After Life Goes On, Memories in March turned out to be the second English film (with spatterings of Bengali and Hindi) by an Indian director on the trot for me. Some might find similarities with Arekti Premer Galpo, given that both are based on gay relationships, and has the brilliant Bengali director Rituparno Ghosh in front of the camera rather than behind it; but suffice it to say, they are poles apart cinematically. Upon the tragic death of a young guy from Delhi, who was working in an ad-agency in Calcutta, his grief-stricken mother arrives in the city – only to find revelations about her son that leaves the conservative lady shell-shocked. Deepti Naval has given a powerful performance as the grieving mother who slowly comes to terms with the uncomfortable truths about her son, and ends up developing warm bonds with the intellectual Rituparno Ghosh (her deceased son’s “companion”) and the lovely Raima Sen (who had a crush for him). Debutante Sanjoy Nag’s assured direction has been ably complemented by the restrained and natural performances, and a wonderful, layered script by Rituparno. Though the movie, or Rituparno the actor, are nowhere as spellbinding as the his first venture in front of the camera, this melancholic, sensitive, nicely paced and superbly photographed human drama (filled with a host of memorable sequences) still remains a satisfying watch.
Director: Sanjoy Nag
Genre: Drama/Urban Drama/Psychological Drama
Language: English/Bengali/Hindi
Country: India