Film: 102 Not Out

Release: 04 May 2018

Director: Umesh Shukla

Writer: Saumya Joshi

Music: Salim–Sulaiman

75 year old Babulal Vakharia/ Rishi Kapoor sets an alarm before getting under the shower because a second longer than 15 minutes in water gives him pneumonia. Babulal has posters warning him to shut off the geyser inside the bathroom and outside the door because he has burst a geyser in the past and believes in precautions.

He has a fixed time to visit the doctor, fixed time to water the plants, fixed time to watch television and fixed time to fall asleep wrapped in his 60 year old shawl purchased from Kashmir when he was 10 years old.

Babulal’s father Datatrey Vakharia/ Amitabh Bachchan is 102 years old and keen to break the record of the oldest man surviving in the world.  He walks alone, travels freely in a rickshaw and revels in celebrations.

They live under the same roof but have their allotted separate corners. They have separate refrigerators while senior Vakharia stores delicious deserts in his fridge, junior stores boiled vegetables in his. They have separate TV sets, the senior relishes Chaplin and Discovery on his latest model while junior watches Health & Yoga on his outdate box.

There are many ways to interpret this film. You can describe it as a father –son love story or a father-son hate story. You can call it a story of relationship or a story of life.

The demerit of the film is that it is restricted to three characters and one location, Shanti Nivas, so not exactly a cinematic experience. The climax is over the top and one misses echoes and images of more activity in the household.

The merits include the plot, the characters, message, music, duration and the performances.

As Dheeraj, Jimmit Trivedi matches the comic timing of both Kapoor and Bachchan with an amazing ease.

Rishi Kapoor embraces the rather grumpy Babulal without vanity and without inhibition.

As the toothless, balding super active Dattatrey Vakharia Amitabh Bachchan mixes anger with hurt and touches your heart.

Kapoor and Bachchan together have over the last four decades done several films but 102 Not Out is easily the most significant one as they make you laugh, weep and reflect on life.

102 Not Out is an inspiration for all the senior citizens and I recommend it as family viewing.

I rate 102 Not Out with 3 stars.

My new book Keshava: A Magnificent Obsession is now listed on Amazon. For pre-order click here: https://amzn.to/2vogOtk

 @bhawanasomaaya 

If there is one thing Bachchan enjoys even more than acting is singing. The first time he lent his voice as playback was for a song ‘Mere Paas Aao…’ from Mr Natwarlal (1979) ever since more and more filmmakers have asked him to sing in their films. ‘Neela Aasman So Gaya…’ and ‘Rang Barse…’ from Silsila (1981), later he sang ‘Mere Angne Mein..’ from Laawaris (1981) and ‘Main Yahan Tu Wahan…’ from Baghban (2003) recently he rendered tracks like ‘Ekla Cholo Re…’ from Kahaani (2012) and ‘Piddly Si Baatein…’ from Shamitabh (2015) in recent years.

Now, in his upcoming film 102 Not Out, directed by Umesh Shukla, Bachchan has created the track Badumbaaa and sung it along with his co-actor Rishi Kapoor. Now we hear that Bachchan has sung a new rendition of the timeless classic, ‘Waqt Ne Kiya Kya Haseen Sitam…’, from the movie Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959). The song was arranged by Rohan Utpat and Vinayak K Salvi.

There is so much to learn from the unstoppable Bachchan, he is productive every moment of his day and every phase of his career.

@bhawanasomaaya

Film: Daas Dev

Date 27 Aril 2018

Director: Sudhir Mishra

Cast: Richa Chadda, Aditi Rao Hydari, Rahul Bhat. Saurabh Shukla.

Music: Vipin Patwa, Sandesh Shandilya, Arko Pravo Mukherjee,Shamir Tandon, Anupama Raag.

Little Dev is hiding near the pond, puffing a cigarette behind the bushes, soon little Paro joins him and insists on trying a puff as well or she will complain about him to his parents.

In a way the scene sets the tone for the irreverent take of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s classic.

In the 105 years of Indian cinema Sarat Babu’s novel Devdas has captured the imagination of several filmmakers in several languages.

If K L Saigal immortalized the character pre-independence, for the independent nation Dilip Kumar is the hero they hated to love in Bimal Roy’s version and Shah Rukh Khan film-maker Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s portrayal of Devdaas in the new millennium.

There were some who did not use the characters but based the story on the same relationships like Prakash Mehra’s Muqadar ka Sikander and Anurag Kashyap’s over the top Dev D.

Now writer director Sudhir Mishra comes up with yet another version as Daas Dev. The modern hero embraces not just alcohol but all the possible vices – drugs, lust, power and violence.

Unlike the original hero, Daas/ Rahul Bhat, is not an escapist far from irresponsible. He is committed in relationships and not a wastrel, which is refreshing.

Richa Sharma/ Paro and her family do not live across Dev’s home as in Sarat Babu’s book but inside Dev’s magnificent mansion in a two and half room donated by Dev’s family.

Paro is haughty and unafraid. In an interesting twist of a memorable scene in the original, this time it is not Paro but Dev who visits her chamber at midnight and it is no big deal!

Eventually she marries an older man/ Ram Ashrey and for the sake of justice jumps into the cesspool of politics.

Chandni/ Aditi Rao Hyadri unlike Chandramukhi is not just twinkle toes but a big player in the dangerous game.

Sarat Chandra’s Devdas was about love and yearning. Sudhir Mishra’s Daas Dev is about power and ambition.

What is attractive about the film is the irreverent interpretation. Dev is volatile, complex but also vulnerable.

On the flip side the film is unusually long and unnecessarily violent. Every frame is dark and depressing and poetry of prominent writers play as background score in almost every scene which is oppressive.

The actors try their best to engage you with their performances but the politics dominates every emotion. This is not a story about love and longing rather it is about deception and betrayal.

Don’t know about the others but I think I have had enough of the UP politics, the guns and the cuss words.

Watch Daas Dev only if you are interested in UP politics

I rate Daas Dev with 2 stars.

@bhawanasomaaya