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Indian Tale Told Well

APK | December 09, 2006

Rating: *** (***** Very Good, **** Good, *** Fair, ** Average, * Bad)

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Rani Mukherjee, Om Puri, Salman Khan, John Abraham, Aman Verma, Parmeet Sethi, Rajpal Yadav, Smita Jaykar, Avtar Gill, Gargi Patel, Sharat Saxena, Vaishnavi, Neeta Lulla and Others.
Action: Mahendra Varma.
Art: Keshto Mondal.
Choreography: Farah Khan, Remo, Vaibhavi Merchant & Rajeev Soorti.
Cinematography: Barun Mukherji.
Editing: Godfrey Gonsalves.
Lyricist: Sameer.
Music: Aadesh Shrivastav.
Dialogues: Achala Nagar.
Story & Direction: Ravi Chopra.
Producer: BR Chopra.
Banner: BR Films.
Release Date: 8th December, 2006.

Rani Mukherjee

Ravi Chopra's last offering, Bhagban was loved by the audience for the very relevant issue of elder people being ousted out of their homes by their grown-up children. The treatment was subtle, the actors-namely Amitabh and Hema Malini, made a lovely pair and the music was light and melodious. Nothing was overdone, the drama was underplayed and the emotions were suggested rather than be in-your-face.

Baabul is no different. It deals with widow remarriage, and contrary to the popular urban notion, the issue is not yet outdated. In a conservative and orthodox Indian society, a very miniscule percentage has really 'valued people more than traditions', which is what Baabul talks about. There is no high melodrama here and the dialogues are very to the point instead of being long-drawn and high winding.

Any other film-maker would have turned it into a high-voltage drama with 2 page dialogues-but Chopra impresses with the sensitive handling of a sensitive subject, yet making it watchable and adding all the commercial elements needed for a mainstream Bollywood movie. In other words, the movie doesn't drag or bore the audience.

Plot Well, everyone knows now. Avinash (Salman) and Millie (Rani) are happily married with a four year old kid, Ansh. Tragedy strikes and Avinash dies, and the once-bubbly Millie withdraws into herself. Rajat (John) is her best friend who is in love with her, but shifts base to Europe after she marries Avinash. Avinash's father (Amitabh) wants to get Millie re-married to Rajat, and faces opposition from his elder brother and family. Millie herself is not ready to move out of her in-laws house and leave Avinash's memory. What happens to Millie now is the rest of the plot.

Story, Screenplay and Direction There are some stories that are typically Indian, and Baabul is one such. For example, Dhoom could have been an American action flick, but Baabul belongs to India. The issue is still relevant and the direction is good. The dialogues are never over-the-top and always crisp and brief. The power of suggestion plays a major role in taking the movie to a higher level. The actors perform and justify their roles well. The best thing is the movie doesn't drag.

Sarika, who plays a widow, has only one dialogue, and a powerful one that gets applause from the audience. The first half has many light moments and is fun. The second half has tears, but it is meant to move one and nothing reminds you of the those 70s loud tragedies.

The ending is good with Amitabh and Sarika stealing the show. Salman and Amitabh have some light moments and Rani and Salman's romance track is fun.

Performances Amitabh Bachchan=Wine. The more he ages, the better he gets. Hema Malini looks lovely at 59, and she tries her best to emote. Rani proves her mettle as an actor yet again, and will remain Queen Bee for a while. The crown is still hers. Salman monkeys his way through the first half, with his false accent showing up here and there. John underplays his role and whispers his dialogues, and both the lead actors look good. Om Puri does justice to his role, and Sarika rocks in her tiny part.

Song and Dance: Aadesh Shrivastav delivers average music with two good songs, along with the title track sung and composed by Bachchan. The picturization is, well, typically Bollywood. Nothing new here.

And the verdict is.. Baabul makes sense, although urban audiences might find it slightly outdated. It will definitely click with the oldies though, and even the youngsters might be patient enough to watch it and appreciate it. The movie never drags, not even in the end, and it is a story from the heart of the maker, told well.