Delhi – 6 : The Movie Review – and being Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra

Its always interesting to review a movie such as Delhi 6 which has invoked such mixed reactions. So I am sure I am going to enjoy writing this review as much you are going to read it! :P

Being born in the heart of Delhi – 6 (Chandini Chowk / Old Delhi) is no mean feat on its own. Being born there with a name that reads, Rakyesh Om Prakash Mehra makes it all the more difficult.

Rakyesh is the man who has given us Aks and more importantly the iconic Rang De Basanti. RDB made me and probably a good chunk of the youth think and look beyond the oblivion of our lives and made us more responsible, more thinking – somewhere in the subconscious it made me respect the man who got us RDB – a generation awakened. RDB was sorta Classic.

An RDB doesn’t happen every year – agreed. Butt, there is a big one out there! The evolution and thus the expectations just can’t stop. The hunger and the thirst just grow.

Anyways, let’s be modest with our expectations as we all know that Delhi 6 isn’t in the same league – however, it still doesn’t suggest if it’s poor cinema. Let’s see what works and what doesn’t.

No harm in starting with what works. Yes, if something works beyond any doubts whatsoever: that’s Delhi 6’s music. Rehman does a good job sinking in the movie and giving us tracks which is just not restricted to the brilliant Masakali and Dilli 6. If you are sensitive to music you may even find Genda Phool and the Aarti equally enchanting. Rehman very successfully creates music which sounds contemporary, yet is full of old world soul – and interestingly sounds very local. Not to forget, Prasoon pens down lyrics which radiate the vibes of Purani Dilli – trust me its difficult doing so as the place has a culture not really found anywhere else. Enough of discussing Rehman and Prasoon – we surely have come to terms with them – they almost every time pleasantly surprise us with what they come up with. I just hope that they continue with their good work. The movie does not have an anthem number – as it could never have one. It’s difficult to fit a Paathshala here. It’s a fact we must understand as only this would help us appreciate the simplicity and subtlety of the music.

Let’s get into difficult territory now. Music was the high-point where in it is quite likely that there would be consensus of sorts. So let’s explore where that may not be the case. The movie was built on ideas and the Kaala Bandar was supposed to drive things home. As awkward as it sounds is what reflects on the screen too.

Abhishek (a second generation Indian American) gets his Grand-Mom home (Dilli-6) as she is anticipating her death. India is a revelation of sorts form him. He finds a lot of issues around that people need to fix. So he comes as the change agent who eventually becomes the sacrificial lamb for a greater cause. Too idealistic, for some; but this is what the movie is about.

Rakyesh is not just another film maker – we undeniably agree to it; so it does not come as a surprise that he wants to communicate to his audience – he just doesn’t want his movies to remain a monologue. He wants us to think and take his movies out of the theater and to discuss it on the streets and our homes too. He is social revolutionist of sorts. He tries to touch the entire canvas of the contemporary problems in our country - Caste conflicts, communal divide, corrupt political system, dowry, dysfunctional social infrastructure, economic disparities, moral policing, sensationalism in media, sexual repression and exploitation, suppression of the girl child, superstitions and more...

But this time around the revolutionist nearly fails in execution despite the technical brilliance that the movie exudes. The weakest links are the Story, Screenplay and the Lead Actor. The story telling just doesn’t work this time. It fails to keep you glued. It just does not have the moments. Abhishek fails miserably in what he does – all you have his empathy for him as you see him as the nice guy – which just isn’t enough.

He irritates you with a faker accent than you can imagine – but it would be very mean and superficial of me to make it the yardstick. He is carrying the movie on his shoulders so they better be capable. Interestingly all the sidekicks (I know that sounds derogatory for the wonderful cast ensemble that the movie boasts of) do more than what was expected of them but they can’t make up for the lead (else why would you call the lead, the lead!!) Taking names would be an injustice to the rest – so I would take all… Sheeba Chaddha, Prem Chopra, Deepak Dobriyal, Divya Dutta, Rishi Kapoor, Atul Kulkarni, Pavan Malhotra, Supriya Pathak, Om Puri, Vijay Raaz, K.K. Raina, Aditi Rao (oh my my, she is cute in her Sari clad avatar) and Cyrus Sahukar – nearly everyone has a small story which gives movie whatever little it has for the viewers.

Abhishek somehow fails to grow beyond the nice guy who has come down from the US to his roots. He is supposed to be the change agent – but just somehow doesn’t fit too well. Partly it’s his failure; partly it is Rakyesh’s. While Abhishek failed in delivering, Rakyesh failed in developing the lead. I am not competent enough to tell you what it should have been like – but I can surely tell you the ideas just did not get onto the screen successfully. Kaala Bandar has a louder presence than it should have had – it rips the movie of its sensitivities while it gives some of it. Maybe, Kaala Bandar was not the right choice to weave the story around. I don’t know if it were; but it somehow does not work.

I am not considering Sonam to be in the lead, because in all honesty she is not. In my humble opinion, playing the love interest of the lead does not make you another lead. She is a part of the sidekicks - who has been blessed with longer screen presence as she is our Hero’s sweetheart. This is surely not to question Sonam’s performance. She does what she is expected to; and that too at an acceptable level. She is cute, chirpy and a rebel within with her feet on the ground, yet hopes high in the sky.

