Tumbbad

Some films have a strong story. Others have a powerful narrative. Then there are films which work because of the star cast. But there are very few films where the cinematography and art direction are the champions. Tumbadd is a brilliant example of this genre of films. The dialogue is minimal and the story happens in the cinematography and engrossing visuals. Each frame has been meticulously designed to add to the theme. The artistic sets and costumes will delight your vision.The whole film has an eerie and cold feel to it. A story based on ancient folklore to produce an allegory; is a welcome change after being bombarded with realistic and desi cinema. Even though it is not a horror film the prophecy and mythology are captivating and entertaining. The whole film resonates with the age-old fable of the hen that laid golden eggs. We all know what happened to that story. A great experience is revealed in a hidden treasure and the quest of a man to acquire it. Consumed by greed and lust everything is lost and a moral is born.

Not loud, not pompous with just enough characters,  the narrative is dense, subtle and extremely artistic. The director gets us completely involved in the story by creating a suspense in every scene. As an audience you will eagerly wait for the next scene. Each scene has an interesting camera angle that gives movie buffs something different to savor. The background scores and the sets have never communicated like this before. The camera work, production and VFX teams have created some extraordinary work on film that should probably be reminisced as an inspiring kind of film making.

 Its like having exotic rural delicacies after having tasted junk food for ages. The taste not only mesmerizes you but wakes you up to a new experience. You savor the dish and enjoy the moment.  The actors’ expressions and movements speak to you. The minimal dialogues convey maximum meaning. Kudos to director Rahi Anil Barve and creative director Anand Gandhi. Sohum Shah keeps up with the creative director’s vision and gives a contained and wholesome performance as a lead. This is a film that HAS to be watched in the theatre. You won’t enjoy it when it is aired on TV after a month.  

Rating – 4 / 5

Sui Dhaga

Yash Raj Productions makes a film about the struggles of a lower middle class Indian family. The words don’t sit together. Has the Indian audience developed an appetite for realistic desi stories ?  Why would a production house that captured the goddesses in chiffon sarees floating in swiss alps change to bahus in small gallis of apna desi gaon. The films now recite stories of small time chokras and their ‘mad’ in india dreams. From the foreign locales where everything was picture perfect to Indian towns where everything is below average. Yes, we have matured and are confident of our own stories. Maybe we no longer crave to see posh foreign buildings and love our nukkad and naka.

Sui dhaga takes us straight into the heart of a lower middle-class Indian family in a small town. A young woman Mamta inspires her dunce like husband Mauji to change his life and write his story. To give up the ghosts of his past and relive his life using his gift for sewing. The story behind the humble sewing machine is far reaching. From an idea to be independent to a brand that competes in a national fashion design competition, the story travels an arduous path. ‘A Mad in India’ brand breaks the shackels of English speech and posh education. The friend, the worker and even the parents walk the ramp while Mamta and Mauji are the show stoppers leading the new path at the competition.

 

Another film with a great story and an engaging narrative. Sui Dhaga will connect greatly with the audience. With its great timing for humor and witty one liners, the film very nicely blends in the romantic relationship between husband and wife based on respect and team work. The romance builds up as the husband wife team build a business with sui and dhaga.  Varun Dhawan has worked hard on his role. And though he is not a natural instinctive actor he does a decent job of the naïve small time guy. Anoushka shows poise and control in her role as she silently creates a revolutionary in her husband. Many films seem to have this desi ghee personality to them these days. The typical shudh vernacular hindi and the innocent characters with naïve thought may lose their charm if repeated. However, lets enjoy it while it lasts, though I feel it won’t be long.

Rating - 3.8 / 5

MULK

“India is being divided into Us and Them. Them, who have many offspring and are underprivileged are accused by the Us”

“Terrorism is a criminal offense, not a communal offence”

“The definition of terrorism is ‘The unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians in pursuit of political aims’”

“The entire blame for terrorism on a community is based on prejudice”

“ Terrorism has no religion. A religion is being used to fulfill terrorists’ political motives”

“If you cannot differentiate between my beard and the beard of a terrorist like Osama bin Laden, then question the reason for this and not me”

“Whenever someone wants you to divide based on religion, take a good look at how far the election dates are”

“If we start discussing what happened 500 years ago it will take us 5000 years back”

“Societies are not built by caste, creed or religion. They are built in the minds of the people. People in your family, relatives, friends and neighborhoods".

