I am indebted to Sarya-Jayothsna who's review of Trishna certainly helped me to identify with the movie. Having only been to New Delhi and never experiencing rural India I had little idea at to what might be considered "normal" in such an environment.I have always admired the sultry beauty of Indian women and Freida Pinto (as Trishna) added a much deeper aspect to my admiration. The total subservience that she displayed when working at her first job in the Jaipur hotel was delightful - every male was addressed so beautifully demurely as "Sir" with the typical Indian hand gesture of obeisance. The skill with which her manners were conducted was, far from being demeaning, an absolute pleasure to the extent it made me want to reciprocate (had I been there, of course). Far from placing Trishna into a position of being "used," I felt that it inspired a desire to treat her with the same respect that she gave to others. I guess, as a man, I would interpret that as making me want to love her - and that has nothing to do with sex - it made me want to cherish her and let her know just how much value she had as a person. So the way Jay (Riz Ahmed) simply used her as a pleasure toy incensed me. How could anyone be so insensitive not to realise how his treatment hurt?As a simple, sincere village girl, Trishna had never loved anyone in an intimate way in her life and so, when a handsome young man shows an interest in her, it literally sweeps her off her feet and, sadly, there is no one to pick her up. She fell in love and he fell in lust! If ever a movie had evoked a strong desire to lovingly comfort the leading character, Trishna does that.I suppose, because the story is an adaptation of an English classic, the ending was inevitable but I really wish it hadn't been. I was left feeling empty and useless. What a waste!

I have never seen a film attempt to create so much (unwarranted) endearment towards a character who is clearly disturbed and has a warped sense of reason and justice.Where is the character development? I don't see the point on this story at all, I'm not sure what the message is here. I'm not won over by the conflicts between class, rich and poor and Indian landscapes. That doesn't make a good movie, the story does. And to me the story is inconsistent, full of unanswered questions and quite frankly messed up. Terrible adaptation, I've not read the book but surely there is more to this story and the characters. Trishna needs a slap and a cup of coffee.

Michael Winterbottom's "Trishna" is the fourth theatrical adaptation of Thomas Hardy's 1891 novel "Tess of the d'Urbervilles." The first two adaptations, silent films released in 1913 and 1924 respectively, have since been declared lost. The next adaptation, however, was well preserved even before its American premiere in 1980. This would be Roman Polanski's "Tess," a romantic melodrama that, like the novel, was set in Victorian England. "Trishna," a modernized retelling that shifts the setting to India, is very much like "Tess" in that it tells the story of an innocent young woman whose life is ultimately destroyed by love, societal values, unfortunate turns of events, and above all, male dominance. It's tragic, but not unnecessarily so; we understand the gravity of the situation, and we recognize that the conclusion is inescapable.Trishna (Freida Pinto) lives a meager existence with her large family in a village in Rajasthan. The eldest daughter, she helps pay the bills by working at a nearby resort as a greeter and cocktail server. It's during one of her night shifts that she meets a British businessman named Jay (Riz Ahmed), the son of an ailing but wealthy property developer (Roshan Seth). Jay has come to India at his father's request to manage a luxury resort in Jaipur. His initial meeting with Trishna was essentially only a casual encounter; it isn't until her father destroys his Jeep and hurts himself in an accident that their relationship becomes much more serious. That's when Jay offers Trishna the chance to work at his hotel for a relatively sizeable sum, enough to provide for her family. During her time as his employee, they fall in love, and in due time, they have sex.In Polanski's film, Tess is raped and soon thereafter gives birth to a sickly baby that immediately dies. In Winterbottom's film, Trishna's inevitable pregnancy is terminated under duress from her father, who is, to put it mildly, old fashioned. In both films, the title characters have been saddled with the same secret, one that could forever ruin a potentially happy life with the men they love. Jay, a combination of the Alec Stokes-d'Urberville and Angel Clare characters from "Tess," is initially not made aware of Trishna's pregnancy or the resulting abortion, allowing for scenes that give Trishna hope for a better life. She and Jay eventually move to Mumbai, where both dabble in the Bollywood scene, Trishna in front of the camera and Jay behind. The cracks eventually begin to show on their seemingly solid relationship, most interestingly when they tour their new apartment and Jay shows Trishna the kitchen.Although Jay seems to be in love with Trishna, he will in due time make the most astounding of transformations, namely from a charming young man into a controlling monster. Ideally, Trishna would have been able to approach him with news of her pregnancy. Realistically, she's part of a culture where having a child out of wedlock is considered disgraceful, not just for the woman but for her family as well. This is despite the fact that there have been advancements in economic growth, mobility, and education, both in urban and rural areas. With this in mind, exactly how could Trishna confess to Jay? You'd think he'd be more progressive, considering his British upbringing, but the truth is that he's essentially a spoiled brat who flaunts his status as a fiancée would her ring.The other side of the issue is Trishna's father, a man so traditional that not even the good money she earns can persuade him to look past her sin – which, incidentally, may not have been a sin at all but rather an act that was forced upon her. So now it comes down to an issue we tend to dance around, especially in circumstances like this: Was it consensual, or was it rape? It may not be as clear cut as it seems; Jay's initial act of kindness, coupled with his handsome looks and alluring demeanor, effectively reduced the naïve and impressionable Trishna into a state of total submission, which is to say that she probably would have jumped off a cliff if he asked her to do so. It was more mental than physical, I believe. He took advantage of a situation by seducing her. Regardless, her resulting pregnancy made her damaged goods in the eyes of her father.This, combined with Jay's drastic personality shift, paves the way for a deeply unpleasant yet highly appropriate ending. Unlike "Tess," in which the possibility of a happy turnaround carried through to the final shot, "Trishna" makes it abundantly clear that no such possibility exists. The title character is nothing more or less than a hapless victim of circumstance. If my description of this movie has made it sound like an overwrought soap opera, you should know that I don't believe the plot was intended to be the main focus. It's really more about character development, specifically in relation to culture, and theme. We see that Trishna is in distress, and we feel her pain, and within the context of the story, we understand the reasons behind every decision she makes.-- Chris Pandolfi (www.atatheaternearyou.net)

