Ship of Theseus: Understanding Duality
2012 — when I was thinking movies are just for entertainment and money-spinners for producers, while I was watching all the mass/commercial Telugu movies, a gem called “Ship of Theseus” released. Although it won a National Award for Best Feature Film, I stumbled upon this movie very recently, during the lockdown.
Disclaimer: This content contains spoilers. Continue reading only if you have seen the movie.
Watch the movie here:
In one of our courses in college (circa March’20), we got an assignment to watch ‘Right here, Right now,’ a short film made by Anand Gandhi. Soon after watching the movie, I read his wiki page, browsed social media handles, and came to know that he’s the creative director to the much acclaimed “Tumbbad.”
Let me give you context before writing on his National award-winning debut. He made a short film called ‘Right here, Right now’ in two single shots that contrast the mood of the characters. Mind you, this short film is shot in live locations and you’ll be amazed while watching this film.
For a student who’s bored with regular subjects, the courses having a tinge of inclination with cinema are exciting. In a course called ‘Psychology of Well Being,’ we were told to watch this movie and write about the causal effect in the final exam (hence, I got a good grade in this course).
Okay, enough of the intro! Let’s get into the movie now.
Ship of Theseus is a thought experiment that raises the question of whether an object that has had all of its components replaced remains fundamentally the same object (source: Wikipedia).
This movie revolves around the stories of three main characters — Aaliya, a visually impaired photographer who’s awaiting her eye surgery, Navin, a materialistic stockbroker who just had a kidney transplant, and Maitreya, a monk who fights legally against animal abuse by the Pharma industries.
With the premise set, the movie explores the journeys of these three characters, with no connection to each other in the beginning. Aaliya organizes her photo exhibition with all the pictures she loved capturing. Navin gets discharged from the hospital but goes to the hospital to get her grandmother admitted after she falls from steps. Maitreya, on the other hand, files a case against the Pharma companies for animal abuse for testing medicines on them.
Aaliya undergoes a cornea transplant, but she doesn’t get satisfied with the photos she captures after getting her vision.
Navin learns that the kidney of one of the patients (Shankar) is sold for money without Shankar’s knowledge (remember Vedam by Krish) and decides to help him after a brief open talk with his grandmother, who is an activist.
Maitreya is diagnosed with a liver ailment and his doctor and well-wishers advise him to take medicines and to undergo a transplant.
The story gets interesting with the revelation of the duality of characters. Aaliya hates her newfound sense of sight because she dislikes the resulting photography.
Maitreya struggles for days without taking the medicines (because they are produced by the same Pharmaceuticals which abuse animals) and his condition deteriorates to the state which he can’t bear and undergoes a liver transplant.
Shankar, who mistakes Navin for the kidney stealer, confronts him at an eatery when Navin tries to show empathy by helping Shankar financially. Shankar affirms that he wants his kidney back.
Shankar’s story is the reflection of what I call the irony of humans when he escapes from Navin after getting assurance of huge money (to him) by the person who took his kidney.
This anthology of three stories connects in the end where they attend an event organized by the NGO who helped our three characters and others for their organ transplant.
Coming to the cinematography, Pankaj Kumar used frames that convey the story, especially in the scenes of Maitreya, where every frame looks so fresh and makes us feel as if we are with him in the scene.
The DI and cinematography team gave us a film that is aesthetically appealing. The music enhanced the scenes, particularly when Maitreya suffers a lot while sleeping.
I loved the film, though slow at times to suck you into the story, the characters, dialogues, and the way it reflects our human tendency are good to watch. Anand Gandhi builds the story on basic human qualities such as anger-happiness, greed, and dichotomy.
Many films entertain us and then there are films that influence our thinking and expand our knowledge. Ship of Theseus certainly has an impact on the way I watch films, feel the characters and think about the story and understand the filmmaker.
Anand’s thoughts are so philosophical and inclusive, he’s one of the creative progressive thinkers we have in our country. Have a look at this video:
Will be back with thoughts on yet another interesting movie soon :)
