Country of Blind

A man stumbles upon a lost village inhabited by blind people.

In the 18th century, during a mountaineering expedition in the Himalayas, a young man (Shah) is separated from his group when he falls down a mountain. After wondering through uncharted nature, he eventually discovers a small village in a valley where all the residents are blind. The villagers capture the man and name him India after he tells them that is where he is from. The villagers are actually good and accept the new stranger into their community. Although initially India longs to leave the village, he begins to embrace their way of life and becomes romantically involved with a young woman named Gosha (Khan). However, India's behaviour will bring trouble.

Based on H.G. Wells' short story The Country of the Blind, one thing this feature from India has going for it is the intriguing plot: a small community isolated and unknown to the rest of the world, where everyone has been born blind for centuries and have created a peaceful way of living that allows them to enjoy life to the fullest and without the need to see. The villagers can hunt for food, do farming work and utilise ropes and footpaths made out of stones in order to get around. They are organised, with their own celebrations and the one with the highest authority is called The King. They believe that the place they are living in is the entire world and are unaware that there is such a thing as seeing. They are happy with what they have and only want what they need. They are a community that has been forgotten by time, with houses made out of materials provided by nature and clothing that consists of hides.

The story focuses on India as he becomes familiar with this extraordinary place and romances Gosha. Although he finds happiness with her, he tries to tell everyone, including The King (Singh) about the world beyond theirs, however they do not believe him. His frustration with their stubbornness creates a lot of waves, especially with Paras (Inaamulhaq), an unfriendly man and one of the village's protectors.

Shah's character is a protagonist who means well, yet whose presence only appears to be polluting the villagers' way of life, bringing conflict and fear, as he is torn between his love for Gosha and his desire to return to his world. Gosha is a gentle woman whose character represents the good and blissfulness that governs her peace-loving village.

The opening montage deserves a lot of praise due to its creativity and the mise-en-scene mentioned above is impressive, with costumes by Zeba Sajid. Kazmi directs very well, creating some wonderful shots of landsapes that are supported by the cinematography of Luxmi Chand (Pinku). Regarding the audio, Saptrishi Ghosh provides the narration and the music is dynamic, entertaining and romantic and there are some beautiful songs that add value, especially during the romantic scenes between India and Gosha.

This is an interesting period adventure film that is also a romance, a fish-out-of-water story and a journey of self-discovery. It centres around a place hidden from the world, where life is happy and simple. The main messages appear to be that it is the simple things in life that matter and that some things should remain unchanged.