Jagga Jasoos BO/Review Thread[Note pg 24] - Page 55

For the laid back fun of a comic-book read, Jagga Jasoos is a bit long-drawn but is a breezy fantasy that marks a genre-first for Indian cinema

It takes guts to go against the wind; so irrespective of the box office verdict of Jagga Jasoos, let us give a round of applause to actor Ranbir Kapoor for putting his money into one of India's first films that integrates many genres in one.

Directed by the talented Anurag Basu, Jagga Jasoos is many things: it is a breezy musical, a fantasy, and a road movie. But let us also spell it out upfront: At about three hours, it is a stretch - and with a narrative approach that is laid-back, at times repetitive, it can test your patience.

A trifle self-indulgent, Jagga Jasoos brings a refreshing approach to mainstream cinema. It doesn't go by formula and it doesn't have the conventional villain versus hero clash or whipped up melodrama.

Much like an endearing comic book (and concluding with enough room for a sequel, if this one works), Jagga Jasoos has plenty of straight-to-the-heart moments, especially in the first 15 odd minutes when we see one marvellous actor stride the screen: Kolkata's own Saswata Chatterjee.

As Bad Luck Bagchi, whose real identity unravels post-interval, he brings tremendous feel-goodness and gravitas to the film. And while on Kolkata, it could not be coincidental that the film has its vintage Kolkata-esque moments - especially the song Khaana Khaake; you can't but smile at the quirkiness of director Basu.

For once, unlike the pretentious and patronising Rock On 2, the North East of India gets a fantastic visual representation in the film, which travels one full arc from West Bengal to West Africa, with Ravi Varman's camera capturing the journey in one spectacular show of colours and textures.

Jagga Jasoos a could be described as an anthology - three stories from the life of Jagga, an orphaned boy, who grows up in a hospital and comes under the care of Bad Luck Bagchi. Ranbir Kapoor effortlessly transforms into Jagga, leaving aside all his Bollywood trappings (except perhaps for that posterior shake, which seems to stay with him from Saawariya).

Katrina Kaif is the narrator of Jagga's story before becoming one of the key characters in his 'investigations.' We are told of how Jagga solves crimes at his school, then in his neighbourhood, and finally venturing into the big bad world of illegal arms sale.

There is an incredible detailing in the film, and much thought has gone into scripting and writing the lyrical dialogues with Jagga, by virtue of his stammer, literally singing every dialogue.

But while the intentions are great and the film's narrative-style cannot be faulted for its genre, Jagga Jasoos might miss the box office crores because it is atypical. There aren't loud, roar-out fun scenes; there isn't cheap slapstick; there isn't mind-numbing action. Instead, you get one sweet folk tale kind of a movie.

Ranbir takes you through the Jagga journey with admirable honesty, and while a better performer could have taken the narrator's role to the next level, Katrina Kaif makes her role work. But the best of the performers are Saswata Chatterjee and Saurabh Shukla (as a mystery man chasing Bagchi). And this film also belongs to Pritam, the music composer, and he does a marvellous job.

Jagga Jasoos is not for all, but if you are in the mood for some cinema indulgence, here is a weekend getaway for you.

Jagga Jasoos
Starring: Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif
Directed by Anurag Basu
Now playing at theatres in the UAE
Rating: 3/5

During a press interview for Jagga Jasoos, when asked the overly-repeated question of just how he managed to keep the faith in director Anurag Basu throughout the turbulent (putting it lightly) 3-year making of the movie, Ranbir Kapooranswered that despite everything, this f**ker pulls it off man, when you see the product, you're like how did he do it??'.

That is as apt a description as any to describe the magical, fantastical and wondrous cinematic experience that is Jagga Jasoos. The f**ker' just pulled it off. In spite of the many hurdles both personal and professional, constant media scrutiny, arguments, roadblocks, delays and disruptions, somehow the visionary genius that is Anurag Basu just pulled it off. To say the film is worth the wait and all the hype would be a colossal understatement to its achievement.

Jagga Jasoos is nothing short of a modern fairy tale and is in every way a children's film made with a child-like innocence and purity and aimed at reawakening the child in you. It takes you back to a time when things were far less complicated and engulfs you in imagination, joy and wonder. The film beautifully marries Pritam's music and Basu's storytelling such that you can't tell where lyrics end and dialogue begins, where speech halts and song ensues, where staging ceases, and choreography takes over. The film jumps in and out of song so seamlessly that I found it difficult to keep my foot from tapping or head from bobbing almost throughout its run time and I think it's fair to say Amitabh Battacharya's wonderful lyrics deserve a dedicated screenplay credit.

In its musical style, the film has a number of similarities to Edgar Wright's recent Baby Driver and no doubt Basu would have much preferred his film to have released a few weeks earlier for its concept to have more of an impact. That said, it's important to note right off the bat that it certainly isn't for everyone as its concept and unique style will put-off many as most path-breaking, unconventional films usually do. You'll either entirely buy into its whimsical world or be almost immediately alienated by it.

Basu's Jagga Jasoos in inventive, imaginative and umpteen kinds of innovative with jumping timelines, perspectives, and frequently bordering on breaking the fourth wall. Basu has a distinct ability to make the stale cinematic, bringing to life the smallest of moments of human connection in such a lovely manner, the way only the most gifted storytellers can. His film has an enchanting, otherworldly charm in every single aspect from music to narrative to acting to its radiant visuals. Damn, those visuals. In cinematographer Ravi Varman what you get is a true artist who enhances the beauty of locations in a way that, travel as you might, I doubt you'll find these places as alluring in real life as they are in Basu's world.

