Life often seems like a vast sea where it’s calm at one moment, and the next, a storm comes out of nowhere, doesn’t it? The ‘storm’ can be literal or metaphorical. Either of them tests our strength, resilience and faith. The adventure-drama film ‘Life of Pi,’ directed by Ang Lee, utterly captures this feeling.
The life-changing journey
At first, viewers are introduced to the Indian boy named Pi Patel. He is shown as a curious teenager who is fascinated by religion. He is deeply connected to his family’s zoo. However, everything changes when his family decides to move to Canada and to take their animals with them on a cargo ship. Unfortunately, a devastating storm shows up out of nowhere and sinks the ship, which leaves Pi as the only human survivor. And, here, another problem shows up. It appears that in the middle of the Pacific Ocean he is not alone; a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker accompanies him in the lifeboat. Although this might sound like a tremendously adventurous set up, the movie deeply depicts the human story about finding hope and faith in the face of challenges.
Pi’s faith in God
From the very beginning of the movie Pi’s relationship with faith is seen to be very unique. He loves to explore different religions including Hinduism, Christian Christianity and Islam. He finds beauty and meaning in each of these religions. He always thinks of religion to be connected to something greater than him. And this connection turns out to be his lifeline when he is stranded at the middle of the sea. Imagine yourself being alone in the Pacific Ocean, with nothing but a lifeboat and a wild tiger! In this situation Pi keeps his faith in God and finds comfort in his spirituality. It isn’t like God immediately gives him food or saves him from the storm, but it gives him the strength to keep going and face the challenge.
The power of hope
Along with feet, hope is another team that is depicted in the life of pi. When Pi finds himself with limited food and water and being attacked by Richard Parker, he refuses to give up. Some beautiful cinematic scenes are portrayed where Pi finds joy in small things. For instance, he gets cheered up by the glowing jellyfish in the water at night and watches the sunrise over the horizon. Not only that, he establishes a bond with the tiger. These moments teach us that even in the darkest times; we can always find something to hold on to.
The adaptable nature
Another survival trait of Pi has to be his adaptability. Although, at first, he gets terrified by the fact that he is sharing the boat with a tiger, eventually he learns to coexist with the tiger somehow, not letting fear paralyze him. He had never faced situations like this, however, he figured out how to establish boundaries, feed Richard Parker and train him to some extent. Instead of giving up, Pi faces his fear head-on. Je also learns to fish, collect rainwater and build a makeshift raft to give himself some space from the tiger in danger.
The beauty and danger of nature
The breathtaking portrayal of nature in the movie awed the viewers to a great extent. Some peaceful moments, like when the water reflects the sky, creating the illusion of floating in space is really eye soothing. Along with that, some dangerous moments are also shown, like the storm that destroys the sheep or the relentless waves that threaten to sink the lifeboat. These scenes reflect that nature is also unpredictable like life. We humans need to accept the duality of life and nature.
The healing story
Towards the end we get the message that the way we interpret our experiences shapes our outlook on life. Pi shares two versions of his story: with animals and without animals. He explains the version with animals to be magical, full of wonder and adventure. However, the other version is darker and more tragic. Now it’s up to us what version we choose to believe. The ending scenes teach us that choosing hopeful and empowering narratives can help us heal and grow.
‘Life of Pi’ is not just a survival story; we can see the reflection of our own lives in the movie. We all face storms and have our own tiger to deal with, don’t we? But like pie, we can choose to have faith, hope and resilience. Pi Patel reminds us that we, humans, can overcome the deadly storms if we are ready to face them boldly.
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Writer
Kazi Mirana Mainuddin
Intern, Content Writing Department
YSSE