HICHKI

We humans are designed to not accept anything that deviates from normal. We sideline and marginalize those few because we do not understand them. We are designed to be comfortable in the majority and suppress minority. It could be anything from having a physical impairment or a mental disability or following a life style and path that is not “normal”. We fail to realize that this deviation from normal was the deliberate doing of nature to allow the extraordinary to flourish. Most scientists, inventors, innovators and pathbreakers had a disability of some form. It was this disability that made them unique but unacceptable by the society. Hitchki is a story about such people who were rejected and humiliated by the society because they did not fit the mediocre majority. They were marginalized because they had huge potential hidden behind a disability, an abnormality. It’s an interesting couple of hours about a teacher with Tourette’s syndrome who changes the lives of the poor, under privileged children. Both of them are marginalized and ostracized for their respective shortfalls. Both manage to outshine and win by discarding the norm and inventing new paths.

 

The skeleton of this film is borrowed from the Hollywood film, Remember the Titans. However, the flesh and blood is all Indian. The idea maybe similar but the story, execution and emotions are shudh desi. This is a complete film with gripping narrative and continuity. The emotions expressed are strong and captivate you during the entire duration. The stories of students in a privileged Indian school coming from different backgrounds makes for a great symphony of experiences. The strong, the weak, the class and the mass all together bring forth an emotional experience of a good film. Its wholesome and satisfying. I was surprised when I learnt that this is a Yash Raj production. No beautiful goddesses in flowing chiffon sarees, no sweet candy love stories and no foreign locales. This film is on earth, in India with a grounded and strong realistic story. Rani is one of the most intelligent actors we have, who balances her craft to perfection. She truly knows her talent and also knows how to use it. The child actors give great performances far beyond their years. This is a complete film for the entire family and will entertain audience of every age.

Rating – 4 / 5

3 storeys

The duration of this film is 1 hour and 40 minutes. The 1 hour and 30 minutes of it are simply fabulous. But the last 10 or so minutes completely destroy the great hour and half before it. Its so sad that something so amazing be destroyed by 10 minutes of disappointment. It’s like having a royal, absolutely perfect muti course meal be ruined by dessert. Three strong stories which will remain in my memory forever for their great narration and strong script. I remember Jeffrey Archer’s short stories, especially “Twist in the Tail” after watching this film. His stories were brilliant and had great twists at the climax. Same are these stories which build up to a brilliant climax and the climax leaves you enthralled and joyous. For you would never expect those endings.

 A great film to watch, but just try to walk out before Richa Chhada starts spoiling everything at the end. Every character gives a gripping performance. Renuka Sahane outdoes herself. Masumeh Makhija is brilliant and so are the two teens who play love birds. Pulkit Samrat looks dapper with the perfect body and great looks, but his acting is depressing. His desperation to imitate Salman Khan is pathetic and miserable. The nuances and intricacies of a chawl neighborhood has been brought to fore intelligently. The director has woven wonderful stories without compensating the charms of the Mumbai chawl. One can never fathom the secrets a human being carries and the untold incidents they have experienced. This film is about those stories buried deep inside.

Rating – 4 / 5

Gulabjaam

Film Review :

Foodgasmic ! This film is about the love for food and cooking. It is about the emotions and passion that one feels for food and cooking. It was a very emotional experience for me since food is my first love. I have always dreamt of owning a restaurant and maybe I will someday. But my relationship with food is one of passion and deep love. If God asked me for one reason to be alive, it would be food. The sensations of exhilaration and satisfaction that comes with every morsel of tasty food cannot be experienced by anything else. A sense of satisfaction and greed at the same time; leaving you nourished and excited after the meal, food is one of the greatest gifts of God to mankind. All these thoughts and sensations come to life as you watch this film. There are other films too based on food and cooking. But this film will be special because I am from Mumbai and have grown up on Maharashtrian cuisine. Even though I am south Indian, my palette is more accustomed to Marathi cuisine. Of course, South Indian food is a different and wonderful story in itself. 

But this film is about traditional Maharashtrian food and two beautiful stories about people who love food. Aditya and Radha are two souls lost in their journeys are brought together by food. Aditya’s story is the cliché MBA grad wanting to answer the call for a creative career. Radha’s past has left her scared and resentful. They find themselves through each other as they cook to forge strong bonds of friendship. Sensuous cinematography comes alive as we witness these two souls cut, shape, fry and boil. A medley of delicious food in front of eyes with emotions playing over the screen at the same time, this film is a great teaser for your senses. One can savor every frame which has a hundred different items on the banana leaf making the traditional meal. The twists and turns in the story add to the lovely sensations the visuals of the food produce. Sonali Kulkarni gives an exemplary performance outshining Siddharth. Though Siddharth gives a natural and easy performance, he cannot match Sonali’s craft. This is one of those rare films which you can watch many times and never get enough of it. Slurrp Slurrrp.  

Rating - 4.5 / 5