At one point in Lenny Abrahamson's Room, Joy says to her son Jack, "You know how Alice wasn't always in Wonderland?" Jack replies, "She fell down down down the hole." Joy, then, compares herself to Alice, "Well, I'm like Alice. I wasn't always in Room." Written by Emma Donoghue, and based on her own novel of the same name, Room is the devastating story of Joy and Jack who have been kept kidnapped in a room by Old Nick for over seven years. Joy was abducted by Old Nick and routinely rapes her. Joy and Jack have no contact with the outside world, except a skylight window at the top of the room. Brie Larson won the Oscar for the best actress for her deeply moving portrayal of Joy in the film. After the nominations were announced, in an interview, Brie said, "I can't even believe it. I am just sitting here in complete and utter shock over all of this. I feel like I'm in a very bizarre Alice in Wonderland dream right now." It is interesting to note the use of Alice in two completely different situations, as if it life imitating art, or art imitating life. Over the years, Alice in Wonderland has become such an iconic symbol of pop culture, perhaps, as significant as Shakespearean classics. Numerous adaptations of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland have been made. Written by Lewis Carroll, the story has continued to enthrall adults and children alike, since it was first published in 1865. It is filled with literary, philosophical, and scientific themes, such as growing up, and identity crisis, among many others. Some have even speculated that is based on drugs. I wondered if there have been characters in Hindi cinema based on Alice. Although there is no adaptation of Alice's story, except an animated series that aired on India's government owned-channel in the nineties, recently, there have been a few films that used Alice's story as an important subtext for its lead characters.
Vikas Bahl's Queen isa terrific story of Rani played by Kangana Ranaut who gets jilted by her fiancé a day before their wedding. Heartbroken, she decides to go on her honeymoon alone to Paris and Amsterdam. It is there when is she on her own for the first time in her life, she comes of age and learns to let go of her past. At some point in the film, when Rani is in the hostel in Amsterdam, she is wearing a sweatshirt on which is written 'Alice in Wonderland meets the White Rabbit', as if telling us that Rani is indeed Alice. This is her wonderland where Rani, like Alice, has fallen down the rabbit hole. Like Alice, Rani meets many characters on her journey, who are completely different from her world. She meets Vijaylakshmi, a single unmarried mother who has copious amounts of sex with strangers. Rani, later, makes a trio of friends—Taka, Olexander, and Tim—each of them from a different country and even stays with them in the same room, completely unthinkable for her in her home. She meets Ruksar, an Urdu speaking girl working in the red light district of Amsterdam to make her ends meet. Rani also meets an owner of an Italian restaurant with whom she has her first lip-to-lip kiss. These people bring a new perspective to her, and teach her something about life. And, just as Alice in Wonderland dealt with the theme of identity and growing up, Rani discovers her own self while on her journey. She does not need a man who does not value her. She can lead her own life, and be happy. She has escaped from the cage and found her wings to fly. Jugni udi, naye naye par liye, O pinjara khol.
Sachin Kundalkar's Aiyyaa is one of those films that make me feel happy just by thinking about it. I start laughing by myself when I recollect some of its scenes. Aiyyaa is the story of Meenaxi played splendidly by Rani Mukerji. Meenaxi is a typical Maharashtrian mulgi. Her family wants her to get married as soon as possible, although she wants to fall in love before getting married. She has a heightened sense of smell, and is drawn to Surya, a student studying arts in the same college where she worked. She follows him as if he is the Pied Piper whenever he is around as she cannot take control of her senses in presence of his hypnotizing smell. At one point in the film, Meenaxi tells us that her favorite book is Alice In Wonderland, and that she has read it at least hundred times, and sometimes, she feels it is as if her own story. If we think about it, Meenaxi is indeed Alice. Meenaxi's wonderland is her dreamland where she keeps going, where there is a lot of space for herself, where there is no garbage, and where everything smells beautifully. Her Lady Gaga-inspired friend Mynah is like the White Rabbit, who was always in a hurry as if on a stimulant. Later, Mynah also dresses as a bunny in one of the songs, and she keeps on drinking alcohol from her bottle Jumbo. Meenaxi's father smokes four cigarettes at a time, and repairs old telephones and he is like the Caterpillar. Her grandmother, with golden teeth, who cannot see and yet can see everything is like the always grinning Cheshire Cat. As the Mad Hatter said to Alice, "We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad," it is true for the film itself where every character is mad. All characters have their own idiosyncrasies. In fact, the board outside their house has 'Insaanon Se Saavdhaan' written on it. Like the blue dress of Alice, most of the time Meenaxi is also dressed in blue color. In the final moments of the film, Meenaxi's father asks if it isa dream or reality, which gives us another indication that perhaps this is some sort of a wonderland.
In both Queen and Aiyya, the reference to Alice was explicit but there are other women of strength that can be likened to Alice. In Gauri Shinde's English Vinglish, an entrepreneurial housewife Shashi, played by Sridevi, is ridiculed by her husband and her daughter for her lack of English skills. She travels to America all alone, and enrolls herself in a class to learn English. America becomes her wonderland that provides her the freedom and the opportunity to learn English, and eventually, win the respect of her family. In Imtiaz Ali's Highway, Veera, played by Alia Bhatt, undertakes a spiritual journey to escape the sheer pretentiousness of the society that makes her feel so claustrophobic that she finds succor in a man who abducts her. She comes out from the shell and is amazed by this wonderland, where she can see feel the wind on her face, sleep under the sky, play with water, feel the plants, and simply be her own. In Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding, based on a wedding in a family in Delhi, one of the beautiful side stories in the film involves the maid of the house Alice and the wedding planner Dubey Ji. Alice is dreamy like Alice In Wonderland and dreams of slipping into her mistress' shoes some day. As Lewis Caroll wrote, "Which way you ought to go depends on where you want to get to," here's hoping to see more Alices embarking on an adventurous journey and entering into uncharted territories, because for us, it will be our chance to see the wonderland through them.
