Ghose beautifully directs 'Yatra'. He makes fine use of colour, camera-work (thanks to the mesmerizing cinematography) but he comes up with a very complex abstract screenplay. This is not a bad thing if the viewer is mature enough and has patience. I liked it and I'll be watching it again as I think it's understanding will improve with multiple viewing.
To start, 'Yatra' is so beautifully filmed! The scenes in Miss Lisa's house look just like painting canvases rich in colour. There are scenes where he makes less use of colour allowing it to reflect the thoughts and mood of the characters.
Ghose also tells the story of a simple man, Dasarath, who is a writer soon to win an award. His relationship with his wife, Smita may on the surface, look like a normal marriage but later we find out that thing's are a little more complicated. We see Smita excitedly showing Dasarath the marble turtle she just bought to add to her collection of turtles. She cleans them and takes good care of the delicate things. In a much later scene towards the end, one of the bigger marble turtle breaks into pieces as the maid was attempting to clean them.
On the other hand, Dasarath has a friendly relationship with the graceful Lajwanti. He is more open to her about his concerns and they have an understanding that exists as a kind of confidante. He loves to write and she loves to sing and dance. He sees her as a solace from the outside world. During a monologue in the award ceremony, he expresses his opinions on the corrupt world as it becomes more materialistic there's almost no place for art and back in his hotel room he imagines his son (who's a musician) fighting in some kind of riot, his daughter stuck in a call center job and the girl (who received him at the station) having sex in front of a camera surviving in the 'corrupt' society (full of sex, violence and easy meaningless jobs). Ghose also shows the change in time through Lajwanti's dances very cleverly. When Dasarath sees Miss Lisa's dance he realizes again that art is something that's losing its value in today's society as people are concerned with more materialistic things. Lajwantyi no longer performs the beautiful mujras. Instead she dances by shaking her hips to item numbers.
The ending is a little dramatic but I wonder what that symbolizes? A full closet is being taken towards sunset. While Dasarath is a real artist in this materialistic world and while Lajwanti has transformed to Miss Lisa who has long stopped practicing her traditional 'mujras' (even though she practices classical singing by herself) could that final scene symoblize the vanishing of art? Then there's Smita who values small material things like a marble turtle. But isn't that what everyone today is chasing? Material things? And coming back to the last scene, I think it symbolizes that art is vanishing rapidly in this material world.
Nana Patekar delivers one of his finest performances. Unlike his loud performances, here he's very subtle and downplays his part with dignity. Rekha plays her part with grace and she dances beautifully. Deepti Naval is brilliant. Supporting cast is adequate. The songs fit well with the screenplay.
As I watch the film in repeated viewing, I'll add more to this comment. But, I'd recommend it to those who like abstract cinema and it's a great movie to discuss.