Quotes that you will remember for some time. These quotes define this film and it’s impact. Another simple yet ground breaking story unfolds itself in the courtroom. The prejudices and the thought thereof are spoken out aloud and brought forth in the sacred hall of the courtroom. These prejudices against their facial hair, number of children, food they eat, literacy etc,   are hidden in our conscious and subconscious minds. And these prejudices are leading us to suppress and ostracize that community by labeling them as terrorists. At a time when there are strong under currents of communal disharmony and violence that can erupt and cause serious damage, this film is a warning to people of the imminent danger. It reflects the mood of our society and how our leadership is silently causing havoc by bringing in communal tension. How bonds of friendship and camaraderie are broken at the slight provocation of communal baggage we carry.

Mulk is a subtle film in which the story is the champion and the message, the crown. A rare film in which one cannot single out an actor for an exceptional performance or a pivotal role. Every actor just acts as a means to fulfill a story that aims at sending out a strong message. The film brings forth instances of shock and dismay during the film that bring forth the condescension and hostility against Muslims. And disagree and deny you may, but we all carry this prejudice against this particular community. You may or may not belong to it but this false prejudice lives and thrives within all of us. And we need to separate it from reality. Terrorism has no religion nor does not belong to a community.

Rishi Kapoor, Tapsee Pannu, Rajat Kapoor and Ashutosh Rana give subtle and engaging performances holding the story high. The narrative and making of the film have a natural feel to it which was necessary to imitate reality. A great watch. Should not be missed.

Rating : 3.8 / 5

Dhadak

There may be very few or no remakes that are successful. I mean commercially successful. They are also extremely unsatisfying for the viewer. That is because the remakes lose the essence of the story. The context changes and that changes everything. We have seen many remakes of Hollywood films. Most of them have been unsatisfying. That’s because the philosophy and psyche associated with Hollywood films is very different from that of Hindi or Bollywood films. But Dhadak and Sairaat are Indian, desi film. The only difference is the language. It was a simple cut, copy paste job. Had it been literally copied and pasted it would have been a better watch. I will not say that this film is completely unwatchable. There are many good things about it for the viewer. But the director has lost the essence and context of the film.

       There are going to be comparisons with the original Marathi film “Sairaat”. This film will always remain an epic in Indian cinema. The reason being the director’s vision was singular and the context was very strong. The execution was exceptional and original in every frame. Dhadak loses itself because the context of social hierarchy is lost. The intensity of the social divide between the rich upper caste and the poorer lower class is lost. The director fails to convey the power of the elitist society and the way they exercise it on the lower social classes. Also, this divide is severe in the rural and semi rural areas. Not in a city like Udaipur, which is a tourist spot. Here the hierarchy and class difference wouldn’t matter as much, and hence, change a lot in the film. When the film loses its personality then the embellishment does not matter.

       The film has taken almost all of the dialogues, scenes, music and songs from the original Sairaat. The puppy love and emotional roller coaster is a good ride. I enjoyed the romance between the teenagers. It is passionate and soul stirring. The camera loves and enjoys Ishaan Khattar. He is passionate in the film and shows great promise. Janhvi is not as convincing and looks pale in comparison. The theater was empty on the first day of the film which explains a lot. There was a bunch of Marathi girlfriends who were hooting and mocking the film. They were loud and made their disapproval very  obvious. I guess the Marathis will always feel Sairaat to be their jewel and not like to share it with anyone.