In a scene in Farhan Akhtar's Dil Chahta Hai, Tara (Dimple Kapadia) comes to see the paintings of Sid (Akshaye Khanna). After carefully admiring the beauty of them, she says to him, "Isme bhi vahi baat. Aaj maine tumhare bare me kuch jana hai. Ek aisi baat jo pehli mulakat me pata nahi chali thi. Kehno ko to tum logo se milte ho, haste ho, bolte ho, lekin tumhare andar jo ek duniya hai, tumhare khwaab, tumhare sapne, vo tum kisi se baante nahi. Mujhe to lagta hai jo log tumhe jaante hai vo bhi tumhe nahi jaante." Sid, amazed at her insights, asks her how can she say something like that.She replies, "Darwaza khula nahi hai, andar koi ja nahi sakta, bakse ko kas ke tala lagaya hua, koi chori nahi kar sakta, aur in aankhon ke peeche kaun se jazbaat hai, kaun bata sakta hai. Tumhari har tasveer apne andar na jane kya kya chhupaye hai, shayad tumhari tarah." I couldn't help but remember the scene while watching Abhishek Kapoor's gorgeous and poetic Fitoor, an adaptation of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations. Fitoor is the story of Noor (Aditya Roy Kapur), Firdaus (Katrina Kaif), and Begum Hazrat (Tabu) enacting the roles of Pip, Estella, and Miss Havisham.
Noor is an upcoming artist from Srinagar. At one point in the film, his friend Arif tells him, "Jo andar hai vahi dikha." Then, he creates some of the most beautiful creations showing what he has inside. He paints numerous portraits of his childhood lover Firdaus, depicting all his memories of her. He paints his life in Srinagar. Later, when he is angry with Firdaus at the party, he makes a painting of her with barbed wires on it, which is auctioned as 'Scar Tissue.' In his exhibition in London, he makes a sculpture of a horse lying upside down, symbolizing his pain as he saw Firdaus for the first time on a horse. When Begum sees this sculpture, she remarks, "Mashallah, Noor, kya dil toota hai tumhara. Sab kuch to nikal ke bahar rakh diya, andar to sab khali ho gaya na." He took out everything that he had in him. It is here that there is a contrast with Sid. As Tara says, there is a leitmotif of something hidden in Sid's painting; however, there is nothing hidden about those of Noor, perhaps, like his own name that means light. Begum further adds, "Nanga lag raha hoga." He must be feeling naked. In earlier shots, we had seen Noor working with his shirt off. His chiseled naked body represents this naked state of mind. He has nothing to hide, and he is literally and metaphorically naked. But the irony of fate was that he depicted his true self in his creations, but his entire life was based on a lie.
There is an interesting theme throughout Fitoor—of having an amanat (treasure). Noor keeps every memory of Firdaus with him all his life. He does not let go of a single thing associated with Firdaus. He keeps her scarf with him. When Firdaus remarks that he is mad that he has kept it with him all these years, he replies, "Amanat hai meri. Jaise tumhare zevar nahi hote." He makes a horse for her that is made of fiber, and in the end, he makes another horse at his London exhibition as he associates Firdaus with running on a horse. He keeps the tiara he made for her with him throughout the years. He keeps the dog that Fridaus played with as his pet with him all his life. He paints all the memories of Fridaus in his portraits. He buys an expensive second-hand red car because Firdaus had a red car. Chahiye to chahiye. He even gets a tattoo of Fridaus on his arm as if he wants to permanently hold on to her memory within him. He learns the story passage that Firdaus told him when she was reading a book. When Noor and Firdaus meet in Delhi, they visit the Humayun's tomb. Then they go to the Taj Mahal. Both being the monuments of love built in the memory of love—the former being made because of an initiative of Bega Begum for his deceased husband Humayun, and the latter being made by Shah Jahan for his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal. (In a scene, we see Noor drinks Taj Mahal tea brand—great product placement and some nice way to make money). Not only Firdaus' memories, but Noor also holds onto the sketching book his sister gave him when he was young. Begum, too, holds on to her possessions. Her amanat. She refuses to let go of Anjuman when offered a price much higher than the market price, even though she is on the verge of penury. She keeps the necklace that her lover Mufti gave her; like Noor mentioned earlier, he holds on to the scarf like jewelry. Begum's jewelry is precious to her not because of its monetary value but because of its emotional value. She always wears it and keeps touching it when she is thinking. Her relative mocks her behind her back, saying, "Aadhi se zyada jaydaat gehno me zayar kar di hai." When she gives a necklace to Firdaus, she says it is her ammi ki amanat. She tells Firdaus, "Ab tum kisi ki amanat banne ja rahe ho." Firdaus replies about what good she will be when she becomes an amanat, she will be like a decorative necklace hung as a showpiece. Firdaus was given as an amanat to Begum. Bilal physically abuses Fridaus as if she was his toy. When Firdaus realizes that she is not anyone's possession, she buries her mother's necklace with her dead body and makes sure to give her engagement ring to her fiance's father. Bilal's father holds on to his amanat—his lifelong love for Begum. Even the mysterious benefactor Mauzzam remembers the phiran that Noor gave him on that snowy night. Woh ladka nahi bhula paya, jo ghar se bhaag ke liye mere liye phiran laya tha. Us phiran ki yaad ne kai raat mujhe garam rakha. These characters are trying to hold on to their possessions, memories, and amanat because "Dum toot jata hai par peecha nahi chhotata. Pyaar. Pyaar bhi ajeeb jaanwar hai, chabuk taan do, bhukka maar do, zinda gaadh do, par kambhakht baaz nahi aata." Even after death, one cannot escape love. It is like an animal, Beat it, starve it, bury it, but it never goes away, and it only comes out stronger. Deep inside, they are terribly sad, and the physical artifact compensates for the lack of physical and emotional availability of the people they love.