Tess of The D'Urbervilles is a brilliant novel, with a wealth of material for any director to get their teeth into. Setting the story in modern-day India was a really good idea- when Michael Winterbottom put his twist on scenes from the novel, they worked well and gave an insight into what the film could have been.The confusing and frustrating element of this film for anybody who's read the novel is that at the heart of the book is a brilliant love triangle. Tess is caught in the clutches of callous playboy Alec D'Urberville but hopes to find salvation in her new lover, the godlike Angel Clare- however, both men fail her. For some inexplicable reason, Winterbottom chooses to merge Angel and Alec together, into the character of Jay, a British-Indian, so we have a good guy who inexplicably turns bad. Even a good actor would struggle to pull this off but Riz Ahmed, who has to be one of the worst actors I've ever seen, fails completely. Winterbottom seems to have asked him to improvise parts in order to create a naturalistic feel. Yes, they tried to do Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, a tragedy in the Greek style or at the very least a nineteenth century melodrama, in a realistic style. What are we going to have next, naturalistic Hamlet? "Yeah, Hamlet, I'm sorry about murdering your father but I really fancied your mother. You know how it is." I'm not familiar with Winterbottom's work but I vaguely recalled that it was a bit pornographic. An hour or so into the film, I was wondering when the smut would come. And then I saw Jay flicking through a copy of-you guessed it, the Karma Sutra. At this point, a couple actually walked out of the cinema, and the remaining audience were either shocked, amused, horrified or a mixture of all three. Trishna's descent into sex object is upsetting but it is so predictably done that the tragedy is lost.As for the leading lady, Frieda Pinto is very good as the passive heroine. As Roman Polanski did in the 1978 adaptation of the novel, Winterbottom lingers on Pinto's beauty, and the beauty and vibrancy of India. There is perhaps a little too much lingering- there is not much dialogue, and when there is dialogue, it is banal.It's interesting to see what they did with the story and Pinto is very watchable but this is very much a wasted opportunity. It is pretty hard to make Tess lacklustre, but Winterbottom has managed it. The fact that he's done two other films based on Thomas Hardy novels is worrying.