Film - Guru Pournima

Meet the Parents

Film: Guru Pournima (Marathi)

Cast: Upendra Limaye, Sai Tamhankar, Sulabha Arya

Directed by: Girish Mohite

Duration: 2 hrs 3 mins

Rating: * *

Directed by Girish Mohite, Guru Pournima is a family drama that doesn’t offer any novelty or surprises. It has decent production values but the screenplay is a major let down – it is predictable and the way in which the story unfolds doesn’t add much positive weightage to it.

Meant to be a story about love, marital discord and family relationships, we have Guru (National award winner Upendra Limaye) who teaches film making to students. One such talented girl is Pournima (Sai Tamhankar) whose parents are extraordinarily cruel and chuck her out of the house only because she wants to be an actress. With support from his loving mother (Sulbha Arya) Guru gives her shelter and eventually they get married.

Years later, we learn that they have separated and he is living with their daughter (Sai Tamhankar again, in a double role). Turns out that the mother wanted to pursue her acting career leading to discord and finally separation. Now it is upto the daughter and the grandma to make the twain meet.  

The story could have served well for a television serial – everything is a bit too convenient in it to digest as a feature film. The whole affair about a short film contest organized by a bank and the route taken to make the parents reunite looks artificial. The editing also leaves a fair bit to be desired.

The strongest point of the film is the acting. Upendra Limaye is a seasoned actor and can pull off any scene with ease. Sai Tamhankar has the arduous job of playing a mother as well as daughter and she is convincing in both roles. The actors do wonders to the film, sadly they don’t have a story good enough to back them.  

Published in The Navhind Times on 14th Sept 2014

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Film Review - Gunaji

The Good Cowherd

Film: Gunaji (Konkani)

Cast: Upendra Limaye, Meenacshi Martins

Directed by: M.S Davan Rivoncar

Duration: 1 hr 30 mins

Rating: *  *  1 / 2

Based on the story by the well known Konkani writer Pundalik Naik, Gunaji is a simplistic tale of a cowherd who finds himself in a fish out of water kind of a situation. Of late, the number of Konkani films being made is on the rise and this augurs well for the small state. 

Being inundated by a dose of Hollywood and Bollywood films, it is unfair to rate regional films on the same wavelength but as Iranian and other world cinema have shown, you don’t need big budgets to make good cinema. All you need is a good story and a story teller who can use the medium.

At the heart of it, this is a gratifying tale and visually, the story is told in the old-fashioned way. The main protagonist Gunaji (National award winner Upendra Limaye) is a cowherd living in a remote village. The local sarpanch nominates his name for an award in Delhi and for someone who has barely left his village, Gunaji has to travel alone to the capital, to collect the award.                    

Everyone in the family, his wife (Meenacshi Martins), son (Damu Naik) and daughter-in-law (well known Marathi actress Mukta Barve) are excited but at the same time concerned about his trip. The comic element is introduced in the form of Luis Bachchan who plays a South Indian and is his designated escort in Delhi. At the award ceremony Gunaji gives a heartfelt speech about caring for animals and as a cowherd, makes a plea to save the cow.

While the story is touching, the technical aspects of the film could have been better. The background music for instance is overused to underline a situation instead of allowing the visuals to speak for themselves. There are also many close-ups when not particularly needed and zoom outs to get the other character in the frame, like in films of yore.

Upendra Limaye is a seasoned actor so it is no surprise to see him act with conviction. Luis Bachchan has a terrific sense of comic timing and proves why he is rated so highly on the stage. All in all, the flaws notwithstanding, Gunaji is a worthwhile watch.   

Published in The Navhind Times on 29th June 2014

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Film Review - Yellow

 

                     

Well and Truly A Special Film

Film: Yellow (Marathi with English subtitles)

Cast: Mrinal Kulkarni, Upendra Limaye, Gauri Gadgil

Directed by: Mahesh Limaye

Duration: 2 hrs 10 mins

Rating: * * * * 

Mahesh Limaye, the cinematographer of films like Dabangg, Corporate and Fashion dons the hat of a director with Yellow, which is yet another superlative product to come from the Marathi film industry which is on an absolute roll at the moment. It is heartwarming, charming and the story of a girl with Down syndrome is also told with certain sensitivity. And most importantly, Limaye uses the medium of cinema very well with some deft touches to tell the story of a girl who comes out triumphant against all odds. 

Told with a voice over in her own words, the film is about Gauri (played by Gauri Gadgil) who is a special child but because of her Down syndrome her father (Manoj Joshi) abhors her. He thinks she has shattered his dreams and there will be nothing for him to be proud about her. “First we used to call them mentally retarded, then we started saying mentally challenged and now we have a cute word for them called, 'special'” he tells the teacher making his apprehensions clear about Gauri’s future. Unfortunately, as a father, forget about lending a helping hand, he doesn’t even have any sympathy for his daughter. 

The mother (wonderfully played by Mrinal Kulkarni) moves to her brother’s (Hrishikesh Joshi) house and the uncle also becomes the girl’s best friend. He is his pragmatic and has a light-hearted approach to all the complexities of life.   

Soon, they discover that Gauri takes to water, well, like a fish to water. After winning a few laurels as a swimmer, she trains under a professional and no-nonsense coach (Upendra Limaye) and while the coach-student relationship has its share of expected up and downs, it still keeps you engaged.

There are several pluses that the film has, to start with, the writing and the direction. With the subject like this, it is easy for the writers to emotionally manipulate the audience by going overboard but at no stage does the film resort to that. The father’s character was a bit one dimensional but then there are several one dimensional people in real life as well. 

Not only does the story have a human angle, there is also the underdog factor that has you cheering for the character. It also succeeds in making a point to the audience about special children without being preachy and any film that can entertain and educate people, more power to such films and filmmakers (Riteish Deshmukh is one of the producers).  

The thought of Taare Zameen Par will cross your mind but just about – after all, we don’t compare superhero movies or films from the romantic genre, do we? And with films, how it is being told is as important as what is being told. 

Technically, this is a well refined product and on the acting front, the cast has done a top job. Hrishikesh Joshi as the uncle and the more familiar Upendra Limaye as the coach are apt. Mrinal Kulkarni is first rate as a single mother and real life Special Olympic medalist Gauri Gadgil acts like a thorough professional.

Yellow is a must watch film and since it is subtitled in English, there is no excuse to miss it.  

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