Unlike Haider, in which the political symbolism was quite overt, in Fitoor, the political symbolism here is slightly subdued and focused more on the characters' love story. In the beginning moments of the film, Begum remarks, "Sabko is jannat ke chhote choote hisse chahiye." Kashmir is often called jannat. When Noor is introduced in the social circuit of Delhi as the boy from Dal, a socialite asks him about his views on freedom. He says that art and politics cannot be separated. The song Hone Do Batiyan appears on an initiative called Roots where a delegation of Pakistan comes to India for talks. After this song, Noor makes a political remark where he screams a famous slogan, "Doodh mangoge to kheer denge, Kashmir mangoge to cheer denge." One of the most impacting scenes of the film is a bomb blast in Srinagar. Noor's exhibition is called Art For Freedom series. At a later point, Arif remarks, "What could be macabre from one could be freedom for someone else," quite similar to the statement one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter. Though politics remains in the background, an analogy can also be made to the film's characters here. Firdaus is like Kashmir, Bilal is like Pakistan, Begum is like India, and Noor is like the people of Kashmir. The stunning beauty of Kashmir parallels the beauty of Firdaus. In fact, at one point, Begum says, "Gar firdaus, ruhe zamin ast, hamin asto, haminasto, haminast." If there is ever a heaven on earth, it's here, it's here, it's here. This phrase was used for the beauty of Kashmir, and it has the word firdaus, reinforcing the idea that Firdaus was indeed Kashmir. At another point, Noor talks about the wars between India and Pakistan and that he will have to fight to get Firdaus (Kashmir) this time. Bilal from Pakistan tries to take control of Firdaus and physically abuses her. Begum is like India. Like Firdaus is not the natural daughter of Begum, but she takes care of her and tries to control her, the same can be said of India and Kashmir. At one point, Begum remarked that she had locked away Firdaus' heart in a safe. In this, Noor fits as the boy from Dal, and he loves Firdaus like Kashmiris love Kashmir. Firdaus tells him that she thought he would free her, and he replies that either death or love can give freedom from oneself. In the end, Noor and Firdaus get together as if making a statement that only Kashmir and its people can decide their fate. It is his love that sets her free. But to reiterate, the film focuses more on the love story aspect rather than making political connotations on Kashmir.
The film also shows us the difference in the economic class of Noor and Firdaus, and various elements show this difference. When Noor sees Firdaus for the first time, she is riding a horse, and he is standing on the ground. She sees his shoes with a hole in them, and Noor becomes conscious of them. Later, Firdaus is standing at the window, and Noor looks up. When Noor meets her at a Delhi party, she comes down the stairs, and Noor looks up. Later, when she calls him from an exhibition, she again stands at a higher level and looks at his shoes. He twitches his toes in his torn shoes. A few seconds later, he goes to a shop and buys the finest polished shoes. Firdaus is shown at a higher level to symbolize her high status, and the shoes reflect Noor's changing stature. When Begum saw Noor, she had said, "Jooton se aage aur bhi jahan hai." Later, there is another shoe reference, when Leena remarks, "Joote ghis jaate hai yahan tak pahunchte, Noor," where Noor's shoes are worn out.
At one point, Begum says to Noor, "Itna dard kaise laate ho apne kaam me." Later, when she visits London, she says, "Kya dil toota hai tumhara." Noor's paintings carry a lot of pain in them. This premise was the theme in Rockstar where Jordan wanted his heart to break because Khatana Bhai had told him, "Toote hue dil se hi sangeet nikalta hai, jab dil ki lagti hai na, tukde tukde hote hain, tab aati hai jhankaar." Music comes from the miseries of the broken heart. When the heart feels pain and gets broken into pieces, the music beats start playing automatically. We, actually, see him feeling the pain. He makes a sculpture using barbed wires and hurts his hands while making it. Like Jordan, Noor, too, becomes a great artist driven by Firdaus. Not only Rockstar, but at many times, the film's mood is quite reminiscent of Lootera. The pace and the theme give strong vibes to Lootera. At one point, Firdaus and Noor are in a car, and the scene looks exactly like the one between Pakhi and Varun, which was also present in the film's poster. At one point in Lootera, there is a replication of a scene in a painting, and in Fitoor, during Pashmina, there is a replica of a scene in a painting. There is also a particular sequence thatreminded me of Jodhaa Akbar. There was this scene in that film in which Jodhaa used to look at the ceiling and couldn't fall asleep initially. When Akbar visited Jodhaa's place, the same thing happened to him. Never fully understood the real meaning of that, but here, too, Noor looks at the ceiling. Later, Firdaus also looks at the ceiling but there is a circular wreath lining it, similar to the gift that Noor had made for her.
The first time Noor sees Firdaus, she is riding a horse, dressed in pure white, surrounded by the pristine snow. There is a shot of a frozen stalactite just before she comes. In many ways, Firdaus was like the snow—a cold person. She does not show much emotion and is sent to London. In the final scene of the movie, she runs towards Noor. Again, she is dressed in pure white, and Noor embraces her in his arms by wrapping his shawl around her as if the warmth of his love has finally been able to melt her coldness and aloofness. She runs on a bridge from one end to the other as she has crossed to the side of Noor's love.
Amit Trivedi's music is excellent. The songs mainly come in the background. As shown in the promotional videos, Pashmina is splendidly choreographed on the grown-up Noor and Firdaus, but that sequence is not used in the film. It is picturized on the young Noor and Firdaus and is lovely. The song is melodious and soothing. Most of the imagery mentioned is about things that are new and delicate. Pashmina dhaagon (threads of wool), bune (weave), kaliyon (bud), naye saaz (new beats) and many words with kacchi (raw), shabnam (dew). Most of the things are those we cannot touch, only imagine or feel, such as khwaab (dream), ehsaas (realize), raaz (Secret), jazbaat (emotions), hawa (air), dhuaan (smoke), dhoop (light), saaya (shadow), khayalon (thoughts), and lamhe (moments). It makes sense that the song is filmed on the young Noor and Firdaus who are trying to form a new bond between them. I totally loved Ranga Re.
The red colored-hair of Firdaus and Begum is a representation of the passionate red of the chinar leaves. At one point, Bilal's father says about the love that as time passes, it gets even thicker. "Jaise waqt guzarta hai, aur bhi gaadha ho jata hai." The thick red color of Noor's palette is symbolic of this love. His love, too, grew stronger with time. Anay Goswami's superb cinematography accentuates the fitoor (passion) in Fitoor. Kashmir looks beautiful in those colors of white and orange. The film is visually stunning.
No surprises again that Tabu delivers another fabulous performance. It seems as if she is made to do characters based on English classics. She brings gravitas to the role. In the book, Miss Havisham looks like a ghost and is not a likable character. At one point in the film, a character does mention that Begum's house is haunted, and one should be wary of ghosts there, but the film humanizes Begum and gives a background of why she behaved the way she did. Begum is haunted by the events of her past, and she cannot let go of them. It is only in death that she finally gets her freedom. Interestingly, she meets her end like Nimmi (Maqbool) or Lady Macbeth (Macbeth). It is also noteworthy that the film's title credits begin with Tabu, and the names of Katrina Kaif and Aditya Roy Kapur come after Tabu. Hindi films usually start with either the male hero's name first or the lead characters, which is definitely a sign of Tabu's acting prowess. Initially, Rekha was supposed to play the role but backed out at the last minute. In an interview, Tabu said she stepped in, and when she tried the costumes originally made for Rekha, she fit perfectly in them as if the role was written for her. I was pretty curious that Begum's house was named Anjuman. In Umrao Jaan, Umrao, played by Rekha, sang, "Is anjuman mein aap ko aana hai baar baar." I wonder if that had something to do with it. The first time we see Begum, she is listening to Hamari Saanson Me Aaj Tak Vo Heena. It is a lovely ghazal.
