Ananth Mahadevan’s Phule goes down the list of Key Milestones Associated with the Great Reformer. The Hindi-language Phule, co-written by Mahadevan and Muazzam Beg, dutifully dramatises the inciting events and turning points in the lives of the nineteenth-century activist Jyotirao Phule and his supportive wife, Savitribai.
You have Jyotirao (Pratik Gandhi) teaching Savitribai (Patralekhaa) to read and write; the opposition Jyotirao faces from his family for his views; the vicious backlash from Brahmins to Phule’s critique of the caste system. The dung and stones hurled on Savitribai; the pregnant Brahmin widow sheltered by the couple; Phule’s campaign to persuade barbers to stop tonsuring Brahmin widows; Dalits prevented from drawing water from a well – it’s all there in a studious, cursory fashion.
A muted colour palette and flute-heavy background score accompany Jyotirao and Savitribai as they move seemingly inexorably from one hard-earned triumph to the next. Against the odds, they educate girls from all castes. Their bond is tested, but also strengthened, by sustained and frequently violent attacks.
The parade of events leaves barely any room for an exploration of ideas. Phule’s revolutionary critique of Brahmanical values, his analysis of the actual meaning of ossified traditions, his understanding of the caste system – these aspects are largely missing in a 127-minute drama that is as dull as it is dutiful, sincere but stilted too.
Phule was better served by Nilesh Jalamkar’s Marathi-language biopic Satyashodhak (available on Prime Video) or even the short episode on him in the Bharat Ek Khoj series on Doordarshan. Satyashodhak included Phule’s trenchant views on why caste injustice lingers, and who is responsible. Satyashodhak also provided a fuller portrait of Phule’s life beyond his activism, such as his work as a contractor.
Mahadevan’s biopic has a dual focus, revealed in its title. The film is equally about Savitribai, portrayed here as a co-author of Phule’s vision. Fatima Sheikh (Akshaya Gurav), who teaches students alongside Savitribai, is a key secondary character.
Patralekhaa is more committed to her role than Pratik Gandhi, whose Jyotirao is unusually subdued and flat. The fire is missing from Gandhi’s portrayal – an off day for an otherwise gifted actor.
The film itself douses the more radical aspects of Phule’s singular achievements. Pratik Gandhi is barely present, Patralekhaa marks her attendance more strongly. And so the film trundles on, from one familiar history lesson to the next.
