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Qissa

2013 1h 49m Drama List
88% Tomatometer 16 Reviews 73% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
A Sikh man tries to start a new life for his family while hiding their true identities during the ethnic cleansing in 1947.

Critics Reviews

View All (16) Critics Reviews
Namrata Joshi Outlook One of the most beguiling films of recent times, Qissa captivates even as it confounds. Rated: 3/4 May 18, 2015 Full Review Shubhra Gupta The Indian Express Full-bodied, satisfying, [and] disturbingly lyrical. Rated: 3.5/5 May 18, 2015 Full Review Clarence Tsui Hollywood Reporter Early promise of a poised and substantial piece gets undermined by a final, inexplicable leap into the paranormal -- an odd denouement for a narrative centered on the very real and corporeal issue of gender-based violence. May 18, 2015 Full Review Dipankar Sarkar Vague Visages By grounding Qissa in naturalism and avoiding melodramatic tropes, Singh creates a uniquely beguiling viewing experience. Sep 20, 2023 Full Review Joanne Laurier World Socialist Web Site Qissa seeks to show, without sensationalizing, how tradition, economic distress and homelessness make Indian families see their daughters as a burden and threat to family honor. Feb 27, 2021 Full Review Tomas Hachard Cinema Scope Qissa is most captivating when it treats Kanwar's identity dilemma head on; its best scenes are intimate ones that portray the tempestuous inner turmoil wracking its protagonist. Oct 16, 2017 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (4) audience reviews
Audience Member This is a linear tale with multiple identities and diverse layers: something that explore all the variants of love, family, relationship and quite explores the corners of the heart. No Bollywood film has done it yet. But it's title alone makes it stand out of the queue: noticed the 2 titles? Actually, Anup Singh summarizes the story's subversive-ness and its dark undertones with its depiction of the emotional supernatural: someone who is a lonely ghost- or wait- a ghost who is a lonely traveller? Be it any, Tilottama Shome as the ghost here is a total finesse. She carves the account of this man who is stringed into the horrors of identity confusions in a way that is quite remarkable. Irrfan Khan as the aristocratic Umber Singh, is as always: a find, a new character. Divya Dutta ticks the boxes of a dramatic performance, and Rasika Dugal is a find. The film is beyond a fine film: the way it deconstructs its own horrors makes it a fantabulous watch. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/25/23 Full Review Audience Member Effective story of gender and personal identity in a gender obsessed society. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Audience Member A fable with its heart in the right place... Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Oh my god, wow! This film was stunning and beautiful. I loved how daring this is for a Punjabi film and displays the madness of gender, religion division on the soul of each individual. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Qissa

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis A Sikh man tries to start a new life for his family while hiding their true identities during the ethnic cleansing in 1947.
Director
Anup Singh
Producer
Bero Beyer, Nina Lath Gupta, Thierry Lenouvel, Johannes Rexin, Bettina Brokemper
Screenwriter
Anup Singh
Production Co
Ciné-Sud Promotion, Heimatfilm, Augustus Film, National Film Development Corporation of India, Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen
Genre
Drama
Original Language
Punjabi
Runtime
1h 49m