I saw Khamosh Pani on DVD released in India by this firm called Excel Home Videos. Unlike other DVD biggies released (like Parineeta, Dor, 2046, Hero, Moulin Rouge, Ice Age, etc) released by the same firm, Khamosh Pani begins in complete silence. First, there's the firm's logo, then, the warning notice, and then, the main menu. So far, things have progressed in pin-drop silence. I choose the subtitles On option as the film is in Punjabi. I am informed that Kirron Kher won the best actress award at Locarno for her performance in Khamosh Pani. This information, too, comes noiselessly. When no sound emanates from my 5.1 home theater system I begin to panic. My three-hundred-and-forty-nine rupees gone (That is the price of this DVD). And then, Just like my heart beats gaining momentum, some soft music is audible through the speakers. I relax, and as the film proceeds, I understand why it is called Khamosh Pani, and why silence is so much integral to its plot.<br /><br />The year is 1979. Ayesha (Kirron Kher) is a middle-aged Muslim widow in this village called Charkhi in the Punjab region of Pakistan. She has a teenage son called Saleem (Aamir Malik) who she loves very much. Saleem wishes to marry Zubeida (Shilpa Shukla), an ambitious young girl with dreams of attending a college, getting a job in an office and owning a mixer and a ceiling fan. Ayesha has spent her entire life in silence. There's a secret she's hidden from everyone. A secret, parts of which come to the viewers in the form of some very disturbing images shot in black and white, showing young girls running, screaming, and a really intriguing visual of the round surface of water in a deep well.<br /><br />There is communal harmony in this village of Muslims and Sikhs, till two strangers from Lahore come to inform the Muslim villagers of the new martial laws laid down by the then President, General Zia-Ul-Haq. Matters are worsened by the arrival of Sikh pilgrims from India who are often teased by some intolerant Muslims of the village. One Sikh man (Navtej Johar) is looking for his elder sister Veero who had gone missing during the Partition in 1947, a time when Sikh, Hindu and Muslim men were killing their own wives, daughters and sisters or were forcing them to kill themselves in order to keep them from being raped by the men of the enemy community as dishonoring the womenfolk of a particular community was seen as the easiest way of dishonoring that community altogether.<br /><br />In the meanwhile, Saleem, gullible and impressionable youth that he is, has gone neck-deep in his involvement with the two fundamentalists. He has grown a bushy beard, learns to shoot guns, prays regularly, and cannot stand the sight of non-Muslims. Zubeida fails to understand what has gone wrong with the boy who had wanted to marry her, for Saleem starts disapproving of her plans to pursue further studies and earn her own livelihood. To make matters worse, Saleem questions his own mother about her origins.<br /><br />The performances are commendable. Kirron Kher truly deserves the awards that she's won for Khamosh Pani. Ditto for the other actors. However, what I liked the most is the way this film has been shot. The scenes are grainy, giving the film a very raw look. This is more striking as the film deals with a very strong theme and such raw in-your-face treatment gives the feeling of actually seeing thing live. Here I should make a special mention of the flashbacks, the secrets shot in black and white I was talking about. They are not exactly black & white, they carry a hint of sepia. The visuals in these flashbacks are not very distinct, very much like Ayesha's memories which are old and unclear, yet unforgotten.<br /><br />The scene showing a a woman standing on the well's edge, with dust billowing all around her, spreading her arms like Christ, is truly haunting.<br /><br />Another scene that stands out is the one showing a lone Saleem offering Namaaz on the mosque patio. It has been shot in blue (or is it natural moonlight?). The cinematography of Khamosh Pani reminded me of two other movies I've seen -- Lars Von Trier's Breaking the Waves (for the grainy images) and The Ring (for the raw home video-like feel).<br /><br />Finally, there's one scene which will haunt me for a few more months at least. I can't say too much about it as it might give the plot away. This scene has been done in blue (natural moonlight?). This makes the character appear very ghostly, like an apparition. It's amazing, and to enhance the effect, the scene doesn't last more than a few seconds.<br /><br />Khamosh Pani is aptly titled. And the khamoshi (silence) that runs through the movie is justified. This silence makes questions grow inside one's head, it makes one think. I can't believe how I got such a beautiful movie so cheap? My money has been recovered. The silence of Khamosh Pani doesn't scare me anymore.