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March 7, 2005
An Evening of Drama
At the conclusion of the Baramati conference sessions Saturday evening, the organizers of the conference treated us to a viewing of the movie Shwaas, which was perhaps the most depressing movie I've seen since Schindler's List. The plot: A village boy from Maharashtra and his grandfather travel to The Big City at the urging of their local doctor. They have an appointment with an "Onco Specialist," which doesn't mean anything to them; they just know he is a good doctor and he will know how to treat the boy's failing eyesight.
The grandfather soon learns that the boy has bilateral retinal blastoma, an aggressive eye cancer that will kill him if they don't operate in a matter of days. The problem is that the operation would require removing both of the eight-year-old's eyes. The first half of the movie deals with the grandfather, doctor and social worker agonizing over who is going to break the bad news to the boy, and the second half the audience gets to agonize over the grandfather's indecision as to whether to allow the surgery and take away the boy's eyesight or allow him to die with his vision intact.
The movie had its moments; there were well-done flashback scenes to life in their village, a lush ocean-side paradise where everyone is happy, the coconuts are plump, and the cows' udders overflow with delicious milk. Also, the film did an excellent job at capturing the fear and frustration of an uneducated, illiterate grandfather having to deal with modern healthcare for the first time, including hospital paperwork, strict appointment schedules, and doctors who always seem like they'd rather be doing something else than curing your grandson. However, watching the movie unfold and the struggle the grandfather and the boy go through, including their eventual decision, was quite difficult. There is nothing more unpleasant to watch than a young boy screaming and fighting as he's given MRI scans, hypodermic injections and other procedures. And in the end, you just can't avoid the fact that a decision has to be made. There are several moments in the film that were quite poignant, but still, it was emotionally exhausting to watch, particularly when you can hear a sizable minority within the audience sobbing their eyes out. (Sorry, no pun intended.)
When the movie ended, everyone walked out in silence. Meanwhile, those participants who skipped the movie were lounging under the stars, enjoying their Indian buffet and desserts with a perfect breeze keeping them cool. I came out to the buffet and had a few spoonfuls of banana soufflé and half a piece of naan. For some reason I lost my appetite. -andy
Posted by acarvin at March 7, 2005 5:01 PM
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