I knew next to nothing about Suchitra Sen. But I knew and loved her daughter, Raima. So that made me wonder about the recluse mother. I don't know how I found this movie, but somehow the name came to me and I rented it. What a find! Suchitra is irresistible as Aartidevi. Those luminous soulful eyes. That restrained but emotional performance. I was totally seduced. I don't often bond with old movies. I found Mughal-e-Azam beautiful because of Madhubala and the way she was presented. And I feel the same way about this movie. The startling thing is how close to the end of Suchitra's career this was. In one way, it makes sense, since she's bringing everything she's learned to this role. But on the other side, when do you get to see an Indian actress play this kind of role at that point in her life? All over the world, senior actresses are forced to retreat into the background while the juicy parts go to the younger women. But here Suchitra got an excellent part and did it full justice. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who is irked by the discrimination against the senior actress. Suchitra shows what we are missing because of that.