If you can get thro­ugh Lion without utilising a box of tissues, then you deserve the Academy Award for Most Stoic Viewer. Directed by Australian filmmaker Garth Davis, Lion is based on a true story so incredible that you will have trouble believing it that it is real. But real it is.

In fact, while most autobiographical films take artistic license to liberally embellish the truth for the big screen — aside from some changes here and there — Lion is fairly factually accurate, making its harrowing drama all the more heart-wrenching.

Certainly, Lion will connect with Pakistani viewers for its Indian story of neglect, child abuse and potential child sexual abuse could have taken place on the streets of this country. The film begins with Saroo Brierly — played here in his early years in a movingly nuanced performance beyond his age by child actor Sunny Pawar — spending his impoverished childhood with his brother Guddu (Abhishek Bharate) taking part in somewhat dangerous adventures in order to earn food for his family, which also consists of his mother Kamla Munshi (Priyanka Bose) and a younger sister.

Lion will connect with Pakistani viewers for its story of neglect and child abuse

One day, while Kamla is away on her tough construction job, Saroo forces his brother to take him along with him on a manual labour job. The duo take a train to a station where tired little Saroo can’t stop sleeping. After ignoring Guddu’s repeated attempts to wake him up, Saroo is left behind by his elder brother with the promise that he will return soon. But Guddu doesn’t return, leaving the five-year-old in a state of panic. Here, Saroo hops on the next train believing that he will find his brother, only to fall asleep again and wake up in the faraway city of Calcutta, where the inhabitants do not speak the same local language as him.

Here, thanks to the excellent direction of Davis, Lion moves with the flow of a Charles Dickens story, as Saroo bounces between one perilously heart-in-your-mouth predicament after another until he ends up at an orphanage where corrupt officials prey on the vulnerable, and the children keep their spirits up by singing songs while staring into each other’s eyes as they lie in bed ignoring the fact that one them is being taken away kicking and screaming.

"Saroo finds himself adopted by a well-meaning Australian family and in 1987 ends up in Tasmania. Here, he grows up into a fine young man played by Dev Patel.

Somehow, Saroo finds himself adopted by a well-meaning Australian family and in 1987 ends up in Tasmania. Here, he grows up into a fine young man played by Dev Patel, who handles the complex characterisation of a tragic man adapting from life in a small poor Indian village to the streets of Australia. Equally good are turns by Nicole Kidman (Sue Brierley) and David Wenham (John Brierley), playing his adoptive parents.

The weakest aspect of Lion is its second act, which seems to drag just a little, though I particularly enjoyed the examination of the relationship between members of a foster family. The final act, which is predictable (especially if you read up on Saroo’s case) is also completely satisfying, and brilliantly played, especially by the Indian cast.

Lion boasts some excellent production values. Standing out is the fantastic cinematography of Greig Fraser, who effectively portrays the helplessness of little Saroo by portraying his tininess in a hulking and crowded Indian city. Equally powerful is the deep and mournful score by Hauschka and Dustin O’Halloran, which captures the eternal yearning in Saroo’s soul for home. 

There are a lot of things you can take away from Lion, but perhaps the most important one is to not underestimate the power of good deeds. Had Saroo not encountered any one of the several kind souls early in his life, he would just be a statistic today.

Rated PG-13 for thematic material and some sensuality

Published in Dawn, ICON, March 26th, 2017