Aditya Roy Kapur as Noor is excellent. He channels Noor's passion quite well. He has worked hard. Katrina Kaif as Firdaus is decent. She is not as bad as some reviews have called her. She looks the part and performs well enough. Initially, I was skeptical of her, but she has worked to improve her acting. I really enjoyed their scenes. My favorite scene was when Noor sees her at the party and forgets all the pain of separation over the last few years, and he blushes. Sab pyaar ban ke beh gaya. Firdaus. Bas ek lafz ne hisab kar diya mera.
Some things are not very clear. We never get to know the reason for the limp of Noor's sister. It is also not clear the reason for Arif's dislike of Begum. Also, the film subtly hints at the homosexuality of Arif. At one point, I thought that Noor was Begum's son, whom she had to give away because she became pregnant out of wedlock, but eventually, everything ties out nicely in the end.
Even though the film is based on Great Expectations, we see a reference to another story by Charles Dickens. Firdaus narrates the famous opening lines from Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."
Fitoor presents a beautiful concept of love. Love is a fragrance. Noor smells Firdaus' scarf as it reminds him of her. He says he wants to return to the old days when he could smell the fragrance, "Phoolo vale, khushboo vale din." Mufti smells Begum when they meet and says, "Pagal kar degi yeh khushboo humein." Begum tells Firdaus, "Kheench hi layi na tumhari khushboo use." Love also makes them stuck in the past, and they try to hold on to those memories. Noor says he misses the old days and says, "Ab jo chala gaya waqt, dil usi ko dhoondta rehta hai." When they drive to Taj Mahal, he says, they are going, "Saalo se peeche, sitaron se aage." Going back in time, ahead of the stars. Firdaus writes a letter to Noor in which she writes when will they both grow up? She later scolds Noor for being childish. Begum, too, is stuck in her past. She remembers what Mufti did to her, and her decision to cut off Firdaus from Noor was based on what happened to her. At one point, Firdaus even tells her that what happened to her in her past has no bearing on what will happen to her in the future. As Gulzar has said, "Dil dhoondhta hai, phir wahi, fursat ke raat din, baithe rahein, tasavvur-e-jaana kiye hue," Fitoor reminds us of this again.
At one point, Leena says to Noor that his work requires, "Presentation, scale, context." Abhishek Kapoor's Fitoor has all three—presentation, scale, context. She later pitches Noor's work to a client. Bahut soulful kaam hai iska. Likewise, Fitoor is soulful. It is heartfelt. It is thoughtful. O haan main rangaa re. Tere rang rangaa re. Dialogue of the Day: "Ek bas seene me dil chahiye, baki aap puri kayenaat se lad padoge."
—Noor, Fitoor
I have written on Queen many times before, but there is something about the film that is so amazing. I can watch it any number of times. Rani's journey is exhilarating and cathartic. There is so much to learn from Rani's story. At an earlier point, when Vijay refused to marry her, Rani's dadi tells her that to not lose hope. Kaun kahan mil jata hai kisko kya pata, bas apni zindagi jee aaram se bilkul, jo milna hota hai na zindagi me, vo mil ke rehta hai, use koi nahi rok sakta; jo hua accha hi hua. Initially, Rani is depressed and angry at the circumstances that shake her innocent life. In a state of drunken stupor, Rani narrates the story of a certain Gupta Uncle. She says, "Mera haal na Gupta Uncle ke jaisa ho gaya hai. Gupta Uncle ko na cancer ho gaya hai, unhone kabhi sharab nahi pi, cigarette nahi pi, phir bhi cancer ho gaya. Isse accha to pi lete. Apni mummy daddy ki har baat maani hai maine, teachers ki har baat maani hai maine, kabhi exam me cheating nahi ki, kabhi jhooth nahi bola, tu jiska naam lo uski har baat mani hai maine." I felt that the underlying message of both these statements is the same. There should be no expectation of award for following our own choices. Likewise, there is no point in being desolate at something that is not under our control.
Somehow, I was reminded of Geet and Aditya in Jab We Met. At one point, Geet says to Aditya, "Tum to life mein bahut serious the Aditya. Kya fayda hua? Bahut bade problem to tum bhi pahns gaye na. Agey kya hone wala hain iss par kisi ka control toh hai nahi toh aise mein main wahi karti hoon jo mera dil kehta hai. Kal ko main kisi ko blame nahi karna chahti ki tumhari wajah se meri life kharab ho gayi. Meri life jo bhi hogi mujhe pata hoga ke mere wajah se aise hai toh I’ll be happy. Mujhe to lagta hai ki insaan jo kuch bhi real mein chahta hai na, actual mein, usko life mein vohi milta hai.” It is a beautiful thinking, which is why Geet stole our hearts. I don't necessarily agree with the last part that we get everything we want, but I take it in the sense that we need to take actions to get what we want. At this point, last year, I was in a miserable state and almost on the verge of a breakdown. I have worked with all kinds of people in my very limited work experience, and I think I have a high amount of patience, but never I felt I was under a state of horrifying terror like last year at this point. I think I survived that time by watching movies, and it might seem childish, but it was kind of therapeutic. Queen was one movie that I watched again, and again. Rani's story is motivating that eventually everything happens for a reason. She has no anger towards Vijay in the end, rather she thanks him for bringing a sea change in her life. So, thank you, Rani, and Geet, for the motivation in life. If only, we all could learn from you all.
Dialogue of the Day:
"Jo chhoti si har ek neher, saagar ban bhi jaaye,
Koi tinka le ke haath me dhoondh lenge hum,
Kinaare. Kinaare. Kinare.
Khud hi To hain hum. Kinaare."
—Queen
Even if every small canal turns into a sea,
We’ll take a straw in our hands and find the shores.
I really don't know what prompted me to watch Shimit Amin's Rocket Singh—Salesman of the Year again. There are many films that on re-watching bring a new perspective. Released in December 2009, I remember watching it and liking it a lot. I was just a few months into my first job, with no experience in running companies. Now, nearly six years have passed, and with some experience working in different organizations, I wanted to see if I could understand better the inherent message of the film.
