NO ONE KILLED JESSICA

I don’t wish to write movie reviews here! Let’s say- I just want to be a part of it, as I too am one among the thousands, who signed in my name in the forwarded e-mail petitions for the cause “Justice for Jessica”!

The inspector says-“Maine bhi liye the sattar lakh, uspe haath na utaane ke liye”…

I saw a man there, who was totally crunched by the system- helpless and angry at himself for being so. I saw a man afraid of what example he could be to his son. I saw in his eyes, a cold, raw hatred for a murderer- who murdered a woman who had refused him ‘a drink’, even after he offered a ‘1000 bucks’! The helpless inspector, bound by money- forced not to raise his hands at the man- for whom a life was cheaper than a ‘glass of drink’!

A performance, in its best, nevertheless- it was for me, very real. I imagined myself in front of ‘Manu Sharma’ or ‘S.P.S. Rathore’ or ‘Amarmani Tripathi’ or ‘Santosh Kumar Singh’ or ‘Moninder Singh Pandher’. How would I react to their presence? How would I feel if there were people threatening to kill my family if I reacted in front of them? It was suffocating.

A high profile lawyer discusses what all needs to be ‘taken care’ of. The ‘bullets’ at the Forensic lab needs to be altered. The man assigned the ‘task’- says nothing- gestures of complete understanding- which just conveys- “I know what to do. Forget about them…” Makes me wonder in awe at the power of ‘Power’! Is it that simple? All the hue and cry, ‘aam junta’ hoping that things will all be fine someday- it that all bogus?

300 witnesses saw nothing. Sitting there, at the cinema hall and watching the scene, which was very much what had happened during the actual Jessica Lall trial- made me think of SPS Rathore, smiling as he walked out of the court after a 19 year trial’s verdict was announced- 6 months prison (though he had the bail in hand in minutes) and Rs. 1000 penalty?! Is this the judiciary system of this country? Is this what we call “Mera Bharat Mahaan”?

I wouldn’t call this a movie. It was very much the fact- just the names of people changed. For someone who had followed the case ever since the ‘Justice for Jessica’ cause came into motion- at least for me, it all looked very much real! Be it Shayan Munshi.. that is, Vikram Jai- in the movie- a Bollywood actor who claims in court that he does not know Hindi! It was very much real!

“Justice for Jessica”- prevailed. Candles may have melted, but the fire still burnt deep down in the minds of thousands of ‘aam junta’ who were only waiting for something such as this to happen. Often times, the older generation accuses the younger ones of being ‘irresponsible’ and ‘callous’. They say- during their times, in our age, they were ‘fighting for a cause’!

Youth today are fragile. More than that- they are not aware! When I was talking to a colleague that there was a movie based on Jessica Lall murder case, I got a reply- “Who is Jessica”? They can’t be blamed. Youth today have so many other attractions/distractions. There is a media that glorifies glamour and entertainment becomes the ultimate quest! There are malls and disposable income. There is ‘Munni’ and ‘Sheila ki Jawani’! The older generation had none of these. Their youth was filled with ‘partition’, ‘unemployment’ and ‘Emergency’! There was a radio, perhaps. That’s it!

‘Give us a cause’. We don’t know what to do. ‘Lead us’. That’s all we say. There was a ‘cause’- and we did what was right for it. Media proves it’s might throughout the Jessica case! There have been allegations that “media has been acting judge”. There was even a scene in the movie that portrays this aspect. Sure it does. We just saw an instance of “media acting judiciary” in the Arushi - Hemraj double murder case! Yes, media is over-enthusiastic. Yes, it is intruding. Yes, they can stoop down to ‘get stories’ (Yes, yes- I’m talking about the ‘Radia’ tapes). But despite all that- media has become a medium to help our voices be heard. We appreciate media for that. We do.

Not even 50% of the cinema hall was full. But sure, this was a movie that re-ignites the minds of the people for a girl ‘who was shot for refusing a drink’. Watch it, people. It may not be as good as ‘Sheila ki Jawani’- but again, if that’s all what you like, this is not a movie for you!