This award winning feature film is based on the true story of one of the largest industrial tragedies ever; often dubbed the “Hiroshima of Industrial Disasters”. The 1984 gas explosion at the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal killed over 16,000 people, and seriously affected the lives of tens of thousands more, even over twenty years on.
The tragedy is revealed in this film through the experiences of newlyweds Verma (a foreman at the Union Carbide plant), his wife Tara, and their friend Bashir. The film acquaints us with their daily lives, their beliefs, rituals and entertainment, showing very little of the actual factory early in the film. Instead, Mahesh Matthai allows the film time and space to build in emotion and intensity before moving on to events leading up to the disaster and reliving crucial moments of the gas leak.
The night of the tragedy, poison gas clouds from the Union Carbide factory enveloped an arc of over 20 square kilometres killing over 8,000 people in its immediate aftermath and causing multi-systemic injuries to over 500,000 residents. In case the neighbourhood community be "unduly alarmed", the siren in the factory had been switched off, adding to what would become an enduring disaster of immeasurable proportions.
The devastation left in the gas leak’s wake and the Union Carbide corporation’s refusal to accept responsibility are also depicted. The subject is sensitively handled, based on these real life events, making a powerful and gripping film from a first time director. The acting is strong and believable and the cinematography, by Matthai himself, is graceful and unobtrusive.
David Lynch lent his name to the presentation of this film, and is joined by Shankar, Ehsan and Lay having composed the music and some of the cast were reunited for the 2001 film “Monsoon Wedding”. The dialogue is in Hindi, with English subtitles throughout. Please note that there is some strong language and some scenes depicting the affects of the gas on people which children may find distressing. This film lasts 1 hour 38 and minutes.