Rocket Singh—Salesman of the Year is the story of Harpreet Singh Bedi (Ranbir Kapoor), who stays with his grandfather P.S. Bedi (Prem Chopra). He gets 38.72% in his B.Com, is quite satisfied with it, and has no intention of pursuing an MBA. He wants to be in sales. He gets a job as a salesman at At Your Service (AYS), a firm that sells assembled computers. Brimming with idealism, he meets a client who asks for a bribe for giving the order to AYS. Harpreet refuses and instead submits a written letter of complaint against the client for asking for a payback. His bosses at AYS are furious with him, and humiliate him for taking this step. Dejected by the constant ridicule of his colleagues, and the unethical practices encouraged at AYS, he secretly starts his own firm Rocket Sales Corporation while still working for AYS. He promises excellent customer service to his customers, and within a few weeks, he starts grabbing the market share. Of course, AYS' boss eventually gets to know, and then problems ensue for Harpreet.
There is a lovely moment in the film when Harpreet and his grandfather are watching the scene of the battle of Rama and Ravana in Ramanand Sagar's Ramayana. A similar battle is fought between Sunil Puri's AYS and Harpreet's Rocket Sales Corporation. Rama started all alone in the jungle with no resources with him to fight his battle with Ravana, but he made friendships, and partnerships with people, such as Sugreev and Hanuman, along the way to Lanka and was able to defeat the giant Ravana. Rama's victory is hailed as the victory of good over evil. Ravana was one of the most intelligent and knowledgeable persons ever in the history of existence, but his arrogance became the cause of his downfall. Likewise, Harpreet starts off all alone, but along the way, he makes partners, such as Koena, Giri, Nitini, and Chhote Lal, that help him start his firm. His firm does not engage in evil practices; thus, its victory is symbolic of good over evil. He grabs the market share from AYS because of his superior service, whereas AYS seemed to have no idea what customer service is all about. Its arrogance that no one can defeat them became the cause of its downfall, even though it used all the resources at its disposal. To extend the argument further, one can argue on the ethics of Rama's battle in taking the help of an insider Vibhishan who knew all the secrets of Ravana; similarly, Harpreet starts as a firm while being an insider in AYS. Though he follows the rule of ethics by noting down all the resources of AYS that he used for starting his firm, this action of his is undoubtedly illegal. But the thing is that the film does not try to condone his illegalities, instead, it duly punishes Harpreet for them. In this David versus Goliath battle, Rocket Sales emerges as the winner over AYS, like Rama did over Ravana.
When Harpreet is constantly humiliated by his colleagues, they throw paper rockets at him. Harpreet is on a call with a new client, and a rocket lands at him. On an impulse, he names his firm Rocket Sales Corp., and then he throws back the rocket at his colleagues, who are surprised that he threw back one at them. Later, when his friends advise him that he is taking a considerable risk, he responds by saying, "Risk to Spiderman ko bhi lena padta hai. Main toh phir bhi Salesman hoon." It was not Harpreet who said this line for the first time. It was Nitin who had taught him this line when he took Harpreet along on his first client visit. When Nitin interviewed Harpreet, the room had a poster of Spiderman as the salesman with the tagline—There Whenever You Need Him. When Harpreet launched his own firm, he promised 24-hour customer service. Thus, the true champion of the Spiderman poster was not Nitin but Harpreet, who took a considerable risk and promised the same service as that mentioned in the poster. Harpreet was the Spiderman. At one point, Giri says, "Tu jo lagta hai vo hai nahi, jo hai maloom nahi", as if Harpreet channels his ordinary Peter Parker persona into that of a Spiderman.
Nitin's character was an equally interesting one. He is exceptionally smart, and he had the same idealism as that Harpreet when he started, but due to the nature of the corporate world, he gave up on it and became like the others. When Puri finds out about the scam, he throws all members of Rocket Sales Corp. out. At that point, Nitin is sitting in front of a job portal with his daughter in his lap. The circumstances of feeding his family might have caused him to change earlier also. I was reminded of Subhash Ghai's Taal, where Vikrant had these two sets of principles. One from his maa and one from his mama. Following his mother's utopian principles landed him nowhere, while following his uncle's practical principles gave him instant success. It is hard to judge Vikrant's success because he did try to follow his mother's principles. It is the harsh reality that coming-of-age movies often ignore. Doing what you really want is easier when you have the cushion of something to fall back on, but for people like us, making ends meet is equally important. In Wake Up Sid, Sid fails in his exams, but he has the luxury of living on his father's credit card. He moves out of his father's house, and then the reality confronts him that he needs money. In many ways, Rocket Singh—Salesman of the Year, could be a middle-class version of Wake Up Sid.
The film is painstakingly detailed and meticulously researched. Nitin's tricks that he teaches Harpreet, such as putting the tie in his pocket while eating, the ability to read upside down, and never leaving one's real name in the entry register, show extensive research. Harpreet's friends call him HP, sometimes reminding us of the computer company HP. In the end, Puri comes to meet Harpreet at a Croma store. The store seems to have a specific context. Croma is owned by TATA, a group known for its ethics and service, and it is in that store that Harpreet finds a job. When Harpreet, Koena, and Giri make their plan in the dhaba outside their office, Duniya Mein Logon Ko from Apna Desh plays in the background. Even that film is based on the honesty of a young man that becomes a liability to his corrupt superiors, like in the case of Harpreet.
Shimit Amin's previous film Chak De! India became a case study on leadership. There is much to learn from Rocket Singh—Salesman of the Year, too. In one instant, we see a poster of the famous Peter's Laws, The Creed of the Sociopathic Obsessive Compulsive. A similar poster can be created based on learnings from the movie.
Peter's Laws
Money cannot buy everything. Thori conversation, thori persuasion, thori negotiation can help win over someone.
Customer service is of paramount importance.
Sales hi aisa ek field jahan numbers se zyada akal chahiye hoti hai.
Treat employees as partners, and then they will put in their best effort. Never treat them like they do not matter. Even Chhote Lal can assemble computers, and he craved a little respect from his colleagues.
Think of people, and numbers will automatically come.
Even zero has a value. Puri ridiculed Harpreet as a zero in front of everyone, but in the end, that zero proved his immense value.
Never forget those who helped you out when you had nothing. They took a risk on you when you had nothing, so don't betray their trust. As Shah Rukh Khan beautifully summed up in Luck By Chance, "Unhe mat bhoolo jo tumhe tab jaante they jab tum kuch nahi the, bas yahi hain jo tumse hamesha sach bolenge."