Binod’s Camerawork is top notch – makes the movie easy on the eyes especially the songs – the simplicity remains the biggest virtue.

The most bizarre part of the movie was the presence of Amitabh Bachchan: you wonder whether Amitabh was the obvious choice or was he forced upon the script.

The movie as a whole is a mixed bag – there would be definitive reasons to like it as would be to find it loose and disoriented.

At the end of everything we tend to feel being Rakyesh isn’t easy. When the entire world is watching, he has to put his best foot forward.

I used to think, to err is Human, but not when your name is Rakyesh Om Prakash Mehra! ;)

The ratings would not be able to give true representation to what the movie deserves [coz for me its between 1 and 4 stars out of 5 on different parameters]. I would want you to rate and reason it. Please leave a comment especially if you have a rating in your mind!

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Flashback - RDB Review

With Delhi 6 releasing this week, I couldn't help but remember Rakyesh Mehra's Rang De Basanti - a film that took me comepletely by surprise and a pleasant one at that. I am getting mixed reviews about Delhi 6 and I hope to catch it sometime over the weekend or early next week. Until then, freshen up the memories of Mehra's last outing. I wrote this around three years back and feel a bit differently about the film and my review now. But that's a different story. Here's what one amongst the charged up audience of RDB felt as on Feb 09, 2006.

There are two kinds of movies, some make you feel good, some don't register anything once you get out of the theatre. And then you come across the third kind, the ones which leave you numb. RDB is a movie that will make you think and the thought would linger long after you have come out of the theatres. A highly experimental film which despite its shortcomings succeeds in conveying a message is how I would describe it. Is it all about Patriotism? - Not really. Its more of an interpretation of freedom by the youth of today and as the title suggests - the awakening.

The hero in the film is not only Aamir Khan, its the vision of Rakyesh Mehra - the director who has finally arrived. Its an original work. Though many believe that even Aks was unusual and ahead of its times, I still feel otherwise. For all the Aamir Khan fans, if you feel that it is an out and out Aamir Khan flick, you are in for big surprises. Siddhartha(the new face) has a role of equal standing.

The director weaves two plots into one and what you get is an experimental but seamlessly joined story that sees the present day situation in the context of the Indian struggle for freedom. So you have these bunch of college pass-outs leading a somewhat confused, carefree and flippant lives suddenly discovering Chandrashekhar Azads, Bhagat Singhs and Ashfaqs within them.

The basic difference between RDB and other films of this genre is that unlike other movies, in RDB, the protagonists do not plead with the people to stand up against corruption, nor do they rant about patriotism and preach. This is where Swades, another brilliant film failed. This works for the film as it does not end up being another film with an overdose of nationalism/patriotism. The director seems to have picked up the cue from Ashutosh Gowariker's Swades where SRK says - "Hamara desh sirf hamare kehne se mahaan nahi hoga." The protagonists are unapologetic of what they do and they stand up for it.

The story is for you all to go and see but let me give you 5 reasons for watching this film:

The screenplay and the crisp editing - Rakyesh Mehra has brought out his imagination brilliantly on celluloid. Tout screenplay by him and Renzil D'Silva. The script did have loopholes( you can’t just go and shoot a Home Minister at his home and get away without harm, comparing the lathicharge incident with Jallianwala Bagh tragedy and finally handling the climax) but then lets give him the allowance of cinematic liberty to give an entertaining/inspiring climax to his film within the 2.5 hours that he had. If he had gone all by logic then the message that the film conveys couldn't have come across. Though there are actually two plots running together, the transtition from colourful palletes to sepia tone does not look disjointed.

Peformances - First rate! So you have Aamir Khan in yet another stellar act enthralling you with his antiques. He is hysterical, sensitive, headstrong, insecure and even breaks down after gulping down a few bottles of beer. A welcome respite after Mangal Pandey - the dud. Soha Ali Khan is a revelation. She surprises you with her acting for sure. The rest of the cast is equally good and you also have veterans like Anupam and Kirron Kher, Om Puri and Waheeda Rehman besides the head-line makers of the movie.

Music - Its like a comeback for Rehman as well after Mangal Pandey. The way these songs are interwoven into the narrative adds to their quality. While the title track gives you that earthy feeling, the song Ru-ba-roo takes you into a trans. The background score is also great. To get the best music for his film, the director and his music director have to know exactly what they expect of each other and hats off to Mehra and Rehman for getting their efforts bang on target.
Dialogues and cinematography - Prasoon Joshi's dialogues exude a youthful exuberence and Binod Pradhan's camerawork is top class.

The Moments:
- The scenes where these guys whizz past Kiron Kher taking her dupatta away in boyish naughtiness and where Aamir speaks his heart out to Sue.
- The improvisation on 'Choo kar mere mann ko' when the band of boys gets to meet Sue for the first time.
- Aamir Khan mugging up his dialogue lines - "Bismil ka sandesh hai.." and the one where he gets embarassed when he comes to know that Sue understood Hindi.
- The camaraderie that all of them share in general. The 'Pathshala' song needs a special mention here.

Rang De Basanti paints you in its colors. It surely does..

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