Asukh 1999

Rohini Choudhury is a famous film star who finds herself teetering on the edge of a breakdown. In a moment of raw pain, she asks her ex-boyfriend if he still remembers her, and when he says yes, she doubts him anyway. She reaches for the medicine box and swallows three to five sleeping pills, insisting that whatever she does should not affect him. Aniruddha Majumdar tries to stop her, but the overdose happens before he can intervene, and the act becomes a stark confession of hurt that she cannot keep inside any longer. The revelation behind her bitterness unfolds quickly: he had left her for another girl, Mrittika.

The film layers Rohini’s heartbreak against the backdrop of her public life. She once brought Mrittika into the industry, and the pain of that decision—along with Aniruddha’s affair—cuts deep. Rohini confronts him several times, urging him to tell the truth, but he evasively dodges the reality, leaving her even more wounded. While she wrestles with the ache of betrayal and a growing sense of isolation, she learns that her mother is hospitalized with a high fever, pulling her back into family ties she has been trying to distance herself from.

Her father, Sudhamoy Choudhury, becomes a central figure in the crisis. He oscillates between concern for his daughter and the quiet demands of his own hardship, a dynamic that the film portrays with quiet realism. Rohini’s bitterness often translates into a sharp withdrawal—she lies to avoid her father’s calls and hides her true emotions—yet the old man keeps trying. He worries not only about Rohini’s immediate crisis but also about the toll their precarious relationship takes on his own dignity. The screenplay captures the tenderness of a father who, even when he is stretched thin, fights to be a steady beacon in the darkness. When power cuts hit, he steps up to fetch a torch for Rohini, embodying a protective instinct that is as much about guiding as it is about shielding.

The domestic arc deepens as Rohini observes the lasting, if imperfect, love between her parents. Her father embodies the role of a devoted husband to Geeta Choudhury; his daily hospital visits, the careful selection of medicines, and the small, hopeful moments during visiting hours all speak to a love that endures even when the world seems broken. Rohini clings to this example as a counterpoint to her own fractured romance, and she repeatedly finds solace in the memory of her parents’ relationship, which convinces her that love can still exist in society, even after betrayal.

As the story unfolds, Rohini’s suspicion begins to gnaw at her again. When her mother’s fever returns after discharge, doctors suggest a second opinion and an HIV test, rationalizing it as a precaution rather than a condemnation. The scene is handled with care, showing Rohini’s fear and bias colliding with medical reality. She fixates on the possibility that the needles used for her mother’s treatment were not sterilized, and she questions every detail, even as her father answers calmly—he always bought disposable needles, he insists. The film uses this moment to address AIDS awareness in Bengali cinema, treating the topic with sensitivity and avoiding sensationalism while acknowledging the deep anxieties it can provoke.

The tension between fear and trust comes to a head when the test results finally arrive: Rohini’s mother does not have AIDS. The relief is palpable, but the aftermath is more complex: Rohini must confront the possibility that her own mind has been magnifying fear into certainty. In a pivotal turning point, she admits her misjudgments and opens up to her father with a heavy heart. The moment is intimate and quietly restored, as she consoles him as much as he consoles her. Her father, in turn, forgives her but also gently reminds her of a question she once posed in an interview—that there is no more love and trust left in society. The scene ends with Rohini choosing silence over defensiveness, and a soft, earned forgiveness from a daughter who finally sees the larger picture.

Across its careful, empathetic portrayal of family ties, fidelity, and the shadows of doubt, the film remains anchored in its human center: the bond between Rohini and her father, the enduring love of Geeta for her husband, and the slow, sometimes painful path toward understanding oneself and others. By the end, Rohini’s realization—that fear can warp reality, and that healing often begins with acknowledging one’s own role in the hurt—emerges as a quiet triumph. The final moment is less about resolution than about a renewed sense of connection: a daughter apologizing to a father, and a father accepting her with the steadfastness that only true love can offer.