure; he comes out as truly talented director, a filmmaker with vision.But these days the film journalism and criticism is not a pleasant place to be.
It is often short sighted and fails to see a great talent behind each work.My curiosity lead me to spend days and weeks to get hold of some of the remarkable films made by Pan Nalin prior to SAMSARA.When Pan Nalin was barely 20 years of age, he made breathtaking 20 minute short fiction titled KHAJURAHO.
Whether we like it or not a director was born that day.Apparently Nalin made many silent shorts between the age of 16 to 20 but KHAJURAHO was the first film he was able to complete.
I could not track any of his earlier works.Later, Nalin and his crew put their lives in danger when they went to shoot NAGAS, a documentary on wildest of tribe of North-Eastern India.
I was surprised to read some negative criticism on the Net about recent works of Pan Nalin.
Valley of Flowers is his (only) second feature!!!
were like???I am not hear to defend Pan Nalin, whoever he maybe, but filmmakers in General.
First and Second and even third movies of film directors are often like Soparano Singers shaping the color of his/her voice.
They will master melodies which will move you to tears -if not you have a right to massacre them!Filmmaker like Pan Nalin, if they were in Hollywood making English language movies, they would have got much better attention.We should remember how hard it is to make an original work of cinema in Asia or Africa.
Often you are not only struggling to make the film of your dream but also trying to feed the family of fifteen at same time!Someone like Pan Nalin are gifted to give us a meaningful entertainment.
Nalin has proved his talent for excellent screen writing with both SAMSARA and VALLEY OF FLOWERS.Directors like Pan Nalin are truly "International Director" in the line of Inarritu or Meirelles; They make the new cinema, new entertainment and new world we live in - a most fascinating place to be -enjoy and celebrate the life the way it is and not the way you are..
I heard about this film more than a year ago but didn't get around to watching it until last week.
The first thing that stands out about this movie is Pan Nalin's superb direction and breathtaking cinematography, which depicts the 19th century Himalayas like never before in the first half of the film.
On the other hand, the second half of the film, which takes place in modern-day Tokyo, doesn't have such a great cinematography but the storyline moves along at a much better pace, leading up to a hard-hitting and very touching ending.8/10.
But to my surprise the film grabbed my attention, than slowly my mind mysteriously...
as it turned poetic and touching -I was in the VALLEY OF FLOWERS, not wanting to go out and face the French arrogance...It is almost meaningless to try to ascertain any scientific or cultural logic beneath the surface of this allegorical story inspired from Alexandra David Neel's work.
Such hairsplitting will only make you lose the merit of this work.The film commences in early 19th Century in the Himalayas, a gang of bandits wait for their attack.
Now begins a great love story as they go on pillaging silk route...
I will not reveal all but finally two centuries later, ends in Tokyo of today.There are many themes which touches all of us, the film remains universal and will surely strike US audience with its magical spell.
Imagine 2 centuries ago the Grand Canryon, a group of outlaws attack Navajo or Hopi Indians, One of the Outlaw falls in love with a mysterious Indian girl.
cut to modern day NYC where our hero is 197 years of age!!!!
Use your imagination and you will see this will make a superb remake about love, longing and death.
But that is the proof, there are rare movies in the world today which can inspire you or fire up your imagination.
Do not miss Valley of Flowers, mind you it is not a perfect film, it has it weaknesses.
Valley is also a philosophical journey through the ideas of life, love, loss, and hope.Valley of Flowers provokes something very human out of its viewers.
Director succeeded in holding audience attention till the end, even though length of the movie is very long but i never felt bored or off track at any point.
I really feel this movie deserves better promotion world wide.
Although I wouldn't go as far as the previous reviewer who ranked "Valley of Flowers" as low as "1", I too was very disappointed in a film that had so much going for it: great locations, beautiful cinematography and sound, and an obvious creative vision.It's the latter that should have been reined in.
What starts out as an epic fable (the mystery girl and the bandit) turns into a metaphysical morality tale (throw in the "Yeti" character) and then morphs into a sci-fi fantasy (let's leap ahead a few hundred years and cross Asia from India to Japan in the process).
Somebody (you'd think the film's backers) would have said something to the writer/director in the development phase.Apparently, no one was paying attention.
I haven't seen any other work from this director, but I hope that next time around he's able to sustain a story with an emotional arc without resorting to narrative acrobatics..
I watched this film at its international premiere in Delhi a month or so back.
i was personally very excited at the thought of a pan-Asian cast, a storyline that ran through centuries, a mix of Indian sensibilities with an international aesthetic...by the middle of the film, i couldn't wait to get out of the hall!
this is a film that fails to hold your interest beyond the excellent production design.i haven't watched samsara..
Finished this movie tonight, I have been Himalayas 3 years ago, and spend the whole great week there.
The breathtaking landscape reminded me again the good time I have been stay there, the magic story made the movie and the place much more mysterious and attractive.
However, honestly speaking, the last half of the movie, the scene in Japan, did make me pretty disappointed, which is different with the style of the whole movie; I was looking forward to seeing more fantastic polt when time came to modern society, their love looks weak and fake in this big city, but it ends without expectation; I felt like ate an delicious cake, choked suddenly.Anyway, I might be back Himalayas next year, this movie made me miss the mountain and air there..
Rarely balanced and mind and heart challenging.The two characters seem like playing Gods games.
Going against the gods stealing and robbing spiritual gems to live and keep the love they have.