Gulzar's directorial venture, Maachis (Hindi
for match sticks), is set against the backdrop of the Bluestar Operation and the
assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, but interwoven with the
plot of the spine chilling drama is a tender love story that hopes to reach its
culmination. The tale takes off with the detention of Chandrachur's close friend
by the police on the suspicion of being linked with the attack on a politician
in Delhi. The third degree treatment meted out to his bosom pal makes
Chandrachur bitter as well as angry. He meets Om Puri, sent from across the
border and part of a gang of militants, and their boss Kulbhushan. He also comes
across some more youths who, like him, had undergone deep trauma over the
incidents in Punjab and the riots in Delhi which left hundreds of innocents
killed and many Sikh families devoid of their men. A moving account then takes
place that is reminiscent of the events that took place in Punjab.
