Earth, released in 1998, is the second installment in Deepa Mehta’s Elements Trilogy, the first being Fire (1996), and Water (2005). Deepa Mehta chose some very uncomfortable subjects, namely lesbian relationships among sister-in-laws and prostitution among widows, for her trilogy leading to several controversies which led to eight-year delay in production of Water. All the stories centre in North India, and are set around different timelines.
Earth is set during the Partition of India, when the communal tension was high leading to widely spread riots between different religions. The protagonist of the story, a girl named Lenny, belongs to the Parsi community who chose to not take any sides to avoid being in the bloodshed, and thus Lenny begins to observe her surroundings with a privileged detachment.
Through this particular protagonist, Mehta creates portrait of dying innocence. Lenny observes cordiality in the circle of her aayah, Shaanta, with whom she spends the most time. The many admirers of her aayah who belong to different religions share a common space and live in peace. Dil Nawaz, the ice-candy man, points out how communal hatred might be the end of the peace. Ironically, he is the one who gets Lenny to divulge Shanta’s hideout to drive her out.
Dil Nawaaz’s character arc is the most conflicting of all. Tormented by the brutal rape and death of his sisters, he turns into a maniac demanding revenge. Fuelled by rejection from Shaanta, who choses Hassan, another Muslim, he decides to target Shaanta when the opportunity for revenge presents itself. It is typical of Mehta to add such conflicts in her characters.
Unlike other movies that use the backdrop of Partition, but often infuse Bollywood elements of irrelevant songs and sub-plots, Mehta stays focused on her plot. She also doesn’t try to sweeten the end of an event as tragic as this, unlike other movies. It is one of the most difficult movies to watch, but one that deserves a mention among her best.
