Six months into 2017 and how has Bollywood fared?
Well at the risk of sounding like your Class 3 teacher I’d have to say – “has potential but can do much better!”
This time last year we were raving about the likes of Neerja, Udta Punjab and Aligarh. This year, while the good moments have been wonderful, the bad ones are downright excruciating. With the rollout of GST on the 1 July the biggest talking point of this year so far, let’s now have a look at the GST of Bollywood for the last 6 months : the Good films, the Skilful performances and the Taxing experiences!
G For Good Films
Luckily for us there have been quite a few engaging films that lit up our cinematic experience. Here are the 5 best ones in no particular order.
1. Baahulbali 2
When after 1 year, 9 months, 18 days and 1000s of memes and social media posts, SS Rajamouli’s epic drama finally hit the screens, it expertly handled all the humongous expectations pinned on it.
The splendid visual effects and the expertly choreographed fight sequences captured in lavish frames have been almost trance-inducing.
Baahubali 2 made a grand statement, ensured a loyal cult of followers and gave us Prabhas, who with his electrifying screen presence has earned the sobriquet of “a national heartthrob”.
2. Mukti Bhawan
It seems oddly satisfying to be talking about this quaint, subtle little gem right after the bedazzling Baahubali 2. Also a testament to the varied buffet Bollywood spread out for us and got right! Shubhashish Bhutiani’s debut feature film Mukti Bhawan or Hotel Salvation deals with the complexities of death with a simplicity that is endearing. The father-son bond intimately portrayed by Lalit Behl and Adil Hussain is the soul of the film.
3. A Death in the Gunj
Konkona Sen’s directorial debut couldn’t have been better. Like Mukti Bhawan, this one too deals with death, but instead of being meditative it keeps us at the edge of our seats. The film draws upon a story written by Konkona Sen Sharma’s father Mukul Sharma and is a sort of fictionalised retelling of real life events. A beautifully engaging film.
4. Trapped
Vikramaditya Motwane who has made the hugely popular Udaan and Lootera (that people are still divided over), now confines his cinematic vision to a tiny 1 BHK. All the action happens here with Rajkumar occupying every frame. Trapped is about this unpleasant, rather scary situation of being stuck in one’s own house! The best thing about it is its resistance to be “trapped” in stale formulaic Bollywood staple and the steadfast grip on the narrative.
5. Anaarkali of Aarah
It is like Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury’s Pink, but of the hinterlands. Like Pink it forces us to re-think our sense of entitlement and makes its point about consent loud and clear. Debutant director Avinash Das is a brave new voice with a refreshing take on women and their sexuality. Wonderfully executed.
The ones that deserve special mention – Hindi Medium for its refreshing take on the class bias and our corrupt education system. Raees for getting a dose of 70’s blockbuster masala films right back into our lives. And Haraamkhor for tackling the subject of child sexual abuse impressively!
S For Skilful Performances
1. Irrfan Khan and Saba Qamar in Hindi Medium are pitch perfect as parents trying to get their kid admitted to a good school. The film had a rather underwhelming climax, but both these actors never let their hold slip.
2. Sahil Vaid has made his presence felt by being in films that at their best can be called forgettable! As Badri’s loyal friend in Badrinath ki Dulhaniya he gave a smooth performance even as the plot wobbled and then won our hearts by donning a sinister mask in Bank Chor. Both films didn’t do justice to his talent and we can’t wait to see more of him.
3. Vikrant Massey for his finesse not just in A Death in the Gunj, but for being the only one worth watching in Half -Girlfriend. He also exposed the nepotism so entrenched in Bollywood with the fact that despite his talent, he got limited screen time and played second fiddle to Arjun Kapoor, who managed to get neither the accent nor the expressions right!
4. Rajkumar Rao in Trapped for not making us feel like we were being held in confinement and enthralling us with yet another compelling pivotal performance.
5. Swara Bhasker for single handedly giving us moments that made Anaarkali of Aarah the Anaarkali of “Arre-waah”!
T For Taxing Experiences
1. Tubelight
One of the most anticipated Eid releases, Tubelight flickered and fused. Salman Khan and Kabir Khan sadly couldn’t recreate the magic of Bajrangi Bhaijaan and his “gaffer market” brand of Forrest Gump made it an excruciating watch.
2. Half Girlfriend
An assault on our senses that can’t be forgiven. The film by the way is a complete loo break from first scene to last. Arjun Kapoor clearly out of breath and out of sorts in a badly written movie which pastes a sticker of Bill Gates’s face and calls it CGI! *gasps*
3. Raabta
This movie is what happens when the raging hormones of Befikre collide with the ‘janam-janam ka saath’ old love of Mirzya ever. It’s a frustrating 154 minutes watch where the story takes forever to get downloaded. There isn’t much in Raabta to remember or rave about yet we can’t forget it for the way it managed to do the impossible – waste an actor of the caliber of Rajkumar Rao.
4. Rangoon
Vishal Bhardwaj’s grand vision finds its Bombay Velvet moment. One can imagine what a grand mess it made if actors of the caliber of Kangana Ranaut, Shahid Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan were rendered ineffectual.
5. Bank Chor
A film that is grappling with an identity crisis . It threatens to be a raunchy adult comedy (judging by the kind of films Ritesh Deshmukh and Vivek Oberoi have previously done together ), settles for some slapstick humour and then suddenly mid way changes gears to be a wannabe thriller! A bumpy ride helmed by Mr Bumpy, the director of the film who takes his name very seriously!
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