AGLI BAAR - Devashish Makhija
March 11, 2017 | Author: arun | Category: N/A
Short Description
Today, the slum-dwellers have managed to stall the illegal demolition of their shanties. Tomorrow, they must take their ...
Description
"Sabhi jagat yeh pooche tha, jab itna sab kuch ho riyo tho Toh sheher hamaara kaahe bai sa aankh moond kar so riyo tho?” -‐ Piyush Mishra [the world wants to know, o city, why you slept while blood was spilt and the starving wept]
© ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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BLACK SCREEN We hear someone typing on a laptop keyboard intently. In the background a film or some footage seems to be playing on some device… sounds of voices shouting protests… walls being broken… A skype caller tone interrupts the sound of typing. Then the typing resumes. The caller tone interrupts the typing again. The typing resumes. A phone rings. Someone answers… WOMAN’S VOICE Jamil, transfer mein ek ghanta aur lagega… main voh stay order ke liye appeal draft kar rahi hoon… khatm kar ke call karti hoon… The call gets cut. But – The skype caller tone… again. The woman’s voice sounds irritated. Opens the call… Jump Cut To 1 FAIZA’S ROOM – INT – LATE NIGHT The laptop’s web camera (our POV) comes on… and we see Faiza (28), looking right at us, horrified as from off screen – GIRL’S VOICE (babbling) Didi! Baaju ke Rahim chacha ko maar daala… FAIZA Kya? Kisne? Cut to 2 RUKHSANA’S SHANTY – INT – LATE NIGHT Through another laptop camera’s POV… Rukhsana (19), trembling, pale, scared, is babbling… at Us. RUKHSANA Maar daala didi… I/C © ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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FAIZA Relax Rukhsana… kis-‐ne? RUKHSANA Voh log… zabardasti ghus gaye baaju ki kholi mein… FAIZA Aise kaise maar daala? Baaki sab log kidhar hain? RUKHSANA Chacha chilla rahe thhe didi… zor se chilla rahe thhe… ab nahin chilla rahe… us ko maar daala… And now she’s on the verge of tears. Faiza is calm, stern, scolds… FAIZA RUKHSANA! Rukhsana stops, stares. Just then a train passes in the distance – a low rumble – and the camera shakes slightly FAIZA Baaki sab log kidhar hain? Unko andar aane kaise diya?! RUKHSANA Nahin pata didi… main baahar bhaagi, koi nahin thha… darr gayi… andar aa gayi… FAIZA Voh chaar policevaale kidhar gaye? RUKHSANA (desperate) Pata nahin didi… koi nahin hai… main kya karoon didi…? Just then there is a loud banging on the tin door below… RUKHSANA (drops her voice in fear) Didi! Aa gaye… © ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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FAIZA Darr mat… bilkul mat darr… main aa rahi hoon…
RUKHSANA Nahin pahunch sakengi itni jaldi…
The tin door below gets broken open…! Banging on the hatch in Rukhsana’s floor now! RUKHSANA (squeals) main kya karoon didi? FAIZA Mat khol darwaaza… chup… kuch nahin hoga… main abhi aayi, police ko leke aayi… And as Faiza is about to get out of her chair… Rukhsana’s hatch BREAKS OPEN! She scrambles away from it, out of frame. Two men barge into the frame, knocking our POV over… as she screams… We now face the ceiling. We can’t see what’s happening. But we can hear… someone hit Rukhsana… then muzzle her as she struggles to scream. FAIZA (shouts) Chhodo us ko! Don’t touch her! Faiza tries to see something, anything. But… We hear a knife hacking into flesh and bone… Silence. FAIZA Rukhsana?! A long silent beat. © ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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FAIZA A hand adjusts the laptop… straightens it… to reveal Mahender (35)… He peers at Faiza/us. FAIZA (shaken) Rukhsana kahaan hai? Mahender simply continues staring at us, doesn’t utter a word… He studies the web-‐chat window… Then turns to someone off screen, leans out of frame, mumbles – MAHENDER Vahi hai lagta hai.
