This is in celebration of the
phenomenon called Bombay Talkies. When the quadruplet stories are told and
done, an assembly of stars from Saigal to Shahid, Devika Rani to Deepika make
an appearance to salute the idea of our cinema. Hopefully we will refer to this
space herewards as Bombay Talkies instead of Bollywood. The exercise salutes
dreams and the preparedness to chase it, nurture it, believe in it.
Each of the four reputed filmmakers bring their style and approach and in
retrospect you notice the thin dividing line between the ‘big’ and the ‘classy’
will stand. Karan Johar apart, the films uniformly deal with aspirations. It is
about cinema: making dreams, selling dreams, chasing dreams. In different
postures they make clear that those who play safe, will not get the pot of
gold. If you do not reach out to the rainbow, the pot of gold is far away!! And
in the final story we are told that you don’t have to necessarily share it with
the big bad world.
Each film spreads over about 25 minutes so the length of the film is its first
advantage and the filmmakers all of whom have made long films have a short film
sensitivity clearly defined and executed. The story lines are clear, the
detailing near perfect, the casting researched and well founded and the drama
just right. To an audience that rushes to enjoy a Shootout or a Dirty Picture
and stay back to appreciate them, this sensitive exercise comes as a whiff of
fresh air.
Karan’s story about an unabashed gay guy Avinash (Saqib Saleem) who walks into
the high voltage life of Gayatri (Rani Mukherjee) and Dev (Randeep Hooda). This
part is thematically very different from the rest of the show and pleasantly
Karan Johar keeps away from the larger than life characters and deals with the
concept alternate sexual preference with a hitherto unmatched sensitivity. Rani
gives it the glamour quotient and Saqib the energy. Hooda is rightly lost and
gazing.
Dibaker Banerjee details the life of an ordinary man who has failed in life but
still aspires to be a star. Purandhar (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) is the fulcrum of
this narration. The guy who never dares and thus fails to achieve. Finally he
keeps his dream going and symbolically stays to tell his story – albeit
exaggerated but filled with hope. This section is one filled with detail and
some brilliant performances from Nawazuddin and in a very special role Sadashiv
Amrapurkar.
Zoya Akthar tells the story of a little boy (Naman Jain) and his sibling
(Khushi Dubey) who is a prey to whims of their father (Ranveer Shorey). While
the little boy wants to be a dancer and adores Sheila ki Jawani and Katrina
Kaif, the dad imposes his idea of physical fitness and importance of training
in football. The sibling share their disappointments and conspire successfully
against the adult world. Mature children dealing with childish adults.
The final story is literally of a guy daring to walk the talk. Dad (Sudhir
Pandey) is old and dying. He recalls how his dad’s death wish was that he offer
honey to Dilip Kumar and now he wants a similar wish fulfilled: Murabha to Big
B. His son Vijay (Vineet Kumar Singh) sets off from Allahabad to Mumbai and
strongly believes that he can meet up with the celebrity pierce through the
fortress and fulfil the dream of his dying father. Naïve, innocent but
achievable. This segment has a O Henry feel and twist. It introduces a
bitterness that is overcome with fortitude and reiterates the main message of
faith in your dreams and goals.
This is a fitting tribute The sincerity, warmth and the subdued hues make it
special. Small is beautiful, subtle is class. We who complain of formula cinema
must encourage this exercise in innovation.
L. Ravichander.