ASUR: Welcome to your dark side

Those eyes. Those dreadful eyes. They will haunt you. After you finish watching it and every time anyone mentions “Asur”. We have seen satan so many times in the Hollywood films and series. Beware, we have our very own devil now, and he is called Asur. Its only after watching this series will you realise the depth, breadth and intensity of Indian mythology and philosophy. It will put the evil all over, to shame. Like everything Indian does when it really comes to that.

Also, the time of the script writer has arrived. It has always been the hero, heroine, singers, music directors and a few times, the director, whose works were recognized and cherished. But we have conveniently ignored the creator. The person who gave birth to the story and the characters, without which there will be nothing. The real asur in “Asur” is the screenwriter, Gaurav Shukla. He brings forth a brilliant concept and story by weaving together Indian mythology, theology, astrology into the present and future in a complex yet relevant philosophical series that plays out in Asur. 

There is  good and evil within all of us and Asur is testament of what happens if we choose our dark side. All the dark words you can think of find their place in this dark, seductive and consuming act. Deadly, captivating, dangerous and destructive, the evil has never been so awesome. And in the battle of the good and the evil, the evil looks invincible. So far. The series loses its intensity and grip in a couple of episodes in the middle but the resurgence makes up for it. A must watch !

Arshad Warsi and Barun Sobti lead the cast with Vishesh Bansal, Amey Wagh and Gaurav Arora in supporting roles.

The title track matches the intensity, almost seducing you to the evil. 

Rating - 4 / 5

Shubh Mangal Jyada Savdhaan

Many of us have been at the receiving end of the aggressive promotion of this film in the past few weeks. If you have watched the interviews of the cast and the director on YouTube, or read it in the papers, you will remember Ayushman and the director, Hitesh Kewalya, saying that this film is about “normalizing” homosexuality and it is for the homophobes. And rightly so, the entire film not only tries to normalize homosexuality but is rather obsessed with it. The film is begging and pleading homophobes to change their mindset and accept homosexuals. And how does it do it? Through loads of humor. Every dialogue is a one-liner trying hard to make you laugh. And yes. Some actually do. But there is so much of it that you get overwhelmed with humor. 

The writing seems desperate to hide the issue at hand and stack up directionless, irrelevant and disconnected humor scene after scene. Its as if the director is paranoid that the film might not be accepted by the audience so he has piled every scene and dialogue with desperate humor. I, personally couldn’t follow a lot of it.  Slapstick sarcastic or plain, comedy is the heavy life saving jacket that the film carries throughout but sadly gets drowned by its own weight.

And in this attempt of survival the main theme or purpose of the film is lost. The characters are not developed. Every frame has too many people to fit in and all of them have their one liners being delivered breathlessly as if to tie down the audience to the chair. I understand that the film has to do well in the box office too. But the theme of sexual orientation is perceived to be so defeated that the first “main stream” film does gross injustice to it. Within the same premise of acceptance of a gay son in the middle class small-town Indian family, so much more could have been done. SO much more was expected. Jeetendra Kumar’s performance was a somewhat redeeming quality in the film.

The LGBT community should not have to try so hard to “normalize” itself. I would rather say, does have to try at all. But by trying so hard it once again is at the mercy of the straight community to deliver their judgement. To be accepted or not is in nobody’s control. It can be tried but not shoved down as humor hidden in the invisible cloak of comedy. It clearly shows that the makers and the cast have not understood the issue of acceptance and homophobia.

Rating – 2.5 / 5

  

Shikara

Shikara is the name of the house built by Shiv Kumar Dhar and his wife Shanti. It was their home, a place where their love grew after marriage and the place where they wanted to live out their lives. This Kashmiri Pandit couple was driven out of their homes in Kashmir like the lakhs of other Pandits in the 1990s. The film follows the story of this couple. It portrays pain and agony that people like them had to go through after being dislocated from their homes. The love story unfolds beautifully despite a disaster that dislocates them from their homes.

The dislocation of Kashmiri pundits from Kashmir has not got the due attention it deserves. Imagine if someone today comes to your home and asks you to leave it and your city permanently. Communal tensions and riots have destroyed the lives of so many. Those were just not houses but homes where love and emotions of families were nurtured.By losing their homes the Hindu pundits lost their identity and recognition. They lost their motherland.

In a complete Vidhu Vinod Chopra style the film has been made very subtly and beautifully. There is not as much aggression or violence as one would expect with Kashmir or militants.  But still the emotions and pain have been communicated convincingly. The beautiful couple in the picturesque valley convey the deep pain and loss very subtly.

Rating - 3 / 5

Panga

All readers who feel I am very harsh with my reviews, be warned. Serious criticism coming your way.

We have yet another oppressed woman finds her identity to wave the flag of feminism in the chauvinistic Indian society film. Enough already. How many more of those are we going to get? Aren’t the makers bored? Or are they completely seduced by the idea of remaking the mold and making those hundreds of crores? I mean, it is just so easy isn’t it? I don’t even think they need a scriptwriter now? The mold works. Perfectly. Especially when media is covering the rape and molestation stories with so much passion. Feminism is the talk of the day. Which, by the way, is vented on celluloid and fills the void of injustice in our soul. The public is just consuming the whole idea in kilos. And the films are raking in the crores.

This one doesn’t even have the lady oppressed. She is probably lost her identity and trying to find it or something like that. I couldn’t be bothered. Whatever happened to the game of kabaddi? We hardly get anything about the game. The techniques of the sport. Something to make the story interesting. To get your audience involved. We have had similar films which had intensity. They had passion. About the game. The matches. The players. They had depth. This one barely does lip service. A weight lifting tomboy character played by Richa Chadha, is like the mother figure driving the protagonist in her Bihari Hindi. And a kid who should have been slapped for arguing with the mother is actually the male chauvinist? Two or three remarks to show the villainous side. A jump or two here and there. And voila. India wins an international kabaddi championship. Disappointing.

