A cup of tea is sometimes not just a cup to refresh but a cup to provoke deeper thoughts!
We sometimes want a cuppa just to reflect or, at times, to brush off the grime of everyday life.
In the film Cha Gorom, which premiered on April 13 last, and is currently available on Chorki, the purpose is to intelligently blend the brew with some much-needed calls for social awakening.
This means, this film is not only about total escapism.
Instead, it explores the sub layers of beauty, bringing out the lurking beasts beneath a mesmerising veneer.
Produced by Chorki and Oxfam and co-funded by the European Union, Cha Gorom, is a one and a half hour celluloid treat bringing us the sumptuous natural charm of the tea gardens along with the not spoken about predicament of the tea garden workers.
The film, which premiered on 13 April, has garnered a lot of interest and is being lauded by film aficionados.
At the premiere, Michael Miller, Ambassador of the Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh, extolled the production, spectacular camera work, fluid acting plus the subtle insertion of social messages aimed at improving the life of tea garden workers.
Ambassador of Italy to Bangladesh, Antonio Alessandro, also acknowledged the profound impact of the movie.
Commenting on the film, Michael Miller said: “on the even of Pohela Boishakh, celebrating beautiful cinema and a powerful portrait of women’s empowerment in Bangladesh. Thank you OXFAM for partnering with the European Union to bring humour, emotion and inspiration to the silver screen.”
Just like a cup of hot tea where every sip seems to add to the stimulation, the film’s plot gradually pulls the audience right into the life of the tea worker, something which most urbanites never have time to reflect on.
Admit it, as city creatures of comfort, we often take that tea bag or the tea leaves in a glossy packet for granted.
But behind the product is the life plus determined effort of millions of workers.
We see them, perhaps out of curiosity take a few snaps with them for that ‘exotic’ social media upload and, they also smile back, unwilling to hurt our urban sentiments.
That’s where the interactions usually end.
We get our snap, they get the look of appreciation from a city bred person.
Cha Gorom begins where the story of the common tea garden experience ends!
Concealing the pain behind the smile
Let’s get the facts first: a tea garden worker is paid between Tk. 175 and Tk. 185 each day for a full day’s grinding duty – sometimes less than a cup of coffee at a city café.
Or, to give more context, the key male character Mithu is reminded that his pack of cigarettes, which is Tk. 400, is almost double than the daily wage of the tea worker.
The sprawling tea gardens provide a sensational view, especially during a light drizzle or when the twilight sets in.
That’s the beauty!
The beast (and there are a few) is that in many cases these gardens do not have proper sanitation facilities, putting the women workers at a terrible disadvantage.
In the film, female garden workers, while sharing a local delicacy with Mithu, says in matter-of-fact way that after eating, they usually wipe their hands and, if nature calls, then the whole garden can be a toilet.
Said in humour but behind the jest is the truth – a rather disconcerting one too.
A young doctor, played by Safa Kabir, treating tea workers, finds to her astonishment that there are only two kinds of medicines available, better known as the white and yellow variety, and are freely given to treat all sorts of ailments.
A perfunctory system, carried out just because it has to be performed.
Naturally, in most cases, these do not work because the medication is not right, but tea workers do not complain and therein lies their guile less and naïve nature.
Manipulated, exploited, hoodwinked and deceived – they are blissfully unaware of the Machiavellian practices which deprive them of basic rights.
Wading into darker territory, the film captures the absence of basic knowledge about hygiene and, most importantly, period time safety affecting young women in the tea gardens.
However, the biggest restriction for most tea workers is the inability to think beyond the life of a tea worker.
As if an invisible force is at play to smother their dreams and to perpetuate the toxic belief – a tea garden worker can never hope to build a career in some other field.
Perfect balance between fact and fiction
While the realities faced by tea workers reflect the truth, the plot is certainly a work of fiction.
A young female doctor comes to the tea garden for some solitude, but soon, is pulled into a bigger struggle where human conscience refuses to be fooled by the idyllic view of nature.
Playing the role of Ireen, Safa Kabir and her male friend Mithu embark on a mission to truly understand the suppressed aspirations of tea garden workers.
This leads them to look beyond the lush greenery, the disciplined operation, pristine bungalow and the regular, trite admonition of the tea garden manager.
“The tenacity shown by the characters reflect the nature of modern-day youth, seemingly superficial but when needed, resolute to achieve an objective,” commented Zahirul Islam, a journalist.
Although the story is the tale of urban young trying to use their skills to help a young tea garden worker, the underlying message unabashedly celebrates the spirit of the youth driven movement which ushered in a new dawn for the country in August 2024, added Mamoon.
This is a feel good, edifying film projecting the untold grievances of a sidelined community, observed Mostafa Alamgir, a cine enthusiast, adding: heartfelt thanks to the EU and OXFAM! If development organisations use OTT platforms to relay important issues through fiction, the reach will be wider.”
Alamgir also pointed to the one hour thirty-minute length of the film, calling it ‘just perfect’ which does not allow the plot to flounder.
“Hats off to Shankha Dasgupta for a terrific film.”
The cast has done a brilliant job and this will set a new paradigm for decent, family films, added Alamgir.
Someone once said, tea is liquid wisdom, but let’s end with another saying encapsulating the overarching theme of the film Cha Gorom: while there’s tea, there’s always hope!
