Life — with its few joys and many disappointments — is worth living

Whether you’ve heard of Indian classical music before or not, Chaitanya Tamhane’s movie The Disciple (2021) sets you on an amazing journey with a complete immersion in the joyful experience of music making.

It tells the story of Sharad (played by Aditya Modak) a trained classical singer in his twenties who’s striving to become a famous singer like his guru and his guru’s teacher: Mai. Not only he spends every waking hour practicing but also listening to Mai’s unofficial recordings where she discusses the essence of Indian classical music and how it’s important to master it spiritually.

Although Sharad has also been trained at a younger age on the hand of his father — an enthusiast of classical singing and a singer — yet there is something still missing in his performance.

He feels it when he’s practicing alone or with his guru who insists that great singers take up to 40 years of practice before they could master the art fully. Even when he compares himself to his colleagues, he finds that they are at a more advanced level than he is and never struggle to follow their guru’s instructions the way he does.

His personal life is not great either: he’s still single, works at a low paid job and lives with his grandmother. The movie flashbacks to his childhood and how his father influenced his footsteps, and then goes 10 years forward to the older Sharad whose life hasn’t changed much though everything and everyone around him had advanced.

What does he have to do to cope with the changes surrounding him? Has he wasted his life in a profession where he could never pass the average level no matter how hard he tries?

The director presents the viewer with a philosophical dilemma at almost every scene: is talent something innate or like any other skill that gets better through practice, self-confidence and experience? What distinguishes a good singer from an average one when both put the same effort?

What happens if you wake up one day to discover that your idols are actually human beings who’d erred in unforgiven ways? He also subtly exposes current times where classical recitals are attended by people who are too busy on their phones to enjoy it. Moreover, how reality TV star making machine corrupts the soul of classical arts by creating a disfigured fusion to appeal to the younger generation.

Watching the movie feels like reading a book where in between the chapters the viewer is given a break to reflect, guided by the ancient voice of Mai sharing her life-long experience in the world of classical singing that was anything but easy.

Aditya Modak delivers the role of Sharad at ease, even though he’s not an actor by profession. His glances convey all range of emotions including envy, melancholy and disappointment.

His relationship with his guru is admirable and apparently the only highlight in his mundane life. The movie is thoroughly researched and every detail is covered including the actors’ reaction to their own or others’ performances.

Tamahne had spent two years writing the script and was guided by Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón who became the executive producer of the film. It became the second Indian movie to compete in the Venice International Film Festival last year since Monsoon Wedding (2001), where it won Best Screenplay and the International Critic Prize. It also won the Amplify Voices Award in Toronto Film Festival. The Disciple is a multifaceted movie with a clear message: life — with its few joys and many disappointments — is worth living. Not to be missed. Available on Netflix.

The writer is a certified skills trainer and an author