Complex vs Simple - Two movies

I saw Harishchandrachi Factory and Ishqiya on successive days. For those unfortunate readers who may have remained ignorant about the former, it's a Marathi movie and was the official Indian entry to the Oscars to the Foreign Film Category. The irony lies in the fact that I didn't feel compelled to explain likewise for Ishqiya. After all, it is made by a well known Director (Vishal Bharadwaj) and boasts of an impressive star cast (Naseeruddin Shah, Arshad Warsi and Vidya Balan).

Harishchandrachi Factory is delightful - to say the least. It gives a lighthearted peep into the trials of tribulations of Dadasaheb Phalke (aka Father of Indian Cinema) as he struggled with adversaries of all kinds in his quest to achieve his dream - to produce the first Indian feature film. It takes a fresh look at a character well known to anyone who is even remotely interested in Indian movies. The film had an apparent handicap of having a debutant director, a lesser known clutch of regional actors, 'seemingly' a simple plot - but they are all weaved together into a worthwhile experience for the viewer. It was a delight to watch the audience not just chuckle and laugh but also spontaneously applaud at some sequences. At the end, I was left wondering whom to admire more - Phalke himself or the team that made this film happen. Take a bow, Paresh Mokashi and the whole team.
I had high hopes from Ishqiya. (We also paid eight times more to watch it in a multiplex compared to the simple theater where H Factory happened to us. Not joking. Just in case you don't believe me, here's proof. Don't get me wrong. I am not comparing Alaka and Inox. I am comparing our state of minds during the two movies.)

Disappointed is the only way I can describe my state of mind as I walked out after Ishqiya.
It was a let down, coming from a director who has given us gems like Maqbool and Omkara. He had both the right raw materials - good actors and a solid germ of a story. Its not a Freudian Slip. I didn't mean to say gem of a story. I mean a germ that could have led to a good story. In spite of Naseeruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi doing what they were supposed to do, the movie totally lacks in the overall impact, mainly because the story goes haywire. So you are only left admiring the art direction (Nitin Desai) and rather captivating use of lighting. The best part of the movie are surely the two SUPERB songs by, who else, Rekha Bharadwaj.
I missed watching Kaminey and am not regretting it now. I heard from friends who saw it that Vishal Bharadwaj got himself entangled into a complicated plot and couldn't resolve it in the end. Looks like by the time he made Ishqiya, this affliction had become more acute!
So my friendly advise (albeit unsolicited) to Vishal Bharadwaj is - take a walk in the nearby park and look at some simple things. Just let the grass grow under your feet for some time.
Or, go and watch Harishchandrachi Factory.

Unforgettable song - Lakh lakh chanderi

There are songs and then there are songs. And then there is 'lakh lakh chanderi tejachi nyari duniya.' This song has captivated me for years. I don't remember when was the first time I heard it. But it was certainly many years ago, where TV had not become a round the clock phenomenon. News channel anchors did not shout at you non-stop. (They swatted flies instead.) I stand corrected - there WERE no news channels, sports channels, fashion channels, sports channels. It was all bundled into one large nebulous entity called Doordarshan. Everything was so simplified that 'Saptahiki', which was a sneak preview of the programs of the week ahead, was also a huge hit. Children never had to be told to be away from the TV because after 'Bacchon ke liye' (Kilbil for those in Mumbai) that ended by 7 pm, there was nothing that could interest them anyway. The opening jingle of Aamchi maati aamchi maanse (program for farmers) was a potent enough signal for the children to get up and do their homework.Having grown up in Delhi, Marathi programs were rarer than even blue moons.

But one day there was a Prabhat talkies movie belonging to another era. Shejari, produced in 1941 by V Shantaram. My father was never a great movie buff, but was Puneri enough to be proud of Prabhat Talkies. I remember him telling me the whole story in advance. He clearly did not believe in spoiler warnings. So he had already spoken of the vivid details of how the dam bursts and how the Hindu-Muslim neighbours die hand in hand. I actually don't remember seeing any part of the movie except this song. The song simply became a part of me that evening, many years ago.
There is something about this song that never fails to give me the goosebumps. The lyrics (Shantaram Athavale), music (Master Krishnarao), chorus, choreography, cinematography (V Avdhoot), the three parallel themes unfolding in the song - all make up a potent mixture. But its not just that. This song proves that oft-repeated phrase - the whole is larger than the sum of its parts. I need to take a pause here. Watch a video of this song.
As you watch the video, don't miss the action at 5.42 - the I-throw-you-catch-the-torch manoeuver. It happens in a flash, fast enough for someone to miss it. It is phenomenal, truly.

I remember my father telling me that the song was shot on what is today the Law College Ground in Pune, with the camera on the adjacent hill! I am sure that this is more of a legend than truth. It adds to the romance of the song nevertheless.
Last week I went to see 'Marathi Bana' - described as a 70 mm Marathi cultural program. They perform a dance on this song and it is spectacular. If you haven't seen it still, don't miss it the next time.
The song stands for joy, celebration, hope, a sense of wonderment at the divine beauty that life is. And yes, romance. It is about romancing life itself.
It continues to fascinate people nearly seven decades after it was conceived. Don't forget that this was done in 1941. No digital recording. No sound mixing. No dubbing - music was played LIVE when the shooting was done. Director did not have the luxury of watching a sequence of monitor and shouting "CUT! Retake!". Get the camera settings, sounds levels, lights and the people right, and shoot. Then wait for agonizing days till the processed film arrived and then edit. Mind-boggling in today's times.

Watch the combination of camera movement and choreography at 1.10. Then sit back and be transfixed by the hypnotising moves of flaming torches. Wait till it is 1.28 when there is a breathtaking camera angle. But wait, the best is yet to come. First watch the use of lights and dance movements at 1.41.

And then the piece de resistance at 3.40. The camera cuts to a young couple, all by themselves, away from the prowling eyes of the crowd. The sound levels drop drastically! For some time after this transformation - there is magic, romance and the dance of life. Not to forget the captivating sequence at 5.42.
On the movie at large, it is significant that as far back as 1941, the Director expressed his views about communal tension in no uncertain terms. The frank statement he makes in the movie is - people of different religions have no inherent reason to fight each other. It is petty-minded lawmakers and authority who create these rifts to attain power and personal gains.
Sixty eight years later, things haven't changed much.