Harud

I started watching this flick on the Junglee channel on youtube on Saturday but I was quite exhausted and fell asleep. I found time to watch the rest of it.
The movie stars Shahnawaz Bhat as Rafiq in a lead role and is co-written and directed by Aamir Bashir. Harud is Aamir's directorial debut. 


The movie is set in Kashmir. Rafiq's elder brother, Tauqir, has been missing for 4 years. His parents don't know if he has joined the militants or is one of the missing people in Kashmir. In Haider, they show how people in Kashmir have been taken by the police for questioning and are put in prisons without informing anyone- not even the family. This is a common thing. Rafiq tries to cross over to Pakistan but is unable to and comes back to an existence without any meaning. The movie is about the life of a Kashmiri. They don't even have basic services like mobile phones (now postpaid sims are allowed) and railway connectivity (Srinagar does not have a station. You can either fly in or take the road from Jammu). There is constant presence of the army and it is un-nerving. I find it extremely uncomfortable when an executive in the store follows me around. It makes me feel guilty and like a criminal. Imagine living like that 24/7. And there is the constant threat of getting bombed.

The movie takes you through what life is like in Kashmir. None of it is exaggerated. We experienced or atleast sensed the same when we visited Srinagar last year. 

My issue with the movie is that it is very, very slow and there is no story as such. It is actually very boring. The movie would work for film festivals but normal audiences will not enjoy it one bit.