Skip to main content

Dear Gauri and Alia - Wow!

Bollywood movies are coming of age, it seems, if the latest offerings are anything to go by. "Nil Batte Sannata", "Neerja", "Kapoor and Sons" and now Dear Zindagi. Slice of life films with a solid story-line, believable situations and stellar acting.

Gauri Shinde, who had earlier directed the gem "English Vinglish", comes up with another winner, this time focusing her lens on the trials and tribulations of a yuppie cinematographer, grappling with issues like parental neglect in childhood and commitment phobia at present. The whole gamut of fears that plague the "now" generation is highlighted in "Dear Zindagi". Loneliness, addiction to technology and the resultant isolation in actual life, the need to always act in a certain way, emotional vacuum, fear of building relationships, the protagonist faces all these and more.

The film is path breaking in the sense that for the first time, the confused and vulnerable heroine is shown seeking psychological therapy and counselling from a professional psychiatrist. This in itself raises the film above the ordinary. Hindi cinema has so far shied away from showing any kind of psychological malaise, particularly that of the hero or heroine, who are always depicted as perfect creatures. Here, the protagonist, (played by an excellently expressive and natural Alia Bhatt) is an extremely vulnerable, sensitive girl who is assisted by her therapist in discovering her true calling and in finding peace and happiness.

Alia and her supporting cast flesh out their characters beautifully. Shahrukh Khan as the therapist, is as natural and down to earth as he can be. The film's story and treatment are both refreshingly realistic. The director shows that she has her pulse on the youth of today and can deftly portray their angst, moodiness and loneliness.

Cheers to Gauri and Alia for collaborating on this winner of a movie! May Alia get all the praise and awards she so rightly deserves. Cheers to woman power in Hindi cinema!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

All We Imagine as Light- Lyricism on Celluloid

When an Indian film makes it the prestigious Cannes film festival, the world sits up and takes notice! And the lovely ladies swinging on the stage is a recent memory that brings a sense of pride. I had the good fortune to catch this film on screen recently. A review of such work is unnecessary, but still am bursting to say a few words. Right from the scintillating background score, to the events that unfold like pages fluttering in an open book, to the effortless performances, it's a masterpiece all right! The first half romances Mumbai- in the rains, at night, in the bazaars, in dingy rooms, in the local trains. Image source: Wikipedia  The second half shows what light truly is, brilliant sunshine, crashing waves and salty air in a small coastal village in Maharashtra. You can feel the taste of salt, the breeze in your hair and the touch of sand under your feet, the cinematography is so real. Payal Kapadia masters the art of holding back, of showing beauty in the mundane. The hosp...

Guru Dutt - Legacy of an Overlooked Genius

"Yeh Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaae to Kya Hai:" This heartfelt anguish was literally personified by film maker and actor extraordinaire - Guru Dutt, whose birth centenary happens to be tomorrow (July 9).  Maestro or Failed Genius? All his life, he strove to depict his vision, his dreams on celluloid. Yet, even as he strove for success, for renown, he was a bit of a recluse, a black sheep himself. It was as if he wanted to challenge the language of popular cinema by being within the format, from the inside. His women had brains, taxi drivers and masseurs were philosophers, sex workers pined for spiritual ecstasy, and friendships blossomed between unlikely people. Common people on the street spoke wiser logic than academics or high-nosed editors. The topics of the films may seem dated now, but the eternal truths voiced in them remain relevant.   His films were distinctly different from other popular Hindi films. They had all the commercial elements of song, dance, comedy, romanc...

All Work and No Life - Off Runs the Wife!

The recent ramblings of some elderly gentlemen (one a company founder, another a CEO) on how much we many hours we should be working, are symptomatic of all that is kaput with corporate India. The reason we have so few cases of innovators and path-breakers. The reason why Nadella and Pichai shine overseas. The reason start-ups and entrepreneurial attempts fail faster than you can say 1,2,3. These guys have got all the mathematics wrong!  Machismo and Hot Air I find these announcements to be glaring examples of the inherent tendencies of machismo, bullying, slavery, high-handedness privileged males in our country are used to.  At home, when raja beta works, rest of the family keeps quiet. When he needs food, wifey supplies it. Shhh, raja beta is sleeping, don't make noise. Don't irritate him, get him a cup of hot tea/coffee, quick, he's tired from working all day. You get the drift? The whole ecosystem in the workplace is designed to reward the raja beta slaving away rather ...