All of us have endured young children selling things, while we wait at the traffic signal. And we have all been in the morally awkward position of shooing away these kids away. We showcase our distaste for the class system of India, comment on the rise of poverty, express our empathy towards child labour. Yet, it’s all talk and no work. Suresh Eriyat’s film, Tokri, shows us the other side of the story.
The Beguiling Plot
Narrated from the perspective of a poor family, we see a young school-going girl and two working parents living on the Mumbai footpath. They don’t seem to have a lot of money, yet they possess the wealth of love. From the very beginning, the film Tokri draws attention to the loving relationship between the father and daughter. Small endearing moments of her father teasing her, highlight the tenderness of their relationship.
The film progresses illustrating the curiousness of the young child when she notices her father stealthily opens up an old trunk. She hears him fondly caressing certain items. The next morning, when her parents leave for work, she lets curiosity get the best of her. She finds and opens the old trunk to find a precious item (watch the film to find what it was!) But as the saying goes, curiosity killed the cat – and a clumsy accident led to a series of unfortunate events.
The Technical Genius
The following tale continues with guilt, family values, agony and a lot of love. Tokri will truly touch your emotional core. It will make you smile, might make you cry, but will definitely touch your heart. Through all the layers of the story itself, we have to talk about the technical brilliance of this creation.
Shot in Claymation, this 14-minute-long film took over 8 years to make! Claymation is a form of stop-motion animation where every object – character or prop – is constructed from malleable substance like plasticine clay. Like in stop-motion, every frame is singularly recorded and then pieced together in quick succession for the illusion of motion.
Apart from that one has to appreciate the painstaking effort that was put into the detailing of the film. Whether it be the expressions of the characters, the lighting and ambience, the tiny details of streetscape – it is all simply immaculate! There will be moments in the film when you will forget that these are all clay figures made by someone and not real people. Alongside this incredible work, you cannot forget the significance of sound design in Tokri. From small sounds of wind to loud horns and ticking of clocks, the attention to detail is nothing less than perfectionism.
The 30 awards and wins and over 50 nominations attest to the brilliance of the film.
