AMUBA CHANDAN

A scene from Amuba Chandan

Rajen (Diya) and Radha (Devala) grew together from childhood in a rustic life. They attained the goal of their love after their parents migrated to the city. Since Radha's parents are no more, Rajen has to live at Radha's place as Radha's sister Thaja (Bhavani) will be left all alone if Radha goes to his husband's place. Rajen is unemployed though he has already done his BE, Radha is a well-known singer and their daughter Baby, (Baby Priyadarshini) now going to school.

Following an undesirable incident one day, Rajen put strictures against Radha's social programmes. Faithful to her husband as she is, Radha now puts a stop to her singing career. But invitations pour in one after another since she is a popular performer. Inspite of her passion for singing she goes on obeying her husband.

Rajen gets a government job as a driver. His boss Babu (Imobi) is a man infatuated with Radha and her songs, though he is already married and has kids. Babu now keeps a special eye on Radha, if not exactly jealous. Radha stages a comeback in her singing career with Babu's help. Afterwards Radha gets trapped in Babu's plot, due to her passion for songs.

Rajen keeps quiet for sometime though is suspicious of the Babu's help etc. to his family and his role in helping Radha's comeback to her singing career thinking that she would come to her senses herself. But on the contrary, Radha's dormant pride in her ability comes to light. Radha is drastically changed; she no longer bothers about her sister, her daughter and even her husband.

No matter whether she has any engagement or not she would travel in officer Babu's expensive vehicle, comeback late at night and sometimes even get drunk. Indeed she is now completely a new woman. Rajen knows everything but is totally helpless in bringing her around, just because he is a poor man and cannot fulfill her desires. The chasm between Rajen and Radha gets wider and wider.

A scene from Amuba Chandan

Thaja is not deterred by all this and tries to patch up for a harmonious family life as before. One day Babu comes to Rajen's place with a big fish. Radha is forcibly given to Babu (Keina katpa) as his wife while Rajen is out for fetching liquor for his boss. Meanwhile Rajen meets an accident and is taken to hospital. Babu begins to live with Radha at the latter's residence. Rajen becomes a semi-lunatic because of some head injuries in the accident and also of his isolation from his family. All this has a terrific effect on his daughter Baby and his sister-in-law Thaja. Baby demands her father from her young aunty.

On the other hand Radha cannot check her emotions at the sight of her former husband's homeless life and also when Baby has disowned her. Her vanity evaporates. Now Thaja takes her brother-in-law as well as her daughter-in-law to their ancestral village. She is able to serve and nourish Rajen into normalcy but Radha is not yet out of his mind.

Rajen gets bedridden again with some illness, which is perhaps the result of lack of proper treatment while in the city. He keeps mentioning Radha till his last moment. He entrusts his small daughter to his sister-in-law Thaja mistaking her for his wife Radha. After his brother-in-law's death Thaja resolves to live only for Baby and not to get married and puts on black tika (Amuba chandon) on her forehead. The society makes fun of an unmarried girl wearing black tika but Thaja simply smiles.

Radha who had been carried away by her pride now realizes her grievous error, kneels down at Rajen's graveyard and laments. She picks up some black charcoal from the grave and put it on her forehead as it were black tika.