In Custody (1994)

In Custody is Ismail Merchant's beautiful retelling of Anita Desai's novel about the death of a language and a culture as reflected in the decline of one individual. Om Puri and Shashi Kapoor play men watching, with varying degrees of remorse and resignation, the death of the Urdu language, a language of poetry, erudition and courtliness. Shabana Azmi, as Nur's (Kapoor) second wife, a courtesan and singer of ghazals, is a bridge between what is passing and the rash future. Their performances are sensitive and subtle and quietly heartbreaking. The cinematography is exquisite, making the film visually rich and haunting. There are many strong performances, and the secondary characters are well-cast. The film is more theme-driven than plot-driven, so probably not suited to every taste. One of my very favorite Ivory-Merchant offerings.

Merchant Ivory movies are often about forgotten times , forgotten cultures and forgotten people. This one is no different. The ever dependable Om Puri plays an Urdu professor who attempts to document a dying but once grand urdu poet Nur (played convincingly by an obese Shashi Kapoor). Through his rather struggling attempt the story portrays the common hurdles which the language - lack of finance, poor understanding of technology and maybe all things modern, the complete ignorance of youth of the art and not to mention the petty selfishness of untalented people trying to hang on to what may be long gone The film as usual is beautifully art directed. The sets and settings take you right into old Muslim mohallas of a small city in MP. The performances of almost all are wonderful including an incredible outburst by Nur's second prostitute wife who wished she could have been a poet but couldn't due to the social class that she survives on. Its a poignant tale of subdued frustration which artists of dying arts often face.It also has some wonderful Urdu Poetry (a little like the more popular Sher o Shairi) A moving and poignant tale of decay, ambition and neglect.Highly recommended to Merchant Ivory, Om Puri and of course urdu fansMemorable quote " These electronic things electric fans, tape recorder are no good. They only confuse man more." - Poet Nur (Shashi Kapoor)

The Ivory-Merchant duo are known for their luxurious-looking films, the camera often caressing each fish-fork with the same love it displays for the protagonist. It's somewhat refreshing here to see Merchant without Ivory. Merchant's camera displays the same love for detail that the Ivory-Merchant duo's does, except that it is much grittier, caressing the protagonist's vomit with the same attention that it bestows upon his exquisite Jamewaar shawl. I refer to Shashi Kapoor as the protagonist, because he steals the role away from Om Puri. Om Puri plays the timid Deven, a college professor bent on interviewing his idol, the formerly grand but now-alcoholic Urdu poet, Nur. Shashi Kapoor is perfect as the obese, alcoholic, henpecked, decaying poet because his own appearance encapsulates this decay. Those who do not recognize him as the hero in scores of Bollywood films or in many early Ivory-Merchant productions will miss the subtlety of this cinematic reference, because Kapoor's own physical decay perfectly encapsulates the theme of decay that is central to the film. Shabana Azmi is as competent as ever, bringing a hint of feminism to her character's plagiarism of her husband's work, as well as highlighting the inherently masculinist nature of the poetry that confines a woman's role to the object of desire and nothing else.

This movie showcases the decline of a language and its effect on a people, i.e. the Muslims of India. A great movie with many comical elements, but an all pervasive sense of loss and decline permeates every scene of the movie as an idealist teacher searches for a lost litrery treasure.