Every person has two types of qualities, those that take him up and those that bring him down. The ones he uses more will show where he ends up.
Aaadmi ek baar bik jiye, toh dusre hamesha use bikau samajhne lagte hai
Harpreet is genuinely a nice person Koena has to tell him that if he can't disturb people, how will he become a salesman. It is his niceness that becomes a problem for him to survive. At one point, his grandfather admonishes him for his act. He responds that he did not teach him how to do a thief's work; if he'd taught him, he wouldn't have become a thief. It shows how important an upbringing affects a person's actions. His screensaver is a picture of Guru Nanak. When his grandfather prays in front of Guru Nanak to give him blessings, Harpreet feels guilty about stealing an order. He cancels the pizza order and goes back to eating daal. It shows this belief in a higher entity that is watching us all. He is so calm even when his boss shreds him to pieces in front of a client; I felt like, why doesn't he hit back? Then he realizes that his boss is ridiculing him because he is letting him, and he wants to teach him a lesson. Despite all this, Harpreet never has any anger towards his boss when he comes to visit him in the store in the end and gives a spiel. There are really very few people like Harpreet these days. Even his girlfriend has to tell him to use her.
Now, the elephant in the room—Puri. He is a terrifying figure. He is cunning and can read people very well. He started as an entrepreneur. He has adapted to change well. He started with typewriters, then moved to fax machines, and finally, sold computers. His motive is profit at any cost. He paid bribes and engaged in unethical and, possibly, illegal practices. However, I won't judge him for this. Running a business in India is nearly impossible with its humongous red tape and license raj. Even if one tries to be ethical, the clients won't let them. They would demand a share, as in the National Chemicals case. Even to get a straightforward fire safety clearance, one has to grease palms. Of course, some businesses are ethical, but it is difficult to look at them in isolation of the business environment, which is why there is a big brouhaha on the ease of doing business. Puri did well in establishing his business, but he lost the human aspect of treating employees and customers with respect, dignity, and fairness, which he needs to correct. There is a thoughtful moment in the film when he stands in front of his numerous awards. He would have disrupted the market when he started, and now, a new player with a completely new business model has come up disrupting the market. That is the way innovations come into place.
Based on the concept of objectivism, Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead described its four principal characters in terms of what a man should be. It said, "Howard Roark is the man who was 'as man should be,' who lives for himself and his own creativity, indifferent to the opinions of others. Gail Wynand is the 'man who could have been,' who rises from the poverty of his youth into an extremely rich and powerful position. Still, he uses his superlative talent not to create for himself but to control others, leading to his demise. Peter Keating is 'the man who couldn't be, and doesn't know it,' who wants to achieve as well as make a name for himself but lives off the support and condolence of others, which leads to his demise. Ellsworth Toohey is 'the man who couldn't be, and knows it,' who sets out to destroy others through guilt and altruism because he knows that this is the only way he can accomplish anything." In some ways, the description of the four characters could be mapped to the characters of Rocket Singh—Salesman of the Year. Harpreet is the idealist as man should be.Nitin, his boss, was like Harpreet when he started but lost out on many promotions because of his idealism; hence, he abandoned it and became like the others. He is the man who could have been. The other salesman in the office, who have no idea that they are being used and are fighting among themselves without any idea of what they stand for, personifies the man who couldn't be and doesn't know it. Finally, Sunil Puri, the owner of AYS, the much-feted and popular leader, is 'the man who couldn't be, and knows it, as he comes to realize that even after he has purchased the brand of Rocket Sales, he cannot provide the same service as them.
Rand's hero Howard Roark is a selfish man in the positive sense that he is true to his values, convictions, thinking, mind, and self. To be true to himself, a man must first have a self. She argues that the ultimate moral value, for each human individual, is his or her own well-being, and she believes that selfishness is a virtue. At many times, Harpreet tells us that he is only doing this for himself, "Apni hi to parwah kar raha hun." That is the ultimate goal we all should aspire for—to take care of ourselves. After all, if we won't, then who will?
Dialogue of the Day: "Uljhe nahi to kaise suljhoge, Bikhre nahi to kaise nikhroge." —Pankho Ko, Rocket Singh—Salesman of the Year P.S.— Sell the pencil was quite like the pen scene in The Wolf of Wall Street.
Hindi films have often explored the theme of two different persons with the same face. In Yash Chopra's Lamhe, Viren Pratap Singh (Anil Kapoor) falls in love with Pallavi (Sridevi); after her death, Pallavi's daughter Pooja (Sridevi) falls in love with Viren. A conflicted Viren struggles to understand if he is in love with Pooja or if Pooja's face is a carbon copy of her mother, Pallavi. In Anand L. Rai's Tanu Weds Manu Returns, Manu (Madahavan) splits up with his wife Tanu (Kangana Ranaut), and meets Datto (Kangana Ranaut) who has a striking resemblance to his wife. He thinks he is in love with Datto, but it is somewhat clear that he is in love with Datto's face, which reminds him of his wife. In Rakesh Roshan's Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai, Sonia (Ameesha Patel) summed it up perfectly when she said that she feels tortured when she sees Raj (Hrithik Roshan) as his face reminds her of her dead lover Rohit (Hrithik Roshan).
Interestingly, there have also been films that depict the concept of two different personalities of the same person. In Hrishikesh Mukherjee's comedy of errors Gol Maal, Amol Palekar takes us on a joy ride by creating two versions of himself to dupe his boss. In Vijay Lalwani's Karthik Calling Karthik, Karthik (Farhan Akhtar) suffers from a split personality disorder where he calls himself in the middle of the night. These films are often comedies or psychological thrillers. A few days ago, Aditya Chopra's Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi completed seven years of its release. I had recently watched Imtiaz Ali's Tamasha and was still in the thinking temporal zone that an Imtiaz Ali film leaves us with. Curiously, it struck me that not only do both these films have the same theme of two different personalities of the same person, but they also have many other similarities.
Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi is the story of Surinder Sahni (Shah Rukh Khan) and Tani (Anushka Sharma). Due to the death of Tani's fiancé on her wedding day, Surinder is asked to marry Tani. After they get married, she tells him she will be a good wife, but she can never love anyone again. To get back her old happy Tani, Surinder plays Raj's role as Tani's dance partner. Somehow, by the grace of Rab, she cannot identify that Raj is Surinder only. Tani decides she wants to love again but is unsure who she is in love with—Raj or Surinder—even though they are the same person.
