The story of ‘Chauranga’ is a gloomy, enigmatic and provocative look at caste oppression as seen through the eyes of a young innocent boy! The movie is an outburst that fumes out without deriving a solution to the problem it addresses. It blends the true story of a Bihar boy who was killed in 2008 for writing a love letter and the director’s own memories of growing up in an upper caste family in a small village in Hazaribagh, now in Jharkhand. But the director, Bikas Ranjan Mishra seems too distracted in his storytelling, which makes the film half-baked.

This movie might not be easy to relate to, as it is far removed from our realities, but it is to the debutant director Bikas Ranjan Mishra’s credit that the main protagonist's struggles and helplessness get to you. Not glossing over the truths, Mishra presents it as it is even as he explores a deeply disturbing parallel story of a sex-starved blind priest (Dhritiman Chatterjee). Only complaint is that the movie moves at a painfully slow pace at points. This not an easy watch, but definitely an important one.

Chauranga fuses the true story of a Bihar boy who was killed in 2008 for writing a love letter and the director’s own reminiscences of growing up in an upper caste family in a small village in Hazaribagh, now in Jharkhand. Mishra’s storytelling is sure-handed and even-keeled and, therefore, all the more telling in its impact. The director receives significant support from cameraman Ramanuj Dutta in creating sharp contrasts between a sleepy, seemingly innocuous community and its dark innards in which evil thrives and engulfs all. Mishra fills the 85-minute film with an air of sustained tension and foreboding, but he refrains from resorting to dramatic flourishes to heighten the plight of his protagonists. The tonal restraint of Chauranga is strengthened by the solid and sedate acting all around. If the seasoned Sanjay Suri, Tannishtha and Arpita are exceptional, the three principal younger actors hold their own with confidence and consistency. Watch Chauranga because it is honest, provocative and piercing. It announces the advent of a promising new voice in Mumbai’s independent cinema.

That caste remains one of the biggest scourges of modern-day India is worth repeating ad nauseam. And that is the burden of this debut feature from a director who knows where he is coming from. The trouble with ‘Chauranga’, despite its crucial subject, is that treads familiar ground without taking the tale too far. I liked the way the two Dalit adolescents keep up their spirits : no excessive drama, no whining. They know their place, and though both react to the oppression differently ( one with a kind of acceptance, the other with a flash of rebellion), both come off as naturals. There’s something about the priest which makes you shiver, especially when he pats his pet goat : an intriguing character you wish there was more of. What’s missing in between is a fluid narrative, which hobbles the film. Or is the choppiness down to cuts? Either way, this is a film which could have been more. 

Chauranga is a tirade that rants without deriving a solution to the problem it addresses. Despite being a well-intentioned story about the many 'isms' that plague India, the film's narrative fails to explore the dynamics of hierarchy politics that is the heart of the issue. Director Bikas Ranjan Mishra seems too distracted in his storytelling, which makes the film half-baked. You are never allowed to invest whole-heartedly in the characters. In this case, the viewer is reduced to being a mere spectator who is never entirely absorbed or overwhelmed by what plays out on screen. Atrocities on dalits in India is a subject that filmmakers have frequently attempted, but Chauranga lacks an opinionated voice. Chauranga is neither provocative nor skillful in its portrayal. Though its last scene ushers in a ray of hope to nullify the haunting gory glimpses from the film, it never soars high enough to affect you.