But the film isn't all rhythmic narrative, visual flair and technical showboating. At its centre, it offers some truly unforgettable and gloriously quirky characters who steal your heart the kind that can only come out of Anurag Basu's colourfully vivid imagination. Particularly by way of Ranbir Kapoor's Jagga who is as endearing as he is enigmatic with Kapoor delivering a performance to remember, doing what only he can. Kapoor is also a producer of the film for which he deserves further applause for championing this kind of cinema while most stars are scared of breaking convention in any way.

Arguably the most pleasant surprise, however, is Katrina Kaif who is actually well cast here and doesn't miss a beat. Now there's something I never thought I'd say. Basu extracts a winning performance from her, doing well to play to her strengths. Both she and the wider of cast courageously commit so entirely to what could have just as easily become a silly mess. Special mention also of Saswata Chatterjee (Kahaani's iconic Bob Biswas) who is heartwarming in his portrayal as Jagga's father. The film also includes one of the most unforgettable cameos from this year which I will leave for you to discover and enjoy. Due credit must also be given to producers Disney who have taken a leap of faith backing this. It's clear no expense was spared in bringing Basu's vision to life and it's not often you see a big studio willing to take a risk such as this, and man has it paid off.

However, the film isn't without its flaws. While it has everything you might think to ask for from a fantastical family adventure and more, from quirky ingenious good guys to two-headed bad guys to giant fruit sling shots and adrenaline-fuelled car chases, between these and the enchanting musical charm, Basu crams in a lot, arguably too much. At a running time of 3 hours, it struggles at points to maintain a consistent level of engagement. However, in Basu's defence, whenever you feel yourself coming out of the film, particularly in the far lengthier second half, he always manages to yank you back in somehow. I imagine, It must be difficult for a director to keep reigned in when you know you're onto something truly special, which Basu clearly was, but a more restrained approach would have certainly done the film some favours.

It's also not the easiest thing to follow with perhaps one too many showdowns to keep the adventure going and the chase on. There's are also a number of jumpy action sequences and moments of poor CGI, but Akiv Alis smart editing manages to cover those up for the most part. These don't, however, take away too much from the magical, musical, fairy tale of an adventure that is the film.

In one of the final scenes, we see Jagga with a deep smile on his face which just refuses to budge one of resounding relief after a long, arduous adventure had. This is a look I'm assuming Ranbir Kapoor shares today and is indeed one I had on my face by the film's end.

Jagga Jasoos is a triumph of imagination and visual storytelling offering a gloriously unforgettable experience, I'm going with four and a half stars.

SHARE ARTICLE
• 4
• PRINT
• AAA

Jagga Jasoos is this year's Mirzya. Like Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, Anurag Basu gets audacious in playing with the craft and the narrative form. A young detective who sings and dances his way through solving cases the most interesting bit about Jagga Jasoos is its musical structure. The film aspires to be a stylised Broadway musical. So the scenes and dialogues even the TV news get sung. The song-n-dance sequences take the story forward even as the screen gives the impression of a stage. While it does leave you with some absorbing moments, it also seems to turn the film into a remote experience for the viewers at large. Are we prepared to watch a Hindi film in a Western musical format? Are we willing to see "their musicals make inroads into "ours? Your guess is as good as mine.

Basu's experimentation doesn't stop with the music alone. There is a comic-book touch to the characters from the Tin Tin hairstyle of Jagga (Ranbir in great form, save the overdoing of the stammering) to the bumbling ways of the love interest and unwitting sidekick Shruti Sengupta (Katrina Kaif, good fit for a cartoony role). The touch of whimsy is heightened in the way a reading of the Jagga Jasoos books is used as a linking device to move from one adventure to another from the mystery of clock tower to the murder on the giant wheel. There is a conscious scaling up when it comes to the visuals though I did feel the colours seemed a little too saturated and then off at times. And like every good detective story the film makes you travel to distant, exotic lands, complete with zebras, giraffes and emus. Jagga Jasoos's fantasy does get fantastic.

Basu is aiming at reaching out to the children and the kid in every adult. But behind the castles he builds in the air also lurk some serious issues be it an extramarital affair or arms dropping at Purulia. Unfortunately, it gets all facile and showy with Basu throwing random references from Subhash Chandra Bose to arms smuggling, from Naxalism to terrorism, from international espionage to blackmailing without substantiating on any one of them or taking any of these threads to a logical end. There is also the oddly righteous talk about how the "maut ki mandi (the death market) will turn humans extinct, like the dinosaurs. All these sombre, solemn concerns don't hold up and make things needlessly complicated. In the midst of all this, the hunt for Jagga's foster father (Saswata Chatterjee) gets way too protracted. However, the young Jagga's relationship with his "Tooti-Phooti dad does tug at the heartstrings. It's this strong emotional core that Basu should have stuck with through the film, but unfortunately gets diluted as the action progresses. Shruti's own tragedy, for instance, doesn't go beyond the cosmetic.

The biggest failing of the film is that the young detective fails to acquire a unique personality of his own (as most sleuths are wont to) to sustain interest in further adventures even though the film ends with the promise of more. Eventually, it's not a whole that you come back with but its parts. There are those funny little details the cop with a posse of phones around him and his confusion about which one of them is ringing, the Stebe (not Steve mind you) Jobs Cyber Caf in Kolkata or the casual slipping in of the fact that the heroine is older than the hero (in the film, of course) and some bewitching musical set-pieces like the "Khaana khaake song. I am still laughing at that jeep that gets stuck in the narrow streets during a chase early on in the film. In the climax though, it was still stuck at the same spot.