Tamasha is the story of Ved Vardhan Sahni (Ranbir Kapoor). The story begins in Corsica. He meets Tara Maheshwari (Deepika Padukone). They decide to spend some time together without revealing their true identities or who they are in real life. He says he is Don, while she says she is Mona Darling. They decide that they will not meet again. Whatever that will happen between them in Corsica will stay in Corsica. But as it happens, Tara falls in love with Ved. Four years later, she looks for him in a cafe, hoping that she will bump into him. She does. He introduces himself as Ved, a product manager at a firm. They agree to go out, but soon Tara realizes this is not the Ved she fell in love with. The point of conflict between Tara and Ved is this dual personality of Ved, where Tara is in love with the Ved whom she met in Corsica, while he thinks he was only playing a role then. She breaks off with him. She tells him that he is suffering from a complex. Then begins his journey of self-realization. About finding who he really is.
In Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Surinder is mousy and timid. He works in Punjab Power, but there is nothing powerful about him. He has always been a good boy and fits the ideal child's description on those kitschy aadarsh balak charts. He goes on his mundane job daily, but when he sees Tani, he falls in love with her. To make her feel happy, he takes up the role of someone who is his exact opposite—loud, brash, and fun—Raj. I wonder the ease at which he can take up the role of Raj, perhaps, he always has this side to him, but her never showed it to anyone. Likewise, in Tamasha, Ved's daily job is like Surinder's. He is a lakeer ka fakir. He wakes up, brushes his teeth, and eats the same breakfast daily. He gets nervous during presentations. His routine is so mundane that he holds the elevator door for the same lady every single day. In contrast, Ved's alter ego, Don, is the exact opposite of Ved. Don is free, no one can capture him, he talks to the mountains, he drinks water from the ponds like an animal. When Surinder watches films in theaters, he identifies the characters on the screen that are like him. Ved, on the other hand, is fascinated with stories and imagines himself to be in those stories. In the end, Surinder and Ved's alter ego triumphs. I don't think either film advocates that any side is necessarily better, but both films' essential message is to learn to be comfortable in your skin and not lose your identity. At one point in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Surinder says that he can change himself completely to make Tani happy, but he will not change himself to get Tani's love. He will not be someone who he is not. Ved learns that he does not need to be a lakeer ka fakeer if he feels suffocated, and he can follow his passion for telling stories. At another point in Tamasha, Ved runs out on the streets of Simla, meets a procession, and starts dancing like a dervish, immersed in his newfound freedom. A feeling of letting go, where he seemed to have finally found his dil ki aawaaz.
I am not saying that Suri and Ved have the same motivations. Suri is unable to express his love for Tani. At one point, he puts a rose with a note he wrote for Tani, then hesitates and keeps it back. His alter ego, Raj, helps him express that love, and he openly flirts with her, saying that she has to tell him not to flirt with her. In the case of Ved, he has this side to him, and Tara helps him embrace that side. She acts as a catalyst to help him reach his full potential, or else he would have been stuck in the same mundane existence all his life.
It is strange that not only the theme of duality of the lead roles is common to both films, but there are several similar elements in their screenplay. Surinder's alter ego is named Raj Kapoor. In contrast, Ved's alter ego is named Don after Amitabh Bachchan's eponymous character in Don, but he takes the most inspiration from Dev Anand. Surinder and Ved find refuge in Hindi film heroes for their alter egos. Surinder and Ved have the same last name—'Sahni.' In Rab De Bana Di Jodi, there is a tribute to the heroes of Hindi cinema, includingRaj Kapoor, Dev Anand, Shammi Kapoor, Rajesh Khanna, and Rishi Kapoor, in the song Phir Milenge Chalte Chalte. In Tamasha, there is a tribute to Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand in Matargashti. The song's lyrics refer to Dev Anand's films Tere Ghar Ke Saamne and Prem Pujari, and Ved copies Dev Anand's signature moments. The song also refers to Raj Kapoor's Chhaliya, and at many points in the film, the scenes of Tara and Ved are quite reminiscent of Nargis and Raj Kapoor. Phir Milenge Chalte Chalte and Matargashti refer to the same Dev Anand song, Dil Ka Bhanwar Kare. Thus, both films have a commonality: Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand.
As if the the above coincidences were not enough, there is more, which is my favorite. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and Tamasha have a Japanese connection, and both films end in Japan. I have struggled for days to come up with a satisfactory explanation for the Japan link, particularly in the context of Tamasha. No film director would take an entire crew to Japan for one scene if there is something that he is not trying to tell us. In Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Surinder fights with a Sumo wrestler and wins tickets to visit Japan. Ultimately, they visit Japan, and we witness one of the best ending credits in a film when Surinder describes his pictures from Japan. In Tamasha, Ved and Tara went on their first date to a Japanese restaurant. The waitress offered them different varieties of water. "What a brand, Japan.Companies are the latest countries, and countries hare the latest companies," said Ved. Ultimately, Ved and Tara meet in Japan at a tea conference where the building's board says Oracle. Japan is a place known for its robotic mechanization and efficiency. That could have something to do with it. While Surinder fights a Japanese wrestler to prove his love, Ved fights his inner demons. They are both at peace in Japan and have found love in Tokyo.
An interesting thought comes to mind. If Kuch Kuch Hota Hai was made by Imtiaz Ali, would Rahul realize that the Anjali he was friends with eight years ago is not the same Anjali he is now marrying? That's a discussion for some other day.
Dialogue of the Day:
"Pyaar to Rab ki meherbaani hai, toh pyaar me kaisa dard."
A year ends, another one begins. Life remains the same, except the date changes, and for us—the mortals—the time remaining on earth gets shortened by one year. However, a change of year gives a good opportunity to look back and reflect on the year gone by. The moments that deeply impacted us, the moments that gave us a sense of exhilaration, and the moments that stayed with us. After all, when the dust from the sepia-tinted memories will be wiped, it is these moments that we will remember as the story of that year. As the ever-so-wonderful MJ Akbar says, "History, sometimes, seems to be an accumulation of moments."
There is a quote attributed to Jerry Seinfeld. It says, "It's amazing that the amount of news that happens in the world every day always just exactly fits the newspaper." Any reader of a newspaper knows that the number of pages in a newspaper changes depending on the content availability. Likewise, we always find films to give awards to every year, whether good or bad. Making year end lists is a herculean task. If I was giving awards, I will give one to everybody, just for the effort. Nevertheless, I recollect the following moments from films released in the past year that have stayed with me (in no particular order).
