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Star cast: Deepti Naval, Rituparno Ghosh, Raima Sen.
What’s Good: The seamless screenplay; Deepti Naval’s performance.
What’s Bad: The lack of depth in the story; the slow pace; the predictable ending.
Verdict: Memories In March is strictly for lovers of Rituparno Ghosh’s films and art film fans.
Loo break: Anytime.
Watch or Not? Not really.
Shree Venkatesh Films’ Memories In March (English) is about a mother, Deepti Naval, coming to terms with her son’s death and his sexual orientation. Deepti Naval’s son has passed away in a car accident. She comes to Calcutta for his last rituals and to take back his belongings. While Deepti lives in Delhi, her son lived in Calcutta as he had a successful career in an advertising agency there. Her son’s colleague, Raima Sen, and his boss, Rituparno Ghosh, try to help her in the aftermath of the tragedy.
When Deepti, who hasn’t met her son since a long time, realises that her son was gay, and in love with Rituparno Ghosh, she is shocked. She blames Raima Sen at first, then Rituparno for seducing him. She also blames herself for not having gotten him treated earlier. Does she come to terms with him being gay? What troubles her more, her son’s death or his sexual orientation while he was alive?
Story and Screenplay – Memories In March Review
Rituparno Ghosh’s story is simple and the screenplay is seamless. Some of the scenes are so well-written that they seem like a page out of everyday life. However, since the film deals with just a few days in the mother’s life, there is nothing much to elaborate on. While Deepti Naval’s character is beautifully etched, the audience never gets to see her son or know what he was like. Rituparno’s dialogues, mostly in English but partly in Hindi and Bengali too, are witty; the sarcasm used by his character in the film is right on.
Star Performances – Memories In March Review
Deepti Naval’s acting is superb. She excels as the mother who has to deal with the sudden loss of her only child and who is grappling with the fact that he was gay. Her moments of trying to empathise with Rituparno Ghosh are beautiful. Rituparno’s acting is not consistent; he is average at times and very good at others. Raima Sen is okay.
Direction and Music – Memories In March Review
Sanjoy Nag’s direction is good but not memorable. Debojyoti Mishra’s music is repetitive in the beginning but gets better towards the end. Soumik Haldar’s cinematography is very good.
The Last Word
On the whole, Memories In March is a dull fare. Most of its dialogues being in English will further limit its already dim box-office prospects.
