Land Gold Women – Zan Zar Zameen

Before I begin with the main post, let me make it clear that this is not a film review, nor is it a critical evaluation or analysis of any sort. This is a bunch of feelings and thoughts that aroused in my heart and mind, after watching this film.

Land Gold Women, a much acclaimed film directed by Avantika Hari, and produced by Vivek Agrawal revolves around a story of a family that is caught between their traditions and values on one side and modern thoughts on another.

On the surface, it’s a film about the age-old conflict of old and new, of past and present, of elder ones and young ones, but the film was about much more than all this.

Have you heard about Honour Killing? Are you fully aware of what it is?

This film exposed this very evil in disguise.

Wikipedia plainly puts honour killing as “the homicide of a member of a family or social group by other members, due to the belief of the perpetrators that the victim has brought dishonour upon the family or community.”

But appallingly, it’s not as simple as that, and that’s where LGW comes into picture.

Through the fragments of flashback of Saira and her father, Nasir’s story and Nasir’s ghastly confessions in a frosty voice during his detention, the film rips apart this vile.

This is one film where you can’t sit back, relax and watch the story flowing; neither can you focus on the technical nitty-gritty that you usually don’t overlook being a media person.

In fact, it’s very difficult to concentrate on the film itself. Your mind automatically starts getting infringed with disturbing thoughts. You can’t sit there without questioning yourself, questioning the system, questioning the fate, questioning the faith.

A friend was shocked to know that the punishment for such gory offence is just 15 to 20 years. In fact, I suppose that was what Avantika too was upset about. But, I just couldn’t think straight after watching the film. While the end credits were rolling, my mind was trying to wriggle out of the numbness.

All I was thinking after watching LGW is how Saira, who represented every girl next-door, met such a turbulent end. Every second girl could relate to her (me being no exception). She had not even an ounce of doubt about her trust towards her father, and his love towards her. God forbid, if more girls start meeting their end like Saira, the world will have no faith in the strength of words like love and trust.


I reached home with muddled thoughts and slept, hoping that there won’t be any other Saira in this world.

Tute Sapne

सपनों को टुटते हुए देखा है हमने,

शायद इसीलिए कुछ खोने का डर नहीं लगता...

खोया तो खोएंगे मायुसी अब हम,

टुटे सपनों को जुड़ते वक़्त नहीं लगता...

Thought Sisters

Have you ever felt that you share exactly the same thoughts with somebody you don’t even know in person?

I did.

It may not be a very thought-provoking thought. A thought as simple as reading book while travelling is far better than dozing off to kill time (especially when we are travelling through the same old mundane urban roads) or as crazy as a few drops of spilled water is like a huge swimming pool for ants.

Whenever someone expresses or shares something that seems like a photo copy of my thoughts, I go through a weird roller coaster ride of emotions. I feel surprised, happy, awestruck, confused and introspective – all at one time.

And this is exactly what I felt when I read Sunday’s EYE – a weekly mag that comes with Indian Express. Nonita Kalra, the IE columnist and editor-in-chief of Elle India pounced on the reality shows of the day in her feature, ‘The Ugly Story’.

Now you must be thinking, today 99.99% of the population raves about the reality ruckus in some way or the other. What’s the big deal!

But, there is a big deal!

While talking about how reality TV is becoming like a road kill, she talked about a few shows most talked about – Big Boss (no other show has guts to overcome this one when it comes to being a mollycoddle of controversy), Top Chef, Hell’s Kitchen and Keeping up with the Kadarshians. She also debunked the ‘tribe of actors who spend their lives going from one reality show to another’, and how hysteria becomes inseparable like a pathetic endoparasite thriving on internal organs of the host creature.

But, in the midst of all these accusations and criticisms, one thing she wrote really made me feel like we are thought-sisters.

In her writing, she very beautifully appreciated the MasterChef Australia – my personal favourite reality show of the hour, despite of me not being a cooking-lover!

If given a chance to meet Ms. Kalra, all I would like to say is, “I agree with every single thought, ever single word, every single alphabet you wrote about the show. Here’s a toast for our Siamese-twins-like trains of thoughts running on parallel tracks!”

:)