Pinjar is a film, based on a novel of the same name written by Amritha Pritam. The movie takes you back to the time of the partition in Punjab when the state was divided into two and Hindu-Muslim riots were the order of the day. The utter chaos, confusion and the human sufferings of the era has been depicted brilliantly by the screen writer turned debutante director Dr Chandraprakash Dwivedi.

The story revolves around Puro (Urmila Matondkar) the eldest daughter of a wealthy Hindu Punjabi family. Her parents Mohanlal (Kulbushan Kharbanda) and his wife (Lillette Dubey), arranges her marriage and her brother Trilok's (Priyanshu Chatterjee) with Shyamlal's (Alok nath) son Ramchand (Sanjay Suri) and his sister Lajo (Sandali Sinha) respectively, in their native village Chatwal. But as the wedding date is approaching, Puro is kidnapped by a Muslim youth Rashid (Manoj Bajpai) to avenge a family feud existing from long back between the families. She is confined in his house in the same village. Rashid doesn't give in to her pleadings for release.

Meanwhile Puro's sister (Ishaa Koppikar) instead of Puro is offered in marriage to Ramchand. But he refuses, and Trilok's and Lajo's marriage takes place. Trilok still in search for her sister finds out that she was kidnapped by Rashid. He destroys his farm leaving Rashid broke. It is during this time that partition takes place and everywhere there is chaos and destruction.

The atmosphere and the settings are truly amazing.. The era is perfectly depicted. Full marks to the technicians behind for creating the ambiance, be it costumes or sets or cinematography. Dwivedi deserves credit for the smooth narration and charecterisations. He has handled the partitions sequences with sensitivity. One of the drawbacks is its length.. The movie runs for more than three hours- especially the second half at times, seem too long. Another flaw is, there was no need for so many songs. Background score gels well with the atmosphere.

Performance wise Urmila adds another feather to her cap, with her brilliant performance. Manoj Bajpai is equally brilliant in his role. Sanjay Suri, Priyanshu and Sandali makes an impact. The rest of the cast gives adequate support.

Despite its flaws the film is worth watching for its historical ambiance and fine performances.