Mahesh Dattani's Final Solution

Hello readers, this blog is an assigned task by Vaidehi Hariyani Ma’am. This deals with Mahesh Dattani’s play and a movie ‘Final Solutions’, it answers the various assigned questions.

FINAL SOLUTIONS (1993)

Mahesh Dattani

Mahesh Dattani, born on 7 August 1958 is an Indian director, actor, playwright and writer. He was born in Bangalore to Gujarati Parents. He is the forest Indian playwright in English to be awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award for his remarkable contribution to the world of drama and is also awarded for his book of plays, Finals solution and other plays.

His various Works are-

Where There's a Will (1988)

Dance Like a Man (1989)

Bravely Fought the Queen (1991)

Final Solutions (1993)

Do The Needful

On a Muggy Night in Mumbai (1998)

Seven Circles Round The Fire (Radio play for BBC) (Seven Steps around the Fire) (1998)

30 Days in September (2001)

The Girl Who Touched the Stars (2007)

Brief Candle (2009)

Where Did I Leave My Purdah (2012)

The Big Fat City (2012)

His critically acclaimed works include Where There’s a Will, Dance Like a Man, Tara, Bravely fought the Queen, Final Solutions, Night Queen, and Thirty Days in September.

Dattani's approach is not only to just raise questions that exist in contemporary Indian society but to think about the best possible solution for these problems and try to recognize the identity of the marginalized class in society.

Final Solution

बटने का दर्द कहने से कम हो ता है क्या? 

फर्क रंगों में तलाशो तो अच्छा है, पैदाइशी में फर्क होता है क्या?

-Final Solutions (Zee5 2019)

The play Final Solutions, written by Mahesh K. Dattani discusses the theme of communal riots, hatred and bitterness of Hindus and Muslims against each other, social vision, social exclusion. The plot is set in Gujarat (after the 2002 Riots). The communal hatred is at peak. problems of communalism and gender, class and caste discrimination found everywhere and every time in the contemporary Indian society.

Final Solutions revolves around a Hindu family that gives refuge to two Muslim boys during a communal riots. Hardika, Ramnik Gandhi, Bobby and Javed are important characters in the play, In this play Two Muslim boys, Javed and Bobby (Babban) take refuge in the house of a Hindu businessman, Ramnik Gandhi while a Communal riots rage outside.

What is the significance of the title ‘Final Solutions’?

Final Solutions talks about the communal riots of Hindu and Muslim community. The play aptly shows the Hindu family which is trying to help Muslim boys but they are afraid of their community. Ramnik, calling himself a liberal tries to help Muslim boys but in the raged conversation between them we realize that somewhere Ramnik is trying to wash or balance his or his family’s mistake done in past where because of him a Muslim family had to suffer and face loss. Ramnik knew that Muslims are not bad while the female of the family felt that unpleasant happened in the past was because of Muslims and so they couldn't trust the Muslim boys but later in the end truth was revealed. We realize that here no one is the be blamed. There is always a powerful person who is benefited by this type of riots. And today all this has reached a level where we don't have a solution to stop it. The title can be said to be reversible or communal. Reading the title one might think it will give a solution, a Final Solution but we realize there is no Final Solution to the various communal riots in this world.

Do you think Mahesh Dattani’s ‘Final Solutions’ makes any significant changes in society?

The theme of the play Final Solutions is to highlight human weaknesses, selfishness, avarice and opportunism. Woven into the play are the issues of class and communities and the clashes between traditional and modern life style and value systems. I cannot surely say if Mahesh Dattani's' ‘Final Solutions' have made or is making any significant changes or not because even today we are seeing the riots in the society and various issues based on Hindu- Muslim Community issues. We can assume that perhaps in subsequent times readers will grasp its morals and will understand the real reason and story behind the communal riots in society and it will bring significant changes in society.

How are the beginning and the end of the movie? Do you feel the effect of communal disturbance in the movie?

The narration in the movie oscillates between past and present. The movie begins with female protagonist Daksha (whose name is changed after marriage to Hardika) reading her diary at an older age. She is confused about what to write and comes to a point to write something which is big and notable for the world. And she begins with August when the nation got its independence and this brought her to the remembrance of communal riots in the nation that happened because of partition. And in this partition she lost her father. She recollected how she and her mother were holding the Krishna murti and hoping for her father to return but he didn't return.

