The Blue Umbrella (2005 film)

The Blue Umbrella is a 2005 Indian drama film based on the novel The Blue Umbrella (1980) by Ruskin Bond. It was directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and starred Shreya Sharma and Pankaj Kapur in lead roles. The music was by Bhardwaj and lyrics were penned by Gulzar.

The Blue Umbrella
Theatrical release poster
Directed byVishal Bhardwaj
Produced byRonnie Screwvala
Vishal Bhardwaj
Written byVishal Bhardwaj
Abhishek Chaubey
Minty
Based onThe Blue Umbrella by
Ruskin Bond
StarringPankaj Kapoor
Shreya Sharma
Deepak Dobriyal
Music byVishal Bhardwaj
CinematographySachin Kumar Krishnan
Edited byAarif Shaikh
Distributed byUTV Motion Pictures
Release date
  • 12 October 2005 (2005-10-12) (Pusan International Film Festival)
  • 10 August 2007 (2007-08-10) (India)
Running time
92 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Budget₹ 2,00,00,000
Box office₹ 36,00,000 (loss)

Plot

The story is set in a small village near Banikhet, Himachal Pradesh and revolves around a nine-year-old girl[1] named Biniya, who lives with her mother and elder brother, and the village's only shopkeeper, Nandakishore "Nandu" Khatri. One day while herding her family cows, Biniya comes across a blue-colored Japanese umbrella belonging to a group of tourists. She takes a liking to the umbrella and trades her bear claw necklace, Yantra, to the Japanese tourists in exchange for it. Biniya's mother scolds her for this, since the bear claw necklace is considered to be auspicious and bring good luck. However, everyone in the village is amazed by the beauty of the umbrella and Biniya acquires a celebrity-like status. This invokes the jealousy of some people, especially Khatri, who covets for such an umbrella but finds himself unable to buy one due to its high cost. He tries to buy Biniya's umbrella from her but she refuses.

Khatri's shop boy, Rajaram, offers his help in stealing the umbrella in exchange for an increased salary. In a pasture, Binya finds her umbrella missing and becomes heartbroken, accusing Khatri of stealing it. Khatri's shop is searched but the umbrella is not found. Due to this humiliation, Khatri pledges to buy his own such umbrella and soon acquires a similar one in red, which he claims is from Delhi. The center of attraction in the village then shifts from Biniya to Khatri. As a gesture of goodwill to restore pride, the villagers nominate Khatri to be the president at an upcoming village wrestling competition. Biniya continues her investigation and learns that Khatri's umbrella was actually sent by a textile dyer from a nearby town, Banikhet. She accompanies the village policeman to Banikhet to find out the truth. At the same time, Khatri is presiding over the competition when it starts raining and the red dye from the umbrella is washed off, revealing Khatri to be the thief. Due to his theft and lying, Khatri is boycotted by the village.

Post-boycott, Khatri's life becomes miserable as no one visits his shop and even his accomplice Rajaram abandons him. Biniya sympathies with Khatri and decides that he is the real owner of umbrella. She willingly gives the umbrella to Khatri, who is then accepted back into the village.

Cast

Critical response

The Blue Umbrella received positive reviews, including Hindustan Times writer Khalid Mohamed who describes it as a child's confection 'with passages of charm, visual aplomb and lively performances.'[2] The acting of Pankaj Kapur is noted in particular.[3]

Awards

Soundtrack
#TrackSinger(s)
1Aasmani ChhatriUpagna Pandya
2BarfaanSukhwinder
3Biniya The Warrior PrincessInstrumental
4Chutti HaiUpagna Pandya
5Evil LurksInstrumental
6Nandu The KingInstrumental
7PangaUpagna Pandya
8Rise Above The SkyInstrumental
9TesooUpagna Pandya
10The ArrivalInstrumental
11The Blue UmbrellaInstrumental
12The ChashInstrumental
13The DesertInstrumental
14The Sky In My HandInstrumental

References
  1. An irresistible Blue Umbrella
  2. Mohamed, Khalid (10 August 2007). "'Review: Blue Umbrella". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  3. Masand, Rajeev. "'Review: Blue Umbrella will transport you to another world". movies that matter. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
  4. "53rd National Film Awards" (PDF). Directorate of Film Festivals.
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