| Umbartha ( Hindi title Subah) | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Directed by | Jabbar Patel |
| Written by | Vijay Tendulkar Vasant Dev(dialogue) |
| Screenplay by | Vijay Tendulkar |
| Based on | Marathi novelBeghar by Shanta Nisal |
| Produced by | Jabbar Patel D. V. Rao |
| Starring | Smita Patil Girish Karnad Shrikant Moghe Ashalata Wabgaonkar Kusum Kulkarni Purnima Ganu |
| Cinematography | Rajan Kinagi |
| Edited by | N. S. Vaidya |
| Music by | Hridaynath Mangeshkar Ravindra Sathe (background score) |
Release date |
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| Country | India |
| Language | Marathi |
Umbartha (IPA: Umbaraṭhā; English:The Doorstep) is a 1982 Indiandrama film produced by D. V. Rao and directed and coproduced byJabbar Patel.[1] The film was simultaneously shot inMarathi andHindi, the latter titledSubah, with the same cast. It tells the story of a woman's dream to step outside her four walled home and bring change in the society.[2]Smita Patil played the lead protagonist in the film for which she wonMarathi Rajya Chitrapat Puraskar for Best Actress. The film was adjudged as theBest Feature Film in Marathi at the29th National Film Awards for "a sincere cinematic statement on the theme of a woman seeking to establish her identity by pursuing a career, even at the risk of alienation from her family".[3][4]
The film is based on a Marathi novelBeghar (transl. Homeless) by Shanta Nisal. This film also tells the social issues onLGBTQ in 80s.[5]
Sulabha Mahajan is a woman who dreams to step out of the four walls of the house, assume greater responsibility as a citizen and play an important role in shaping the society. She has passion to do something constructive for the abused, assaulted, neglected and traumatized womenfolk of the society she lives in. She gets a job offer as Superintendent of a Women's Reformatory Home in a remote town of Sangamwadi. The job offer raises objections from her lawyer husband Subhash and conservative mother-in-law who refuse to understand her need to move to the town and work for rehabilitation of the women. But her sister-in-law supports her by offering help in looking after her young daughter Rani. Determined Sulabha then goes ahead with her dream job.
She meets various challenges in her new endeavor. She starts with bringing discipline in the Home and also discovers frauds that take place there. But she is not helped by the managing committee which is filled with selfish and careless people. She hence decides to take steps against their sanction. She starts some classes to educate willing women and also marries off one of the inmates in order to give a new start to her life. She discovers how a localMLA Bane has been regularly using the inmates of the home to satisfy his sexual needs. Two of the inmates decide to run away but are forcefully brought back to the home. They both commit suicide by burning themselves. Sulabha is then questioned by committee and newspapers for her improper control on the home. An administrative enquiry is set up against her. It is then that she decides to resign and give up all her work and return home.
When she returns to her home she is happily welcomed by her sister-in-law but not so much by her daughter and mother-in-law. She then discovers that her husband Subhash has been involved with another woman in her absence. His betrayal changes her mind and she again sets off to follow her dream work.
The soundtrack of the film is composed byHridaynath Mangeshkar on lyrics written byVasant Bapat andSuresh Bhat. All songs are sung byLata Mangeshkar, except "Ganjalya Othas Majhya" which is sung byRavindra Sathe. "Sunya Sunya Maifilit Majhya" became the most popular song that time.[6]
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Sunya Sunya Maifilit Majhya" | Lata Mangeshkar | 04:22 |
| 2. | "Ganjalya Onthas Majhya" | Ravindra Sathe | 04:47 |
| 3. | "Chand Matala Matala" | Lata Mangeshkar | 05:45 |
| 4. | "Gagan Sadan Tejomay" | Lata Mangeshkar | 04:37 |