A complete waste of a seriously talented, explosive and instinctive actor. We want to see the Kangana from Fashion again. We want to see the Kangana from Tanu weds Manu and Queen again. She is probably waiting in a script somewhere. May she come back soon. We finally have a smile that can beat Madhuri Dixit's smile. Fair and square. And it is of a man. Jassie, a gorgeous Punjabi plays the ram avatar husband and frowns exactly twice in the film. The screen is lit by his blessed set of teeth which is, at some level, redeeming. This is no panga. It is just dhanda.

Rating – 2 / 5

Chhapaak

Chhapaak is the sound of the acid hitting the face of the woman who has been attacked with it. The title song in the film says that with one chhapaak ( splash) the identity of the woman is changed forever. A few drops destroy her face forever. She cannot look beautiful anymore. She cannot work anymore. She cannot fulfill her wishes and desires anymore. It's amazing how inventive a man is to destroy, torture. mutilate, afflict suffering on a woman. Anytime a woman pursues something more than she is allowed by the patriarchy, the men invent new ways of suppressing her.

 Like the lawyer fighting for acid attack survivor Malti Agrawal says in the film that most of the victims were women who had a mind of their own and wanted to live their lives on their terms by making their own choices. The choices to be independent, love or marry a man of her choice or any other choice that went against the repressive and tyrannical man. What can be crueler than destroying the face of a woman which is an integral part of her identity? And then faces isolation thanks to the same patriarchy that judges her by her beauty, her face.  A distorted part of her identity that makes her unacceptable and victim of societal bigotry.

Chhapaak hits you hard with the lives of women who are acid attack survivors. It makes you angry and emotional while you witness their grave fate. And like me, you end up thinking of acid attackers and how they can be punished. And in that, the director has achieved his purpose of making this film. In telling the story of Malti who not only survived but fought to punish her attackers, become independent and find love. Deepika gives a poised yet, intense performance of a very beautiful girl who chooses to correct her disfigured face with grit and determination. Vikrant Massey gives a complimenting performance as a serious social worker working for the cause of acid attack victims.

Another important film that intends to wake us up and stop atrocities against women.

Rating - 3.5 / 5

Hotel Mumbai

“Fuck your prayers. That’s what started this shit.” One of the characters retorts to the head chef praying for his guests as they are escorted to a safer place. A hostage recites the Salat at gunpoint, hearing which the terrorist is not able to shoot her. Tourists and guests are being shot with a machine gun and their blood splatters like they were ripe tomatoes being thrown. The gruesome and tragic scenes are the closest you will get to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. The film follows the close encounter, step by step, that happened on that dreadful night. And watching it in itself was terrifying and sorrowful; I can’t imagine what the 200 plus hostages must have gone through as they were rescued. The staff of the five stars hotel known for its service continued to treat their guests as Gods even under these dire circumstances. Almost half of the 35 staff lost their lives saving them.

The cinematography is so good that it brought back the images I watched on the television 10 years back. I remember the news channels covering the whole attack showing live visuals of the Hotel Taj Mahal from the Gateway of India. The progression of the film as the terrorists scan every inch of the hotel killing anyone in sight is tense and scary. This is a very different experience compared to, say, a horror film. There is something fatal, instinctive and depressing about it when human life seems so fragile at the gunpoint of extremists. The sets of the interiors of the Taj with the background score make the film so real, it’s as if you are in the hotel. 

 Dev Patel gives a great performance as he adds another jewel to his repertoire of work. But the rest of the cast including Nazanin Boniadi, Tilda Cobham Hervey, Anupam Kher and the boys who played terrorist,s match the high standards to make a consistent film of high intensity.

Rating – 4 / 5

                                                 

The Sky is Pink

The Sky is Pink is based on the true story of Aisha Choudhary who is terminally ill due to a condition called pulmonary fibrosis. The film is based on her life and the journey she and her family go through as they deal with the inevitable. Aisha's mother is a possessed woman who will do everything to keep her child alive as long as possible. She and her husband are ready to go to any length to see their child live and fulfill her tiniest wishes. The lives of the members of her family revolve around Aisha's condition as they struggle with their helplessness of not being able to do much.

This film is about the inevitable end we all face. It is also about the process of dealing with it. Not only for Aisha but also for her family as they come to terms with her early death. It's a very emotional story that expresses the feelings and complications of the family who are going to lose a member. The sentimental chaos and emotional roller coaster the audience experiences has to be attributed to the wonderful scenes created by the director that emotes the feelings of a mother, a father, and a brother.

Somewhere during the film, you may begin to think about your relationship with death or the reality of losing someone you love. The film is philosophical at many levels. The experience is close to one of the life and transformation courses some of us may have done. These courses talk about death to wake us up to the reality of the things that really matter to us. Priyanka Chopra fulfills the character so well that it is as if she is about to lose her daughter. She has mastered different emotions related to being a mother and a wife and portrayed them passionately. Farhan matches her as the husband who takes a backseat allowing the emotional mother to take over as she protects her dying child. Zair Wasim gives another subtle performance as Aisha who deals with her own death while watching her family suffer. Though the suffering can get insufferable at some point which can't be helped.

A different film which made me very emotional and made me think of what really matters. You come out of the hall feeling enlightened. I guess Shonali Bose has achieved her purpose.

Rating - 3.8 / 5