Page 44 - The Indian EYE 092923

CANADA Newsline SEPTEMBER 29, 2023 | The Indian Eye 44

Yellow Bus, the story of Mother’s

search for truth

RENU MEHTA
Toronto
he Yellow Bus debuted as a
World Premiere at the Toron-
Tto International Film Festival
(TIFF). It was the first time a film
from United Arab Emirates (UAE)
was presented at the festival in To-
ronto.
Directed by Wendy Bednarz,
Ananda (Tannishtha Chatterjee) and
Gagan (Amit Sial) immigrated to the
Arabian Gulf from India in search of
new opportunities and a better life
for their family, which soon grew to
include daughters Ravina (Aarushi
Laud) and Anju (Kshethra Mithun).
The couple live happily, peacefully,
content with their middle class lives.
The two girls go to School, have
friends and live a normal life. Until
one day. The two girls go to school in
a Yellow school bus and Anju, aged
6, goes to sleep. No one checks that
she has not got out of the bus when
the bus reaches the school. At the
end of the school day, it is too late.
In the hot scorching weather of the
region, the child does not survive.
The school attempts to make
amends, even offering blood mon-
ey that the mother refuses. The bus
driver and the attendant are sent to
prison. The matter is closed and life
begins normally. But the aggrieved
Ananda, does not want to give up on
the truth and looks for accountabil-
ity. In her quest for the truth, she
refuses the excuses and condolenc- to have, you need to have conversa- daughter’s ashes that was pulled off girl and I would have tears in my
es she is presented with, to ease the tions that I may not have answers to.” in the film despite a lot of opposition. eyes. I couldn’t even look at her and
weight of her grief amidst the unrav- Chatterjee said that she was to- “This came in the second script. imagine. And my daughter is the
elling of her family. tally on board as soon as soon as she Wendy said there was a lot of opposi- same age. So I asked myself many
Chatterjee was present at TIFF read the script. tion to that scene. I reacted and said times. Why am I doing this to my-
with director Bednarz, Syrian co-ac- “I knew it would be a heart- I love it. I felt we could do it because self? Why am I an actor? And why do
tor Kinda Alloush and producer Na- breaking experience playing it and the mother is mental at that time. I we torture ourselves. Why as humans
dia Eliewat. yet it’s going to be a cathartic expe- said we will find a way to do this. And we love tragedies? What do stories
The film is really special because rience. It’s only sometimes that we Wendy suffered my mental behavior actually mean to us?
the film is in five languages, three as actors find characters such as this throughout the shoot.” Acting in general is a very spiri-
mainly and then English and Ara- written for us especially when you Meanwhile, Chatterjee said tual process and this film has brought
bic,” said Bednarz. “I don’t speak cross a certain age bracket. It was a she questioned her own self doing me much closer to that.”
Hindi or Arabic and it was really im- very strong women centric team and this film. According to her, this film The film that runs 112 minutes
portant that we cast actors who cap- we are all mothers. As women, as was one of the most cathartic expe- is Chatterjee’s 8 film at TIFF, co-
th
ture the essence and understand the mothers, we all empathize with each riences where she loved the expe- produced by Sikhya Entertainment
nuances. Also to be collaborators to other and that was one of the most rience so near to reality and then amongst others, and is a remarkable
really take the story on their own and beautiful experiences.” come out of it. lesson in the power of a mother’s de-
be prepared for the kind of dialogue In the film, there was a scene in “It was very tough especially in termination to find the truth against
you need to have, the trust you need which Ananda is shown eating her moments when I would look at this all odds.

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