Kaagaz Movie Review: Treading on fragile ground
REVIEW: After they joke about nasbandi (vasectomy) and the Emergency shedding steam, it dawns on you that the setting is late 70s. And through that exceptional interval within the historical past of India, there lived a person – in a small hamlet within the northern a part of the nation – who was stripped off his household inheritance by fraudulent means. And the worst facet of this unlucky incidence is that it was his personal kin who had declared him legally lifeless over the tiny fraction of a land he co-inherited with them. “Aaj se tu humara rishtedaar nahin, hum tere kuch nahin,” warns the aunt, after disclosing the frilly rip-off they’d subjected him to. Bharat Lal could possibly be jolly, however he’s not juvenile. The in any other case unsuspecting man then vouches to combat the estranged household, and the ‘tarik-pe-tarik’ tradition that the Indian administrative system had gotten used to. One letter, one hooligan, one police personnel at a time.
In a world the place individuals are grappling with intolerance of all types – from non secular freedom to the liberty of speech, which cuts on the root of democracy – the daring and unabashed ‘Kaagaz’ appears to have dropped on Zee5 (and restricted single-screen theatres in and round North India) on the proper second. This story, which is loosely based mostly on the lifetime of a person who had met the same destiny again within the day, is one that’s positive to evoke a way of confidence and vanity amongst its audience.
Nevertheless, the tempo of the narrative and its one-dimensional story-telling method makes it a tedious watch (even at 1 hour, 47 minutes!). And the truth that two narrators had been employed (Salman Khan and Satish Kaushik) to push the diegesis ahead, doesn’t assist both. For one, the songs and the final therapy mollifies the seriousness of the plot and the viewers doesn’t get a sneak-peek into the psyche of a person who’s the laughing inventory of his friends, a proverbial loser, who has actually misplaced all of it. An inspiring story of this magnitude would have flourished below the style of drama; lacing biography with comedy positive went kaput.
Having stated that, all is just not gray about this bold movie challenge, and headlining the checklist of issues which can be praiseworthy is Pankaj Tripathi. As a musician, he’s naïve but jocund, and naturally, an intensive pure at that. As is the case with the remainder of his repertoire, Tripathi skates by way of his transition from a innocent household man to a ruthless insurgent who wouldn’t cease at nothing and each the intense sides of his persona draw you in like a magnet. Such is his grip over the character of Bharat, and that elusive phenomenon referred to as performing. Satish Kaushik dons two hats for this one – certainly one of an actor and the opposite, of the director. Whereas he’s his ordinary amusing self as a morally lose lawyer, it’s his route that disappoints: too lopsided and unimaginative, particularly when its coming from a filmmaker of his stature. The parallel characters are feeble in comparison with the stellar lead that’s Pankaj Tripathi and this stark distinction is among the many causes ‘Kaagaz’ blows up in smoke.
The essence of the Indian heartland and the period that’s far bygone has been aptly captured by costume designer Sujata Rajain, and Arkodeb Mukherjee’s cinematography is rustic and related.
To sum it up, ‘Kaagaz’ might have been the go-to film for these searching for a burst of inspiration, however it finally ends up being a uni-dimensional masterclass on one man’s performing prowess. Not that we’re complaining, however the movie had the potential to tug on the coronary heart strings. Alas! It was to not be.
