City of Joy Page #4

Synopsis: Hazari Pal lives in a small village in Bihar, India, with his dad, mom, wife, Kamla, daughter, Amrita, and two sons, Shambhu and Manooj. As the Pal are unable to repay the loan they had taken years ago from a moneylender, their land and property are auctioned, and they are rendered homeless. Hazari and his family re-locate to Calcutta with hopes of starting life anew, save some money and go back to Bihar, as well as get Amrita married. Things do not go as planned, as they lose their entire savings to a con-man, Gangooly, who took their money as rent by pretending to be a landlord. Then Hazari gets an opportunity to take up driving a rickshaw manually through a local godfather, Ghatak. He gets to meet a American, Dr. Max Lowe, and together they strike up a friendship along with a local social worker, Joan Bethel. Misunderstandings crop up between Joan and the Godfather, resulting in the shutting down of their shanty medical clinic. When Hazari sides with Joan, his rickshaw is taken away
Genre: Drama
Director(s): Roland Joffé
Production: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
  1 nomination.
 
IMDB:
6.4
Rotten Tomatoes:
53%
PG-13
Year:
1992
132 min
783 Views


Across the way, a thin policeman shares a cigarette witha group of traders. There is a deeply fearful look inHasari's eyes, a look he is having difficulty controlling

now. He needs to revive the family's confidence. He

takes out his precious bundle of rupees and gives one toManooj. Manooj, though, is fixed on the cinema acrossthe street. Hasari indicates a stall just across themain road.

HASARI:

Manooj, go and get some fruit.

Come straight back.

Delighted with his task, Manooj sets off, his eyes on themarquee of the theater with its huge cardboard cutout ofKumar Kapur, starring in Hot Gun. Hasari calls out to

him to watch where he's going; the mere crossing of thestreet is a potential parental nightmare. A hand ruffles

Manooj's head and a TALL MAN with dark eyes and a sweetsmile comes at the boy's anxious parents.

GANGOOLY (TALL MAN)

Yes, hello, brother. Bihar, am I

correct?

HASARI:

Yes, how did you know?

(CONTINUED)

9.

CONTINUED:

Hasari is torn between speaking to the man and watchinghis son's incredible journey across the street.

GANGOOLY:

Let me say only that the terriblemalevolence that has visited yourpart of the country affects us all.

HASARI:

Three years without rain. Nothingcame out of the earth but debts.

GANGOOLY:

Terrible. And now, the family onthe street. It is not acceptable.

(smile widens)

And if I can't help, my name is notMr. Gangooly... Which, blessedly,

it is.

And now a smile as full as the sky above.

EXT. SMALL BUILDING IN BACK STREET - DAY

A brick slides out of the wall.

We're BEHIND the brick and see Gangooly's soft face as hereaches in and pulls out a key.

The street is small and empty. Though the houses arenothing much, to the Pals, they look like palaces.

Manooj and Shambu run about in delight. Gangooly motionsfor quiet. With a flourish, he opens the door.

INT. SMALL ROOM - DAY

Gangooly enters, glances around, waves the Pals in.

They're amazed. There's a cage occupied by two parrots.

In one corner, a small altar dedicated to the goddessLakshmi is decorated with some flowers and, behind a

torn, plastic curtain in a corner, part kitchen, partwash place, containing a tap with running water.

GANGOOLY:

Be free -- look around.

On the faces of the family is one thought: Is it

possible? Amrita goes right to the parrots.

GANGOOLY:

They'll need feeding. Give them

seed. But don't spoil them.

(CONTINUED)

10.

CONTINUED:

He bows briefly before the altar as he moves to thewashing area.

GANGOOLY:

And now, one of the miracles of

life in the city. One and two...

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Mark Medoff

Mark Medoff is an American playwright, screenwriter, film and theatre director, actor, and professor. His play Children of a Lesser God received both the Tony Award and the Olivier Award. more…

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