Someone’s hand must have passed Mahender something… he leans back into frame… fiddles with something below frame, looking down, then holds up a phone camera – aims it at Faiza/us… Flash. Cut to FAIZA’S ROOM – INT – LATE NIGHT Faiza, panicked, slams the laptop (our POV) shut… BLACK SCREEN. Silence… We only hear her heavy breathing… a long beat. Then -‐ The laptop opens slowly… The screen (our POV) tilts up, to reveal Faiza… looking at us, her eyes searching… fearful… guilty… confused… She leans to one side… then the other… searching the frame… FAIZA Rukhsana? Cut to © ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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RUKHSANA’S SHANTY – INT – LATE NIGHT Nothing… Empty silent frame… A beat. A train passes in the distance… the frame trembles… then goes still again. I/C with Suddenly, a woman screams…! Faiza reacts, sees on the screen before her, in the footage, a woman being beaten by cops. Nervous, Faiza pauses the video… She picks up her phone, takes a deep breath, her hand trembling now, scrolls, dial. Stands up, starts pacing about… It rings. Someone answers. FAIZA Anna-‐wadi, Chembur mein ek murder hua hai… Main victim se video chat kar rahi thi… Main witness hoon… Aap please turant vahaan pahunchiye… COP’S VOICE Aap kidhar se bol rahe ho? FAIZA Versova COP’S VOICE Toh witness kaise huye? FAIZA Abhi toh bataaya video chat pe thhi… Dekha hai maine COP’S VOICE Naam? FAIZA Kis ka? Mera? Ya victim ka? COP’S VOICE Complain kaun kar raha hai? FAIZA (takes a deep breath) Faiza Khan. We hear the cop mumble something to someone. © ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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COP’S VOICE Aap vahi ho jis ko last week arrest kiya thha? FAIZA Haan main vahi hoon. Ab is sab mein time waste mat kariye – COP’S VOICE Theek hai… FAIZA Aap please jaldi pahunchiye… Voh shayad ab bhi zinda ho sakti hai… COP’S VOICE Ok… main dekhta hoon… FAIZA Chaar policewaale hone chahiye thhe vahaan… Order diya gaya thha aapko… Ek bhi nahin hai… You know that’s illegal right? COP’S VOICE (dry) Madam? Dekhta hoon…
Click. The call’s cut. Desperate, Faiza starts packing her stuff into a bag A beat, she thinks… exits frame… returns with a kitchen knife… Puts it in the bag. When – THE DOORBELL RINGS. Her hands freeze. Banging on the door… The banging become louder, harder… we hear the door rattle…
Jump Cut to 3 PRIVATE CLINIC – EXT – LATE NIGHT Javed (22) speaks to the camera (us) – he’s in a video chat on his smartphone… His head seems to have been freshly bandaged, © ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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some blood is drying on his forehead. He’s standing in a dark corner outside what looks like a private clinic. We’ve caught him mid-‐conversation… He takes a long drag of a spliff, exhales, continues – JAVED That’s when that cop whacked me. And then you shouldve seen me I went for him baby I stood right in front of that bulldozer Three huts were still left, but I just stood there And the bulldozer had to back off It backed the fuck off baby I was a hero First day baby… and I was a hero! From off screen (the other side of this chat) – GIRL’S VOICE Baby I’m so proud of you. But you should be careful now na – ? And the phone rings. The screen (our POV) flickers as it rings Javed makes a face, cuts the call… JAVED Dad GIRL’S VOICE You should’ve taken the call babe… he’s called like ten times no? JAVED No no, those calls were faiza… GIRL’S VOICE Ten times?!! JAVED (makes a face) She needs a chill pill… I just got my head busted baby… I need the night off… she’s on this shit 24/7… mere se utna nahin hoga… i’ll call her in the morning… there’s nothing in this world that can’t wait until tomorrow. GIRL’S VOICE Me? © ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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Javed smirks, blows her (us) a kiss, when – GIRL’S VOICE Who’s that behind you? Javed turns, looks (but we can’t see who), turns back, shrugs… Takes a long drag, drops the spliff, stubs it out JAVED Ok baby I’ll get home and call you Suddenly, there’s a tap on his shoulder… Javed turns MAN’S VOICE Time kya hai? Javed looks into his phone (at us), turns JAVED 1.30 And the person leaves. Javed starts walking out, while talking to his girl… JAVED Bye baby, I love you He blows her (us) a kiss, as he steps out of the gate… into the semi-‐darkness when – A hand grabs his shoulder from behind, swings Javed around… The girl’s voice screams… The phone (our POV) falls, tumbles about …semi-‐darkness (traces of light bleed in from the corners of the frame) we cant make anything out Javed shouts at someone… Sounds of scuffle… The Girl’s Voice screams… As we – Cut to END-‐CREDIT SLATE 1 Over this… screams, scuffle… Girl calls out ‘Javed?’… hyperventilates. Javed’s voice, also shouting… © ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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END-‐CREDIT SLATE 2 until there’s that same hacking sound of a knife in flesh and bone… 1… 2… 3… times …and Javed goes silent. Silence. A beat. The darkness… …gives way as a hand seems to pick the phone (our POV) away from ground, The frame (our POV) tilts up to reveal – Mahender’s face, looking at us… (it’s the same stare he gave us in the shanty earlier) GIRL’S VOICE (accented) Who are you? Kaun ho tum? Javed kidhar hai? Mahender just stares, studying her (our) face He looks lower on the screen, as if reading her name. GIRL’S VOICE (squeals) kya kiya us ko? Police ko call kiya hai… Mahender just looks unimpressed… his finger reaches into frame (pointed to us) GIRL’S VOICE Do minute mein pahunch – and he cuts the call… Cut to black Title appears…
“AB KI BAAR”
© ® Devashish Makhija, 2015
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