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Dhobi Ghaat


After films like Lagaan, Taare Zameen Par and Peepli (Live), Aamir Productions is back with another project – Dhobi Ghaat (Mumbai Diaries).
As the subtitle (in plural) suggests, the film is about the lives of four different people in Mumbai- a painter- Arun (Aamir Khan), Shaay, a New York based investment banker on a “sabbatical”, Yazmin Noor (Kriti Malhotra), an innocent girl from UP who has never been to Mumbai before she is married off here, and Munna (Prateik), the Dhobi. As you would expect, their lives are intertwined in a strange manner. It would be difficult to reveal these entanglements without giving away the total plot, so go watch it for yourselves.
If people decide to walk out of theatres complaining, “story nahin hai”, they would only be partially wrong. Stories just form the most superficial layer of the film and hence there are not hundred events one after the other like in a James Bond movie. The movie is about the city, its different facets, its meaning to each one who lives here. It would not be wrong to say that it’s the city that’s the protagonist of the film. Kiran Rao has beautifully used various means to do so; “chitthis”, photographs, guided tours, views from different kind of windows, different kind of residences and many more. The viewer definitely knows that not even of one the characters nor anything that makes up for what they are, is not a matter of chance, every color has been carefully chosen to complete this tableau. Although color and poetry play an essential role, lack of adequate background music seems to bother the viewer at times.
While Aamir Khan tends to be “old” and repetitive, Prateik is the showstopper! His smiling, crying, blushing, everything is to die for! Kriti Malhotra and Monica Dogra are pretty convincing with their roles.
Rather than the film being constituted of diaries of these people, it’s a diary of the city itself. Like the eternal nature that becomes the “seul soutien” for the Romantics, the city is the silent witness of every little movement. You can just confide in it.
The film ends with the most unconventional confessions of love...If you always thought life in Mumbai was like a harmonious synchronized piece of music, but you could not compose it, Kiran Rao does it in the most aesthetic fashion for you. Must watch for all city lovers. And for those who do not belong here yet, this Mumbai Darshan is totally reliable and enjoyable!!

Comments

  1. Thank God!!!!!!
    There is atleast one person who liked the movie as i did.
    Thanks Niralee....
    Well written!!
    :)

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  2. beautifully put! perfect review for the most amazing film in recent times..
    'the city is the silent witness of every little movement'.. so true..! it really was the city writing its experiences than it being the other way round.. i had not thought of that until i read this..

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  3. Totally! I missed Mumbai so so much while I watched the movie.
    Our lives our flavoured by so many elements that we care/dont care about and the movie beautifully encircles around these four people from totally different backgrounds, like we are around an unknown neighbourhood, shopkeepers, friends, canteenwala...
    I especially loved the character Yazmin Noor, her innocence, love for her brother, her eagerness about an upbeat city she has never been to, n finally how she fades into an amazing work at canvas..!
    n ofcourse Munna :)

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  4. i dont like your reviews yaar!!! they make me want to watch that movie right then n there which i cant!!! :( so i dont like it!!! phbbbttttt!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. hey Niralee..liked ur review..quite sensitive!:)!
    my fav. line.."If you always thought life in Mumbai was like a harmonious synchronized piece of music, but you could not compose it, Kiran Rao does it in the most aesthetic fashion for you."
    that was a brilliantly conceptualised crux!

    here's another interesting rvw on this film..
    http://dolcenamak.blogspot.com/search?q=dhobi+ghat&updated-max=2010-09-11T08%3A50%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=20

    ReplyDelete

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