DUVIDHA **

Mani Kaul was one of India's most important directors of 'art-house' cinema but his work is not really well known here in the West. "Duvidha" was his first film in colour and it's a strange, slow picture that should remind you of the work of the Georgian director Sergei Parajanov. It's a ghost story but not in any conventional sense. A young bridegroom has to leave his wife for business reasons and while he's away a ghost appears, takes the form of the husband and impregnates the wife; then the husband returns. It's as simple as that.

Of course, the narrative in this case hardly matters. Kaul tells his 'story' in purely visual terms, in images that are often no more than stills. It's certainly beautiful to look at but the funereal pace is bound to alienate most people. This is Art-House with a capital A and a capital H. Kaul's direction is fine but the amateurish performances of the mostly non-professional cast drag the film down.