Dil Dhadhakne Do—Neelam Mehra eating a cake in front of the mirror. Her philandering husband keeps mocking her eating habits. At the onset, it feels that it was a usual taunt, but only after this scene, we realize, she is compensating the love that she craves from her husband with food. There is no dialogue in that scene, only Shefali Shah stuffing her mouth with cake, and the background tune plays, yet, that scene says so much. "Silence, I discover, is something you can actually hear," says Haruki Murakami. True words.
Masaan—Deepak's breakdown after Shaalu's death. One moment, you are planning to spend your life with your lover; the next moment, you are crushing her bones to light her lifeless body in the pyre. Deepak breaks down at the ghaat, after screaming when does this grief ever end? And, we breakdown with him. The light of the fire, the blurb of the light from the windows of a train passing behind, the darkness of the night. His friends rush to comfort him. One tells him that he will hit him if he cries; the other offers him his motorcycle as if trying to placate a crying kid. How do you console a grieving friend? More than the death, it is the unpredictability of death that shocks us.
Bajirao Mastani—Mastani's entry into Shaniwar Wada in Deewani Mastani. I can't get enough of this song. Each scene of the movie is like a painting, but this remains the most exquisite of the lot. Everything flows perfectly in the song. Not a single moment of imperfection. I want to be in that song, even if it is only to be a fly. Immortalized in the walls and the mirrors for posterity.
Tamasha—Tara in Agar Tum Saath Ho. As I wrote earlier, in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, there is a charm called Expecto Patronum. The charm is used to fend off the happiness-sucking dementors, and one must muster the happiest memory they can think of, else the charm does not work. The happier the memory, the better the charm will work. Agar Tum Saath Ho casts a magical spell, but it is a reverse patronus. It will remind of a time of a devastating heartbreak, of a time of a wretched state, and of a time of a numbing hopelessness. The first fifteen seconds of the song are enough to bring back that flood of painful memories. Memories that one thought were purged, but in reality, they were buried somewhere deep in a small corner of the heart. Her inability to not let go of him; holding him tightly, caressing him on the table, to hold him for one more moment.
Talvar—At one point, Ramshankar Pillai, the former chief of CDI, tells Ashwin that we all know that the Lady Justice is blind, but people often forget that the Lady also carries a sword in the other hand. Like he talked about looking at both the hands, the film tries to explore the case from all possible sides. The last 30-minutes again explore this theme, with shades of Ek Ruka Hua Faisla. The poetic moment, "Woh afsana jise anjaam tak lana na ho mumkin, use ek khubsurat mod dekar chhodna achchha," from Gumrah, teaches us a lot about the finding a path to closure when we go gumrah.
Piku—I was really surprised by how much the film stayed with me throughout the year. I kept going back to listen to the film's sarod tune, which has a deep calming effect. The moment where there is a smile on Bhaskor in his death, as if he finally found the anand that he had forgotten, and the next scene where Piku goes to his room and sits on his bed is almost cathartic. At one point, Rana says, "Par apni roots unko agar ukhad do, toh kya bachega." And, as Piku says, if there were somebody else in her position, they would have done the same because we cannot judge parents. Because howsoever they are, we cannot judge our parents.
Tanu Weds Manu Returns—I did not care at all about Tanu and Manu who are plain stupid, but Kumari Kusum Sangwan's poise is something that stood out from the silly shenanigans of the others. If only Tanu and Manu had some sense to learn something from the maturity and the grace of Datto. The scene where Datto runs from her wedding, not showing her tears to anyone, and cries all by herself is something that made us care for her. She deserved better than Manu; and, I am sure she will find happiness in the future. One of my other absolute favorite moments in which I laughed out so loud was when Datto goes to kidnap Komal, and tells the girls something in Haryanvi, "Kal ki mariyo, bahar Saa Rukh Khan aya se." All the girls run out like he actually came. It was hilarious. If this was not enough, the girls come back and one of them says there is no Shah Rukh Khan, people are only making a fool out of them. On seeing Payal unconscious, they say, "Arey yeh to neeche hi so gayi." One has to see to realize the absurdity of the scene.
Badlapur—Elizabeth Kübler-Ross theorized five stages of grief—denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Raghu's inability to accept turns him into Joker from Batman. At one point, Raghu and Liak have a fight with each other, and then, Liak goes away, but comes back. He explains that that he lost his cool, and in the heat of moment, he killed Raghu's wife, but what about Raghu? He killed Harman and his wife in cold blood, even when they were innocent; so, essentially, what is the difference between him and Raghu? It is a moment which makes us wonder about the degrees of murder, and the purpose of vengeance. Life is lost in both the cases, but as Animal Farm taught us all murders are equal, but some murders are more equal than others.
Bombay Velvet—I understand little about music, but Behrupia was a gem in this spectacular film. I liked it more than Dhadaam Dhadaam. There is something about Mohit Chauhan's lilting voice. Bujhi shama se na dil behla, haath mein aayega tere bas dhuaan.
Dum Laga Ke Haisha—The animosity that Prem and Sandhya show towards each other by playing cassettes of the songs of the '90s is a cracker of a scene. It will bring back the nostalgia of growing up as a nineties kid—Kumar Sanu, Anu Malik, Alka Yagnik, Sadhana Sargam, Udit Narayan. Fascinating thing this nostalgia; it makes one feel young and old at the same time.
Shaandaar—Notwithstanding the opprobrium the film received, I loved Shaandaar. If you loved Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, you will love Shaandaar. In his earlier film Queen, Vikas Bahl portrayed Rani who learns that she does not need a man to be happy in life. She goes to her honeymoon all alone, as if she is Alice In Wonderland (as Rani wears a sweatshirt showing Alice). In Shaandaar, we again see an anti-fairy-tale where a girl literally takes out her clothes in her wedding, because her fiancé keeps mocking her for her weight, and then, she flies away in a helicopter. A shaandaar moment.
I have not watched NH10, Margarita With A Straw, Titli, Phantom, and Jazbaa, films that I look forward to watching sometime in the near future. I know more sad moments than happy ones, but it is the emotional connect that matters, no?
Dialogue of the Day:
"Har naam pe nahi rukti, dhadkanon ke bhi usool hote hai."