Rating – 3

Sanju

Sanju is a biopic based on the life of actor Sanjay Dutt. The film gets into minute details of the life of the actor accounting his life as a youngster to his release from jail on charges of possession of weapons. Hence it is a long film of almost three hours giving detailed account of the actor’s innocence. He was wrongly accused under the TADA act for being a terrorist and went through great suffering and pain because of these accusations. The film drains you emotionally as it is very tragic and sad. It shows how fame and wealth are not immune to wrong publicity. How media destroyed the life of an actor who was imprisoned on wrong charges and the pain his father went through because of media massacre. We know how celebrities’ lives are affected by media, who manipulate stories to increase TRP and readership. This film accounts the worst-case scenario portraying the destructive effects of wrong publicity.

This is a very expressive film and Raj Kumar Hirani has communicated minor details very distinctly. Though the story is tragic, the progression of the film is captivating and holds you through the duration. The leads journey through drug addiction and the father son relationship are the focal points of the entire film. A great story has been woven around these focal points with rich characters. It is the story of a celebrity whose life is saved by a father and a friend. Ranbir Kapoor’s performance is such that the actor is lost and his character and role stand out. He has blended so well into Sanjay Dutt’s personality that it is difficult to distinguish. Paresh Rawal’s act is classy and emotional. Vicky Kaushal is sensational. He deserves an award for his role. The film is long, heavy and tiring. But it is definitely worth the watch. It has all the makings of an epic. If the events depicted are true then we as a nation have done great injustice to an innocent citizen.

Rating – 3.8 / 5

Evening Shadows

Sridhar Rangayan has done commendable work by bringing a gay themed film into mainstream cinema. His latest film "Evening Shadows" has all the ingredients that is commercially viable and capable of competing within the genre. So far there have been very few LGBT films which have the complete story feeling to them. Most have been very specifically related to the aspect of sexual orientation. But Evening Shadows is a complete story with the traditional Indian family set up and all the drama that comes with it. The extreme emotions that are associated with acceptance of a family member who is gay, have been expressed accurately. As someone who comes from a tradition south indian family, the movie was as real as my own life. And to be able to achieve that connect shows that the director has great vision and guts to implement. Mona Ambegaonkar has a pivotal role and her undying passion for performance is at its peak. Anant Mahadevan is a class apart and makes your blood boil. Devansh Doshi is sweet and likeable. They all make you emotional several times during the film.

Though I feel there was an effort to include a lot of aspects related to the community, they weren't necessary, They do not add to the story and are oblivious.The ending is abrupt and one cannot see it coming. However , this film is complete and satisfying. It is a must watch and will be one of my favorite Indian LGBT film.

Rating - 3.8 / 5

October

Its great to see Hindi cinema graduate from the mold of hero, heroine, villain, dance and dhishum dhishum to a variety of new genres and themes. We see so many new stories. Different from the old, rusty and repetitive films. Films that have variety that cover human emotions other than love. And even if it is love the story is the champion and not the plain vanilla puppy love. October is light, simple, modest and drama free. It is a story that could happen to any of us. The film is as easy as any of our lives or our friend’s lives happening in front of us. 

A sweet story of an unusual character who is given in to the possibility of love. A character so plain and naïve that he goes on to do everything for that tiny possibility. Mocked at and ridiculed by the “regular” world for his nature and actions, Dan is that eccentric friend we all have who does not easily fit in. He has his own outlandish and childish ways and a belief system that is almost faulty. And he gives up everything for that belief.

The best part of this film is the importance of not so important things of life. The carpet of night jasmine fallen on the green grass. It’s delicate yet captivating smell that can drive a person to live and not die. The small favors of friends which tell you how much they care. They do it even though they do not have to. The tiny issues and small misgivings which blow out of proportion and get people into fights. Its like that lovely faint breeze that makes the evening beautiful. Like the small waves at the lake which do no more than lightly kiss your feet. This film may be boring for many , but the best part is its soft feathery feel that will warm you and make you feel complete.

Varun Dhawan has given a great performance but it is so obvious he is trying very hard. Does he lack confidence? If he does he should not. Because he is a good actor. Banita Sandhu gives a convincing performance. This is a good film if you are the kind who can simply gaze at the sky or watch rain for hours together or just sit on a park bench doing nothing.

Rating – 3.5 / 5