Junoon | The Critique

Ruskin Bond’s works have a different sense of romance, the one people might consider sinful but the protagonist doesn’t see it any differently. Shyam Benegal works have very subtle realism blended with drama and emotions without going overboard. Junoon is a perfect blend of both artists’ brilliance. Made by Benegal and based on Bond’s novella A Flight Of Pigeons, Junoon which literally means Obsession is very true to its translation.

 

Set in 1857, when India struggles for independence, Javed falls in love with a teenaged British girl Ruth. Against Ruth’s and Mariam’s (Ruth’s mother) wishes they are brought into the Muslim household. Javed’s wife Firdaus objects to his wish of marrying Ruth. His brother Sarfaraz is a fighter against British and even he opposes Javed’s action. In turbulent times, world has turned upside down for the British family. Man of house is dead and they are living a life of destitute. A brilliant script, impressive narrative and outstanding performances complements direction of perhaps the best filmmaker of alternate cinema.

 

Shashi Kapoor as Javed, Naseeruddin Shah as Sarfaraz, Shabana as Firdaus and Jennifer as Mariam simply excelled in their individual roles and were complemented well by actors like Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Nafisa Ali and Sushma Seth. Jennifer deserves a special note. She is one of the most underrated actresses of this country. Technically Shyam Benegal’s movies have been excellent. Junoon is no exception. One scene deserves a special note where warriors return home, that one scene was at par with a similar scene from Gone With The Wind. I hope that summarizes well.

 

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nayagan | 100 Years Of Indian Cinema | Under Lens

Perhaps the biggest influence of South Indian films on Bollywood, Nayagan raised the bar of crime dramas to a new high. Rated as one of the finest gangster movies ever made on this planet, Nayagan is loosely based on real life don Varadarajan Mudaliar who was an object of admiration at his peak.

 

Nayagan is made by Mani Ratnam with Kamal Haasan in the lead role of Velu Naiker. Velu journey begins with his father’s brutal encounter. He moves to Bombay where he is rescued by a kind hearted Muslim fisherman. His first step in the world of crime was murder of a policeman who kills his guardian. The same moment he shows the brighter side of his persona by adopting policeman’s differently abled child. Nayagan shows different phases of his life where he marries and falls in love with a prostitute, conflicts with children and his tragic fall.

 

Nayagan is iconic movie on many accounts. It beautifully establishes a strong character whose success has a reason and fall has an irony. It was perhaps the first time audience appreciated the grey shade of the lead actor in a character which never seemed to be fabricated. Audience knew Velu did wrong things but was he still loved by everyone in the film for his self-righteousness. This element was later explored by many other filmmakers in different films like Agneepath and Vaastav. Shot in the slums, the characters were never glossy. This made movie more convincing and appealing.

 

Trivia: The story initially was developed with Shivaji Ganeshan in mind but when Mani Ratnam took charge, characters were remoulded. After initial shoot, unhappy with the output, Mani reshot most of the parts. The budget, hence, shot almost twice of expected.  

 

 

David And Special 26 | Second Attempt At Cinema | Under Lens

David and Special 26 – both recently released films were rated among most highly awaited movies of 2013. Why? For any random movie, the answer would have been star-cast but for these two movies, the reason was The Director of these films. Bejoy Nambiar made his debut with Shaitan and Neeraj Pandey with A Wednesday. Both the movies worked among the critics and over the time earned a cult status among cine buffs. With such reputation, both had lot at stake.

 

Bijoy’s David was made in two languages and got decent reviews. The film worked as a standalone product, it failed to build upon what Shaitan established. For people who loved Shaitan, David was a disappointment. Special 26, on the other hand got both acclaim and collection on the opening weekend. However, for people who seriously follow heist dramas, Special 26 would be a sad disappointment. A Wednesday to three notch higher on a scale of ten. Now, the mystery is what happened to these thinking brains?

 

When they made their first movie, both were free of market dynamics. That’s why Shaitan had more rawness and A Wednesday lacked songs and romance. The second step is always a little more calculated. The instincts which drove Shaitan and A Wednesday took a backseat and conference room dictated terms. Directors might disagree, its visible out there on screen. David and Special 26 gave away the goods they had in the promos to seduce audience. This might reflect in the BO Collections but ten years down the line, people would remember Shaitan and A Wednesday. David and Special 26 would remain inferior successors.

 

Written By: Sujoy Ghosh

 

 

Insights

 

Indian Cinema Scores A Ton | Editor's Pen

Hi Friends,

 

Over last couple of days, film industry suffered some setbacks. Be it release of Kamal Haasan’s Viswaroopam or outrageous comments by Rehman Malik on Shahrukh Khan. We saw a Sudheer Mishra movie falling below his standards. We lost some Marathi actors in accidents. Terrible.

 

Amidst these news, we saw Indian Cinema completing 100 years. What a journey! A nation which failed on many grounds is the world leader in Cinema. We learnt the trade from west, modeled it on our sensibilities and created some of the best pieces of art under sky. People might not agree as they revere American and European films like demigods, but the fact is that even though we might not have outnumbered them, we have given them stiff contest as far as quality of cinema is concerned. Pyaasa, Kaagaz Ke Phool, Do Aankhein Barah Haath, Waqt, Anand etc. are at par with any Hollywood classic.

 

Celebrating achievements of Indian cinema, from this edition we are starting a ten part series - 100 Years Of Indian Cinema.

 

One more news is there, though not pleasant. Due to heavy workload on the admins in their professional life, we will not be able to continue with Between Breaths Short Film Contest. However, we will dedicate the edition to selected short films. Apologies for disappointing you all but we believe that quality should not be compromised.

 

Love,

Sujoy