The issue that Ananth Mahadevan has raised in his Marathi film Aata Vel Zaali (It’s Time To Go) is worthy of debate – the right to die with dignity but how he wants to convey the mindset of his protagonists is not adequately thought through. At a time when ageing is seen as a curse, a film in which the protagonists repeatedly speak of ending an “unproductive” life is problematic.
In most films about mercy killing or euthanasia in India and elsewhere, the characters who wish for death are either terminally ill or suffering the debility of old age. In theory, the idea of a person being able to choose when they wish to die is appealing, and turning suffering into a virtue is troubling too.
But if there are laws against euthanasia, it is because of the legal, moral, ethical and religious minefields. Some countries have legalised medically assisted suicide. In Indian culture there is the concept of ichha mrityu (willing death), while Jains have a ritual fast-unto-death.
In Aata Vel Zaali, Shashidhar Lele (Dilip Prabhavalkar) and his wife Ranjana (Rohini Hattangadi) are aged 70 and 65 respectively. They are in perfect health. They want to die before they get ill, incapacitated, or dependent on relatives. It’s not...
