Film Review - CityLights

Sin City

Film: City Lights
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Patralekha
Directed by: Hansal Mehta
Duration: 2 hrs
Rating: * * * 1 / 2

Officially adapted from the Philippines-UK film Metro Manila, City Lights directed by Hansal Mehta for Mahesh Bhatt and co. is a cut above the rest. It is a grim tale of family that moves from the village to the city, not knowing what is in store for them. Even in real life, there are several universal tales about such families that have migrated assuming that the grass is green on the other side. Apart from the adaptation by Ritesh Shah, Hansal Mehta’s direction is most impressive.

Deepak (Rajkummar Rao) hails from Rajasthan and along with his wife (Patralekha) and little daughter they come to the big bad city of Mumbai. Right away, he gets conned by a real estate agent. No job, no money, life is far from being a bed of roses as they expected it to be.

The wife is forced to take up employment in a dance bar while he manages to get a job as a driver for a security agency whose job is to transport valuables for their clients. Manav Kaul plays his supervisor who wants to make Deepak a part of his baleful agenda.

The characters are very well etched – Deepak being a village bloke wants to live in peace honestly and to some extent is quite naïve as well. Without gloating too much, it conveys the harsh realities that people have to go through pushing them in a corner to take extreme measures.

The most jarring part of the screenplay is the background music and songs that pop up from time to time completely undermining the situation. Mehta has a better knack for telling a story through situations, not songs.

The cast plays an important role in City Lights – newcomer Patralekha puts up a good show, she conveys her vulnerability in the right measure and pulls through in the emotional scenes as well. Manav Kaul as the friend is first rate but ultimately the film belongs to Rajkummar Rao who is simply terrific. The film is yet another feather in his cap which is collecting them at a rapid pace. For his performance itself and as a film that has something to say, City Lights is worth a watch.

Published in The Navhind Times on 1st June 2014
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Film Review - Shahid

Minority Report

Film: Shahid
Cast:Rajkumar Yadav, Prabhleen Sandhu, Zeeshan Ayub
Directed by: Hansal Mehta
Duration: 2 hrs
Rating: * * * 1 / 2

Based on the life of lawyer/activist Shahid Azmi, this film directed by Hansal Mehta is remarkable for the story and the treatment. Real life stories or serious issues are rarely highlighted in Hindi films hence this effort is all the more commendable also because it is made with sincerity and dares to trod the uncommon path.

Since the 90's there has been a huge polarisation within the communities in India.  The have been bomb blasts and terrorist attacks but in the process of apprehending the culprits, many innocents have also been put behind bars and tortured without getting a fair trial. A young man Shahid (Raj Kumar) is picked up by the police after the '92 Mumbai blasts.

The next thing you know,  he has joined a terror camp across the border but since he doesn't agree with their ideology he escapes from there. Once he is back in Mumbai,  the police apprehend him again,  this time he serves 7 years in prison. But there he is inspired by another gentlemen (Kay Kay Menon) who is also a victim of a crime that is ambiguous. Shahid studies law and as a professional, he takes up cases of those innocent people who have been wrongly accused of terrorist activities.  It is not an easy job for him as he has to tackle many issues- cases go on forever in courts and he also receives death threats for being 'anti national'. He also marries one of his clients (Prabhleen Sandhu) who already had a son and is very liberal in nature.

Rather than the politics, it is Shahid and his dedication to the cause that makes an impact.  The plight of many innocents is aptly high lighted but it also makes you wonder,  in troubled times like these,  what is the best and fair way out in such situations. 

Full credit goes to Hansal Mehta and his team for crafting a superior film.  Apart from the screenplay,  it is the acting which deserves an applause. Mohammed Zeeshan Ayub as the brother is a natural born actor and surely we'll see more of him in the days to come. The star though is Raj Kumar Yadav who had delivered one of the best performances of the year. 

Shahid deals with issues that concern all of us,  those who are concerned about any such things, should not miss this film.

(Published in The Navhind Times on 20th Oct. 2013)
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