The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind review: An inspiring Netflix drama set in famine-hit Malawi

British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor’s directorial debut, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, is an inspirational true story about a 13-year-old boy in Malawi, who single-handedly and against many odds, saves his entire village from famine and hunger by devising a windmill from discarded pieces of scrap. Ejiofor’s film narrates the story of William Kamkwamba, son of a poor farmer in the village of Wimbe in a politically unstable Malawai, a province badly hit by both nature and geopolitical events. Although it starts slow, the film picks up its pace in good time and makes for an inspiring viewing experience thereafter. [caption id=“attachment_6227951” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  A still from The Boy who Harnessed the Wind. Image via Twitter/@Thalabathism[/caption] The villagers of Wimbe are largely at the mercy of the weather. With incessant rains come the flood, and the trees that would have stopped the flood have been sold off to a tobacco manufacturing company from a nearby town, thanks to the myopic vision of some villagers. The floods destroy the year’s crop, and in the next year, comes a massive famine. There is no rain, the ground turns dry and hard, and nothing grows. The nation’s capital first denies a food shortage in the province, and later sends meagre supplies to large hoards of starved villagers, leading to rioting, looting and profiteering. Under such circumstances, poor William is thrown out of the village school when his parents cannot pay the fees. Blessed with a curious mind and an eagerness to learn, William coaxes his way to the school’s library, where he stumbles upon a book titled Using Energy. Fascinated by the teachings of the book, and witnessing how a dynamo on his teacher’s bicycle can convert the mechanical energy from the wheels into illuminating the bicycle’s headlight, William resolves to build a mill to harness the abundant winds of the region into electrical energy that could power a water pump. The first half an hour of the film is spent in establishing the setting, and it is this part that needs some amount of patience to watch. The local customs, the political scenario, the agriculture, the education system – and most of all, the highly unpredictable weather – everything is explained through beautiful visuals. The rest of the film describes the nature and scale of the tragedy – and you see that when it comes to famine and shortage of food grains, it is the same story everywhere. I was particularly reminded of Satyajit Ray’s Ashani Sanket (The Distant Thunder) – a moving tale of the Great Bengal Famine of 1943. Suffering from the pangs of hunger, or witnessing the sufferings of loved ones, people are forced to take decisions that question their ethics. Humanity is sacrificed for the slightest opportunity to get a handful of grain. And it is always the rich and powerful who profit from the crisis. Ejiofor’s film portrays all these facets of such a famine with great compassion and sensitivity. In a particular scene towards the end of the film, you will see how an object of William’s priority – but not so much one for his father – is sacrificed in the face of hunger. These are not easy choices for anyone, and they ask a simple but potent question – when a human faces death by starvation, can he remain human, after all? Also brought to question are the ways and means such a tragedy could have been avoided by the timely and sincere intervention of the government. Instead, when the elected leaders are questioned, the common man is beaten black and blue, leaving them to die a dismal death – as an example to others, who never dare to raise their voices again. Amidst all these corruption and catastrophe, a young boy sneaks into the library of the school from which he has been thrown out, and reads books. A symbolic expression, in essence – that it is only knowledge and education that can help us rise above the pettiness of man and whims of nature. In a beautiful scene involving a mother and her young daughter – both of whom are cooking a meal for their family – the elder woman tells the girl that she should continue her education so that she can be more than just a wife and a mother. Once again, the importance of education is highlighted – an importance that cannot be overlooked or undermined even during better times. Maxwell Simba plays William Kamkwamba remarkably well. On a number of occasions, Simba’s character is faced with moral dilemmas, and standing on those crossroads of life, he has to take tough decisions. It is in these scenes that the young actor’s prowess and talent are truly witnessed. The fear, hopelessness and frustration on his face are genuine, and only a young man who has truly understood the plight of the poor, starving people of Africa would be able to pull off a role with such admirable precision. Chiwetel Ejiofor himself plays William’s father, and delivers one of the best performances of his career. French actress Aïssa Maïga plays William’s mother and in several scenes, she is grace and dignity personified, even in the face of extreme poverty. The score of the film is not unlike the wind that sweeps the barren landscape shown in the film. It is haunting, ever-flowing and telling a tale of courage, perseverance and unstoppable imagination. The cinematography is not an anglicised version of the great continent. It is inward-looking and lends a much-needed original perspective to the story. If you treat the first few minutes of the film with the patience and respect that it deserves, you will be rewarded with not only a good film, but also with a beautiful story. The Boy who Harnessed the Wind is currently streaming on Netflix.