Rating : 7/10
Running Time : 94 mts
Release Date : 10th Feb ‘06
Director : Rajat Kapoor ; Writer : Rajat, Anurag Kashyap ; Music : Sagar Desai
Starring : Konkona Sen Sharma, Ranvir Shorey, Vinay Pathak, Rajat Kapoor, Koel Purie, Saurabh Shukla
An old release that i finally managed to get hold of. Its an interesting one, touching a topic that not too long ago was taboo, would’ve had people from assorted minority groups protesting in front of cinema’s screening the film, breaking windows etc. Probably the fact that it was not a big banner and therefore wouldn’t have made the news prevented them from doing so. Its another Rajat Kapoor film, starring his usual suspects (Ranvir Shorey, Vinay Pathak, Saurabh Shukla) and one unusual one (Konkona Sen)
The movie deals with ‘swinging’, the type of parties where a couple go together but come back separately (if you still don’t get it, the movie is definitely not for you). The plot is simple enough with Ranvir Shorey being the middle-class husband who is having middle-age problems in terms of being able to keep it up. He loves his wife (Konkona Sen) but wants something to spice up their marriage and once he hears of this concept, he cannot get it out of his mind. After a lot of effort, he manages to find a like-minded couple (a suave Rajat Kapoor and a slightly ‘wonky’ Koel Purie), finds a devious, underhand way to get his protesting wife to agree and soon its time for the big night…
There are certain truths which are established in the movie quite clearly
1. Males are still hypocritical when it comes to the topic of sex, especially the extra-marital variety
2. People in Rajasthan eat rabbits
3. There is still a class-divide prevailing, and we mercilessly make fun of people who cant speak English properly
4. Don’t trust everything NRI’s say. They aren’t always as cool as they pretend to be.
Konkona looks lovely in a short bob-cut and effortlessly slips into character. The others are good, as always. The movie, however, doesn’t quite scale the heights of greatness. It’s the type which is pleasant to watch, makes you smile in a few places but never makes you laugh out loud (nor is it trying to). I wish they had made more of the ending, it was pretty interestingly set-up when it ended and I was hoping for more. It’s a nice, realistic, slice-of-life view of suburbia and is content to be a hill without any aspiration to become a mountain. Please also read Rajat Kapoor’s hilarious commentary on his life and also about marriage on his website.
Hi Apurv,
ReplyDeleteYou have found yet another loyal reader.
I liked your review of mixed doubles- Of course Ranvir, Konkana and Saurabh were brilliant, but my personal favorite is Vinay Pathak (especially as the Baba Ramdev disciple).
Also, I have a slightly different take on the ending- I absolutely loved the way he shot the final scene, where -in a kind of a corridor setting and with the brilliant use of doors- the couple gets back to doing the usual morning chores like picking up the milk, newspaper, etc. which in a way is indicative of how the life moves on.
I agree with you completely about Rajat's description of his 'accidental life’ on his blog- it’s absolutely hilarious- and somewhere even I romanticize the idea of life being 'a series of accidents'.
It would be interesting to know your views on 'Mithya' and then compare it with my notes.
While on that you could also go through my blog and give your valuable feedback.
My blog-www.gurudevprasad.com
Alas! I watcehd the movie before ya did.. Achievement!!! Well, the movie has a bold theme hence a lot of limitations..The first half of the movie is very interesting while the husband discovers the concept of wife swapping and tries convincing his wife while the portion after the swap is a downer. It losesits track.. Then the movie ends.. But definitely the humour, witty one liners a must watch.. Cheers, Bee
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