Train to Pakistan

Running time: 108 mins

War in the summer of 1947. The frontier between India and Pakistan has become the scene of rioting and bloodshed, but in sleepy Mano Majra, Sikhs and Muslims have always lived peaceably together. A murder, however, can change all that in an instant. Too bad for Juggut Singh, a Sikh, that he has a reputation as a gangster. Too bad also for the Muslim girl with whom he is having a clandestine affair when murderous suspicion falls upon Juggut, and the already mounting tension grows between Sikhs and Muslims. So, what are the authorities to do when two separate trains arrive full of dead Hindus and Sikhs? Calcutta-born Director Pamela Rooks finds herself in very familiar territory, having a Hindu father and a Sikh mother. It is no wonder then how she creates an impressive adaptation of Khushwant Singh's best-selling novel, chronicling a climactic period in Indian history. Adeptly mixing some very tender humor with powerful drama, Rooks masterfully captures the atmosphere and psychology of a momentous time. --Mike Rabehl