sergelamarche A strange story that exposes the many issues in India, when you are in the lower class. Following the father, we travel and see India from a commoner viewpoint. Difficult but lots of good hearts. In the end, we wonder if the son is really lost or if we saw him preferring his new life. The grandfather seems know something.

Raven-1969 Disappearances occur all over the world. In Hollywood films they conveniently happen to families who are talented, dynamic or rich enough to turn over heaven and earth to reunite with their lost loved ones. In Siddharth a twelve year old boy disappears from a family that collectively earns four dollars a day. In their world bus and train tickets, a hotel room or a meal apart from home, are all luxuries they cannot afford. In this true story a father sleeps on the city streets and a mother sells her only belongings in their efforts to find their son Siddharth. Relatives, the overburdened police, parents, charities and businesses are all helpful in looking for the boy and simultaneously complicit in his disappearance. There are no easy answers. While the film could use some help with cinematography, acting and depth, it is a fascinating and poignant glimpse into the underworld of India and the child disappearances that occur there.

gregking4 A grim, emotionally wrought tale about a father's desperate and harrowing search for his missing son Siddharth offers some insights into life in contemporary India. Mahendra (played by Rajesh Tailang) is a chain wallah eking out a living on the teeming, crowded streets of New Delhi by fixing people's watch chains and zippers. As the family was desperate for some extra cash, he had sent his twelve year old son to a different town to work, and he never saw him again. He didn't have a photograph of his son to show police, and he didn't even know how to spell his son's name, and had no way of tracking him down. And traveling from city to another as part of the search is expensive, and Mahendra is forced to find extra work on the streets to save up for a bus fare. Tailang brings a sense of compassion to his performance as Mahendra. Apparently this story is not unique, as thousands and thousands of children go missing in India every year. Some are taken into trafficking, some into slavery, some into sexual slavery, some are taken for organs, and some are taken for indentured servitude in different countries. Siddharth is the sophomore feature film for Toronto based filmmaker Richie Mehta, who himself is of Indian descent and has a good understanding of the culture and problems facing contemporary India. His debut feature was Amal, about a rickshaw driver who inherited a fortune from one of his customers and found his life dramatically altered. Here again Mehta explores the class structure of India and shows us the disparity between the rich and the poor. But he also shows us the incredible generosity of spirit of Indians as many go out of their way to help Mahendra in his increasingly desperate and futile quest. Mehta captures the sights, the smells and the sounds of the crowded streets of New Delhi. Working closely with cinematographer Bob Gundu, who also worked with Mehta on his short film projects and experimental projects, he brings a documentary like realism to the film.

johndavidwest20 Siddharth is a film inspired by Canadian director Richie Mehta's (I'll Follow You Down, 2013) chance encounter in Delhi with a man who asked him for help in finding a place called Dongri. When Mehta asked what Dongri was, the man told him that it's a place where he thinks his lost son was kidnapped and sent to. Siddharth is Metha's fictional exploration surrounding the disappearance of twelve-year-old Siddharth after he was sent by his father to work in another village.Siddharth is a suspenseful and insightful drama that explores the difficulties of life for the poor and undereducated in India. Mehta has successfully crafted a film that gives the viewers a real sense of location and family—he takes you into the Saini family's world, from living in their very small apartment to working on the busy streets of New Delhi as a chain-wallah (someone who fixes zippers). With bleak reality, Mehta shows Western viewers just how impossible life is. Siddhartha's father, Mahendra, played by Rajesh Tailang with sensitive honesty and subtly, not only doesn't own a photograph of his son, but also cannot take time off to search for him without losing money to feed his family. Despite the film's harsh realities, Mehta successfully stays clear of preaching to the audience and simply allows the film to live and breathe. Regardless of the subjects of child trafficking, family loss, and a desperate world without hope, there is an intelligently crafted sense of optimism. As an alternative to the nutrient vacant, car chase, bang-bang summer blockbusters, Siddharth is a film that is definitely worth checking out and digesting. —John David West