Ijaazat

Released in 1983,Ijaazat is arguably Gulzar's finest film.

A formerly married couple Naseeruddin Shah and Rekha have a chance encounter in the waiting room of a desolate railway station on a rainy night. After the initial hesitation and awkwardness they start reminiscing and reflecting upon their married life. The story proceeds in flashback, which is deftly intercut with the real time of the night. In that sense it is an account of one night.

Through the flashbacks we learn how Naseer, a somewhat bohemian photographer living away from his village based guardian, has a passionate if tumultuous relationship with a fellow artist played by debutante Anuradha Patel. However it so turns out that he is forced to marry another woman Rekha. The rest of the flashback is about the way these three protagonists come to terms with the tricky situation. In the process we are treated to some authentic vignettes of modern middle class conjugal existence, and we learn the poignant fact that a misunderstanding causes the couple's ultimate and final separation.

As the night progresses we realise that the two still have a lot of regard for each other. The ambiguous nature of the couple's situation, formerly married but long separated, also allows the director to deftly juxtapose intimacy with formality in their interaction. In that sense it is a sensitively written script. The sindoor which Rekha is still wearing also plays up the ambiguity of the situation. Slowly but certainly the audience is prepared to desire and expect a patch up especially since Naseer's is the character who wins our empathy and he seems to want it too. But right at the climax we are jolted by the sudden appearance of Shashi Kapoor who as is soon revealed is Rekha's new husband.

Ijaazat is a cleanly made film which remains totally focused on the main characters and their plight. The overlapping of past with live action in the present is also cleverly done. But it remains restricted to that. There is little ambiguity between past and present, and the two are very clearly demarcated. No suggestions here about the tricky nature of memory, and how desire can inflect both our view of the past, and our view of the future. How memory is not just incidents or images from the past but a constant and fluid interaction between desire, aspiration and emotion. The flashback sequences could, with just a bit more deftness, have been used with greater ambiguity without committing their actuality--a stock feature of formulaic cinema where the scenario suddenly changes and only later is it revealed that it was a dream. But these are lines which Gulzar chooses to avoid, unconsciously perhaps. Yet, despite these misgivings it is indisputable that Ijaazat is one of the finest products to emerge out of the mainstream tradition in the nineteen eightees.

Gulzar (best lyricist), Asha Bhosle (best female singer) won National awards for the song 'Mera Kuchh Samaan' from Ijaazat.

Lyrics for the song:

Mera Kuchh saamaan tumhare paas pada hai
Saawan ke kucch bheeghey bheeghey din rakhey hain
Aur mere ek khat mein lipti raat padi hai
Wo raat bhujha do mera wo saamaan lauta doh

Ek akeli chatree mein jab aadhe aadhe bheegh rahe the
Aadhe sukhay aadhe geelay.. sukha to mein le aayee thi
Geela mann shayad bistar ke paas pada ho
Woh bhijhwa do..
Mera woh saamaan lauta do

Ek so sola chaand ki raatein, ek tumhare kaandhey ka til
Geeli mehndi ki khushboo, jhoot moot ke shikway kuch
Jhoot moot ke waadey bhi sabh yaad karaa doon
Sabh bhijwa do..Mera woh saamaan lauta do

Ek ijaazat dey do bus..
Jub isko dafnaoon gi..
Main bhi waheen so jaoon gi..
Main bhi waheen so jaoon gi...