Ramchand Pakistani is derived from a true story concerning the accidental crossing of the Pakistan-Indian border during a period (June 2002) of extreme, war-like tension between the two countries by two members of a Pakistani Hindu family belonging to the ‘untouchable’ (Dalit) caste, and the extraordinary consequences of this unintended action upon the lives of a woman, a man, and their son.
The singular theme of Ramchand Pakistani is how a child from Pakistan aged eight years learns to cope with the trauma of forced separation from his mother while being held prisoner, along with his father in the jail of a country i.e. India, which is hostile to his own, while on the other side of the border, the wife-mother, devastated by their sudden disappearance builds a new chapter of her life, by her solitary struggle for sheer survival.
Belonging to one of the lowest castes in Hinduism (one of the “untouchables”), the family is also part of a small minority of Hindus in a country, which is the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, in which 97% of the people are Muslims. The boy and his father are held captive in India where, in contrast to Pakistan, the overwhelming majority of about 80% comprises of Hindus.
The film portrays the lives of a family that is at the bottom of a discriminatory religious ladder and an insensitive social system, which is nevertheless tolerant, inclusive and pluralist. The irony is compounded by the fact that such a family becomes hostage to the acrimonious political relationship between two neighbor-states poised on the brink of war.
This is possibly the first film post-1971 (after the loss of East Pakistan) in which the central characters of a Pakistani film are Pakistani Hindus. In a country where 97% of the people are Muslims, Hindus constitute only about 1.5% of the non-Muslim population.
Ramchand Pakistani is a human interest story set in South Asia but with universal appeal about a family that is at the bottom of social, religious and economic hierarchies, both by virtue of being non-Muslims in a predominantly Muslim society, and by being from the “untouchable” Dalit (Kohli) caste in the Hindu faith. Yet, the film’s theme and story promote secular, non-sectarian values.
This is also a story of a woman’s struggle for emotional security and survival in the face of great adversity — and a child’s coming of age well before time.
This is the first full-length feature film for cinema directed by a young Pakistani woman director, Mehreen Jabbar. Her work reflects a deep concern for the individual identity, rights and empowerment of women.
Nandita Das has convincingly played a lead role in the film as a Pakistani Hindu woman. One of India’s leading music directors, Debajyoti Mishra, has composed the background music and 4 background songs, 3 of which also feature the voice of one of the leading Indian woman singers, Ms Shubha Mudgal. A widely-acknowledged Indian film editor, Aseem Sinha has also co-edited the film with the Director.
Cast of Ramchand Pakistani:
Nandita Das – Champa
Rashid Farooqui – Shankar
Syed Fazal Hussain – Ramchand
Maria Wasti – Kamla
Noman Ijaz – Abdullah
Navaid Jabbar – Ramchand (Older)
Adarsh Ayaz – Moti
Farooq Pario – Suresh
Adnan Shah – Sharma
Shahood Alvi – Superintendent Asif
Atif Badar – Lalu
Zhalay Sarhadi – Lakhshmi
Saleem Mairaj – Vishesh
Master Yaqoob – Baba Gull
Karim Bux Baloch – Lateef Baloch
Saif E Hasan – Landlord Middle Man
Hasan Niazi – Deepak
Iqbal Motilani – Mullah
Rao Salim – Indian Border Security Force Interrogator
Sajjid Shah – Indian Border Security Force Inspector
Anis Chachar – Pakistan Rangers Captain
Asghar Katchi – Indian Border Security Guard
CREW of Ramchand Pakistani:
Directed By: Mehreen Jabbar
Written And Produced By : Javed Jabbar
Screenplay: Mohammad Ahmed
Cinematographer: Sofian Khan
Editors: Aseem Sinha, Mehreen Jabbar
Music Director: Debajyoti Mishra
Associate Producer: Mariam Mukaty
Creative Consultant: Sonia Rehman Qureshi
Sound Recording & Sound Design: Jesse James Mailings
Lyrics: Anwar Maqsood
Singers: Shuhba Mudgal Shafqat Amanat Ali
Production Designer: Aqeel Ur Rehman
First Assistant Director: Mohammed Ahmed
Second Assistant Director And Script Assistant: Farrukh Faiz
Second Assistant Director: Saboor Haider
Third Assistant Director: Nadir Arbab Nadir
Third Assistant Director: Najeeha Rehman Qadri
Production Managers: Shakeel Rana, Mohammad Rahimutoola
Production Assistants: Sultan Khan, Naheed Malik
Make-Up: Syed Mumtaz Hussain, Faisal Khan
Head Gaffer: Nina Kuhn
Best Boy: Habibullah
Hd Technician: Josef Shafer
Still Photographer: Kohdayar Marri
Behind The Scenes Videographer: Sameer Usmani
Di Facility: Postworks, New York
Senior Di Producer: Mathew Reedy
Online Editor: Savvas Paritsis
Di Colorist: Scot Olive
Re-Recording Mixer: Patrick Donahue
Special Acknowledgement: Jeremiah Hawkins
Ramchand Pakistani, movie review