Rating: ★★★ ½ Studio: Sailee Dream Ventures Producer: Manali (Sudha) Sawant Director: Manohar Sarvankar Writer: Tejaswini D. Pandit Music: Dr. Saleel Kulkarni Cast: Samir Dharmadhikari, Ishaa Koppikar, Suhas Palshikar, Tejashree Walavalkar, Meghana Vaidya, Rajan Shirsatkar, Rajan Joshi, Manjusha Godse Movie Review by: Ulhas Shirke

The famous lyrics of P. Svalaram “‘Dev Jari Majh kadhi Bhetala, Maag have te maag Mhanala; Mhanen Prabhu de Majhe Saare , Jeevan Deyi Mama balala…”. (i.e. If I meet God and he asks me what I want; I will promptly say Oh Almighty! give my whole life to my child) come to your lips. Mothers are always like that, who wish everything for their little ones, no matter, whether they have to sacrifice their own life. Latest Marathi film, ‘Maat’ is the best example of a mother sacrificing her glamour filled profession, to focus on the upbringing of her little daughter, while her own husband deserts her.

Today, Marathi films are taking up more and more social issues. ‘Maat’ is based on the novel of of Tejaswini Dinesh Pandit, which has been converted into screenplay by Sambhaji Sawant. The story of this film revolves around a young ambitious couple Ajay and Reema Deshmukh (Samir Dharmadhikari & Ishaa Koppikar) and their unsteady relationship. Reema is a successful model and beauty queen, while Ajay is a renowned structural engineer, whose wish is to make his new born daughter Mini like him.

The trouble begins, when Ajay is on a long tour. During Diwali celebrations, Reema notices that Mini cannot hear. When taken to the doctor, she is detected to be a ‘Deaf mute’ child. After Ajay returns home, he is not ready to accept the reality. He hates his little daughter and starts keeping away from his family. His own mother ( Meghana Vaidya) is not happy with her son’s attitude and stands firmly behind her daughter in law, to look after the needs of little Mini. When Mini becomes 9 year old (Tejashree Walavalkar) , she develops lot of interest in the game of Chess, besides taking active interest in drawing and karate.

Reema , who has already given up her glamour filled career, to focus her attention on her daughter, seeks help from a whimsical but talented former Chess player (Suhas Palshikar) , to teach her talented daughter. Moral support comes from common friends of the couple, who boost the confidence of little Mini. Time comes, when Mini becomes national chess champion and challenges the ‘Boss One’ Robot in US. But, after facing a tough round, She insists on her father’s physical presence, next day. And the deciding round turns out to be a stimulating climax of the film.

Director Manohar Sarvankar (Mumbaicha Dabewala’ fame) has given a lot of emotive touch to this film with sequence of events, to show how tough it is for a mother, to accept challenges to encourage her physically challenged child to win against all odds. He has shown the mother offering her full time to her daughter, in spite of the presence of her mother in law at home. The best thing about her character, he has shown is to make her daughter believe that her father is busy with his work abroad and cannot find time for the family . She also shown sending e mails to her using her husbands name.

However, his idea to show a TV channel making an appeal to readers to sponsor the little Girl’s trip to US looks odd, as the identity of her ‘well to do’ parents is revealed. A well educated Ajay’s knowledge about deafness, has been shown very weak. Barring few such drawbacks, this sensible film has been presented very well, with more attention on convincing locations, costumes and realistic studio sets. Dr. Salil Kulkarni’s Music and the background music supported by suitable sound effects match very well. Bollywood cinematographer Nirmal Jani has captured the close ups and outdoor scenes skilfully, clearly displaying his expertise.

In the role of Ajay, Samir Dharmadhikari has been able to present a selfish husband. He looks a perfect choice for that role. Ishaa Koppikar, who makes her debut in Marathi, has done very well, expressing her emotions during difficult scenes; but she will have to work little more on her fluency, if she has to face competition from other Bollywood stars entering in Marathi. Her presence in this film, is a gift to Marathi films. In the role of Mini, Tejashree Walawalkar has given a brilliant performance, in spite of limitations on her speech. She has proved that the expressions and body language are all that important for a good performer. The climax scene is all hers, as she makes you shed tears. Meghana Vaidya plays a sensible mother of Ajay, with perfect understanding.

Among the other artistes in supporting roles, Suhas Palshikar steals the show. Through his whimsical nature, he has been able to bring some humour in this otherwise serious screenplay . Suruchi Adarkar also invites the attention. She has played the role of Ajay’s close friend with a lot confidence. One wonders, as to why this television actress has not received good roles in Marathi films. Rajan Shirsatkar, Rajan Joshi, Manjusha Godse offer good support through their respective roles. It was good to see former Chess Champions Praveen and Bhagyashree Thipsey in guest appearance. There is also one small scene involving Late Anand Abhyankar. ‘Maat’ has thus turned out to be a sensible film, with good performances and finest technical support. All the chess lovers, shouldn’t miss this film.