Both critics as well as viewers should remember that it is primarily the subject which decides the treatment of a film. From this yardstick, it is quite logical to state that light subjects need light handling and serious subjects necessitate serious handling. However, with its predominant focus on amusement and laughter, Bhutanese/Indian film "Vara: A blessing" makes complete mockery of the plight of Devdasis, a serious theme which it was supposed to tackle with greater responsibility and seriousness. Apart from laughter which is quite incongruous for a film about women who are exploited as they are wedded to gods, the usage of English and subtitled English also turns out to be a bane as Indian actors are unable to convey their 'true emotions' in a language which is much too foreign to them. This is one reason why there is an overabundance of verbosity even in scenes where silence could have turned out to be a better choice. Although there is stupendous richness of colors and enthralling dances including an imitation of a Bollywood song played on television, at no point of time, Khyntse Norbu's film gets serious. If getting mindless applause and irrational giggling from immature youngsters is a true sign of a film's success then "Vara : A blessing" has achieved its objective. Lastly, it needs to be stated that after this disastrous film, it can be declared that monks are not fit to make films. Hence, Khyntse Norbu should gracefully retire from filmmaking by confining cinema to cinema professionals who can do better justice to films and serious themes.