Moving towards the end of the movie, the truth gets revealed to Hardika/ Daksha that Zarina’s Family (Muslim Community) was not at fault. It was her father- in - law and husband who tried to destroy Zarin’s father’s shop and bought it at half price. The root cause of all this happening and lack of friendship from Zarin’s side was also the Hindu- Muslim Communal riots.

Here we can see the effect of communal riots in the beginning and ending of the movie.

The movie comes up with many different symbols and colors. Write about any two symbols which caught your attention. What does it signify?

Mahesh Dattani’s film ‘Final Solutions', latest adaptation on ZEE5 platform of his 1993 work ‘Final Solutions’ has one of the best cinematography. It has wonderfully used the colors, chorus and symbols in the movie. There are various symbols like, Chair, Photo frame, saffron, green and white color, diary, Pooja bell, Taqiyah (Muslim cap), Krishna, singers and songs, and fire. According to question we will discuss to symbols-

1. Photo in Hardika’s room- The photo was of her favorite singer who was Pakistani, Noor Jahan. And the song she sang mostly was

Jawan hai mohabbat

Haseen hai zamana

Lutaya hai dil ne

khushi Ka khazana

This frame of Muslim singer in Hindu house suggest that how the nation was one before partition. Everyone used to celebrate each other’s art and enjoy it but with the time and because of partition the differences began. The frame also symbolized the deep love of Hardika/ Daksha for music and her dream of being a singer.

2. Diary- diary comes as a symbol of past and present. It also suggests an ambition of women to make her voice reach to everyone. Hardika began to write a diary with an idea of how larger society will read and what type things should be shared with them. Diary also came out as a friend and a secret keeper for Daksha/ Hardika. In the movie and also in the novel diary is a vehicle which takes us to the past and the present.

3. Colors- the Movie makes use of colors very aptly it is a play performed in a traditional light with the use of modern techniques and method. Chorus is wonderfully used in the play as an observer, narrator, voice of conscience and in times of blood-lust, participants. Dattani uses the chorus to directly address the audience and help them visualize the action. And the lights on chorus and the props color used by the chorus without the use of words clearly suggest whose ideas are shared or displayed by them. It can also be a satire on owning a color in the name of religion. Saffron- Hindu, Muslim- Green.

Is Ramnik a liberal thinker? If yes then why? If not then why?

Literal meaning of liberal is willing to respect or accept behavior or opinions different from one's own; open to new ideas. Here in the movie various times we see that Ramnik Gandhi is trying to be a liberal thinker and wants to help Javed and Bobby. He gives them shelter in his house, safeguarding from the mob instead of his conservation wife, Aruna. Ramnik’s character grows as a sympathetic person and as a viewer we also love him, thinking him to be rational. But when the arguments begin between Javed and Ramnik we realize that somewhere Javed is having a strong point like when he said u r helping cause you are in majority and you have power to help us we (Muslims) are ‘bichara’ poor and disabled. And later when Javed’s character grows we realize that it was his childhood trauma who constructed him to be a part of riots and we as a community are to be blamed for the happenings with Javed. After knowing about Javed, Ramnik forcibly wanted to give him a job. In between he also says, “yahi to ek liberal person karta hai na”. Which shows he was trying to be good and act like a liberal. Also when Javed says something Ramnik directly points out about the whole Muslim community which shows that in his mind there difference between both te communities and he hasn't accepted the community but is trying to balance his sins, what was done by his father and grand father. So after reading Ramnik's fully grown character of Ramnik we cannot consider him to be a Liberal thinker.

Does education make any difference? Comment with the reference to the women characters.

In this movie we have four women. Daksha (young Hardika) and Zarine, Hardika (grandmother), Aruna and Smita (Tasneem). This work has a wonderful symbol or diary writing which directly suggests the level of education in women in that period. Daksha/ Hardika was a literate and that character was really indulges in Muslim community which an be seen through her song and singer interest and also his love for Zarine. She was hugely interested in having friendship with Zarine and the same things are seen in Smita, her granddaughter. But as the society has moved further by two generations we find that she has a Muslim best- friend. Smita is studying in college but unlike Hardika she didn't had to go against family to have friendship with Muslim girl. And she could also take her own stand. The difference grew in society can be clearly seen in these two characters. On the other hand, Aruna is a so-called ideal Hindu woman. We don't see glimpses of education in her character. Majority of the time she is seen doing pooja or veneration of Lord Krishna. And she is the one who feels touchable towards Muslims and these types of character traits are also noted in Gajju’s Hardika's Mother- in -law's description by Hardika herself. So here we can conclude that yes education does make a difference in the way of looking towards society.

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