Chandraprakash Dwivedi Says Manoj Bajpayee’s Pinjar Is ‘Still Part Of Discussions In Academic Circles’ After 21 Years – EXCLUSIVE (Image credit: X)
Pinjar is a harrowing pre-Partition saga authored by Amrita Pritam on which an Indian woman is abducted and raped by a Pakistani. The two subsequently fall in love. A change of image for the femme fatale Urmila Matondkar as she transformed into a rural Punjabi woman during Partition who accepts her rapist as her husband. It was a tough role requiring gruelling levels of focus and dedication. Filmmaker Chandraprakash Diwedi was bringing Amrita Pritam’s story to the screen, and that’s a major move
. Urmila was up to the challenge.
Now, in an exclusive interaction with Zoom, Chandraprakash Dwivedi reveals that the film starring Manoj Bajpayee and Urmila Matondkar is still part of discussions in academic circles.
Read the excerpts here:
Your pre-partition film Pinjar is now 21?
I am happy that Pinjar stayed relevant and is still part of discussions in academic circles for its theme, the trauma of partition and violence against women.
Pinjar has an academic resonance far beyond weekend entertainment?
I am so glad you feel so. I have met many young students of social science and literature who discuss the film with me. Even in the year 2024, at a university students told me that I should have changed the climax of the film, where Puro(Urmila Matondkar) decides to stay with Rashid(Manoj Bajpayee). Many of them wanted Puro to return to India, her home. Also, many scholars have included Pinjar as part of their PhD thesis. This may be mostly due to the powerful story of Amrita Pritam and partly because of the impact of the film.
Pinjar dived deep into the Hindu-Muslim conflict during India’s partition. Adapted from Amrita Pritam’s Punjabi novel, which was praised for its powerful narrative, Pinjar bagged the National Film Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration, with Manoj Bajpayee earning a Special Jury Award for his performance.
