'Pink' - Movie Review
At the cost sticking his neck out, mid-day critic Mayank Shekhar feels that 'Pink' is even more impactful and powerful than Rajkumar Santoshi's 'Damini'. He feels 'Pink' does compel one to think. And that's not all it does
'Pink'
U/A; Drama-thriller
Dir: Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Kirti Kulhari, Andrea Tariang
Rating:
Where exactly do you place a film like this " in the annals of Hindi movies, for instance? For reference sake alone, I'd say, right next to Rajkumar Santoshi's 'Damini'. Which was such a powerfully moving movie that when a majority of young ones, who were probably not even born or were kids when that film hit theatres in 1993, were protesting on Delhi's streets against a brutal bus rape in 2011, they called the survivor: 'Damini'.
Does this film leave a similar impact? Frankly, I'd say, at the cost sticking the precious neck out " even more. And why's that? Quite simply, because the terrible incident described in this film could happen to absolutely anyone of us, or our loved ones.
But, more significantly, the film, up until the closing credits, does not even visually describe the said incident. It grips you still with a gently piercing background score, moments of silence and dialogue, building up the tension, while the audience wonders what really could have happened one unfortunate night when three girls found themselves in a Surajkund resort with three guys. And one of the boys got seriously injured thereafter.
The setting is, of course, Delhi-NCR. Some of the reactions to this picture are probably going to emanate from that fact alone, given how realistic and relevant that makes this film to be " about a part-feudal, part-modern, power-drunk political capital of India that unsurprisingly has also positioned itself as the sexual harassment capital of this nation.
I know, lot of Delhiites balk at the bad rap all the men get for the city they live in, being painted by the same brush. God knows it's unfair. Yes, I grew up in Delhi. But, the fact remains that I knew not a single female friend, while growing up, who didn't have at least one horrific sexual abuse story to tell " most of them involving strangers in public places.
Many of those girls would've ended up living very similarly to the three lead characters in this film: young, middle-class, working women, sharing a posh, rented apartment in South Delhi (most likely, Safdarjung or Hauz Khas), as against a PG (paying guest) dig up north. Their combined income affords them a fine neighbourhood.
Of the three girls (Taapsee Pannu, Kirti Kulhari, Andrea Tariang: crackers, all), one is originally from Delhi, the other from Lucknow, and the third is from the North East " that odd collective noun that suffices for anyone from seven such disparate states of India (nobody calls a Mallu, a Madrasi anymore; but somehow "North East" is still okay).
These girls are what you call "independent women". What you mean by that depends on how you view them. Judgment is in the eyes of the neighbour. And this is, of course, not just true for Delhi. It is a national issue.
The men in this film, however, are probably as Delhi' as you're likely to find. And here I don't just mean the way they've been cast, which is phenomenal, no doubt. But also just the actors that you see on the screen " from those in bit roles (Vinod Nagpal, Sudhanva Deshpande, Dibang), to the bunch of three privileged boys with serious entitlement issues (Angad Bedi, Vijay Verma, Raashul Tandon), down to Amitabh Bachchan, heading the line-up. Which leads me again to the Damini analogy.
Bachchan, like Sunny Deol from that iconic pic, plays a retired lawyer who returns to fight a case worth fighting for, in a riveting court-room drama, with Bachchan's relatively under-stated baritone serving as the much needed voice of reason.
So, yeah, you know where this film is coming from. What I'm interested in, or at least we ought to be, is where this film is going " ideally to all those people and places in India, still grappling with a seemingly radical idea that men and women are just, well, you know, equal. It's shocking, as Pink puts it, the views some of the most unlikely men hold about women " on the basis of how they dress, what they drink, who they love, where they live... Even as we see more and more females in public, party, and work places.
Yes, Pink does compel you to think. And that's not all it does.
http://www.mid-day.com/articles/pink-movie-review-bollywood-amitabh-bachchan-taapsee-pannu-rating/17610155
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Shoojit Sircar's PINK is essentially a simple story about the complex problems issues like inequities and hypocrisies the women in India face everyday. The film starts off with a 'tensed up' introduction of Meenal Arora (Taapsee Pannu), Falak Ali (Kirti Kulhari) and Andrea (Andrea Tariang), alongside the 'silent' introduction of retired advocate Deepak Sehgal (Amitabh Bachchan). Meenal, Falak and Andrea live together as paying guests in Delhi, earning their respective livelihoods. These girls lose their smiles and peace of mind because of a terrible incident that threatens their lives. The incident takes place when Rajveer (Angad Bedi) forces himself upon Meenal and she hits him hard with a glass bottle injuring him seriously. After this incident, the girls come under attack from all sides as Rajveer happens to be a polticians nephew. Soon his friends start threatening the girls. When the incident gets registered with the police, it leads to an array of investigations, interrogations and character assasination of the three girls. With no lawyer ready to represent their case, the girls find their sole ray of hope in advocate Deepak Saigal, who volunteers to fight their case, despite having given up his law practice. How will the girls prove their innocence against such a powerful opposition and does advocate Deepak Saigal help the girls win the case and clear their names, is what forms the rest of the film.
When PINK's promos came out, one expected an edgy and a realistic cinema. The fact is that PINK does not disappoint at all in this aspect. It boasts of a gripping screenplay that holds your attention till the end. Despite the film's slow narrative, especially in the first half, it keeps you engaged and hooked. The film has some hard hitting dialogues (Ritesh Shah), which elevates the situations and the corresponding elements. Do not miss the entire courtroom drama, especially when Amitabh Bachchan grills Taapsee Pannu and Angad Bedi and also when Kirti Kulhari breaks down in the courtroom.
The film's director Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, who happens to be a big name in Bengali cinema makes his Bollywood debut with PINK as a master storyteller. While he uses the first half to just set up the film, it's actually the gripping second half that helps the film in reaching its crescendo. The manner in which Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury has extracted realistic performances from the film's actors is definitely laudable. Despite the film being rich in content, the film does carry a grim feel due to its subject matter. Also, the film does not explain certain elements very clearly like the relationship between Amitabh Bachchan with an ailing lady named Sarah. Another big loophole was that, despite Taapsee Pannu's character being molested in a car the second time, there is not mention of such a major event in the court case. Also, the scene of Kirti Kulhari's fake 'obscene poster' that costs her the job, seems totally forced into the film.
PINK is embellished with bravura performances and it is undoubtedly and undisputedly the towering Amitabh Bachchan who steals the show. Even though this is not the first time that Amitabh Bachchan has played the role of an advocate, he manages to bring something different to the table in PINK. It won't be wrong to say that, with PINK, Amitabh Bachchan has not just delivered an immensely memorable performance, but also one of his career best performances. Trailing an extreme close second is Taapsee Pannu, who manages to 'earn her place under the sun' with her sincere portrayal of Meenal. Taapsee Pannu will surely be a serious contender for all the awards this year. Kirti Kulhari, whose last film was the forgettable JAL, delivers a rock solid performance in PINK. She utilises to the maximum the screen time that is offered to her. On the other hand, Andrea Tariang does a very job too. While Angad Bedi is scarily convincing, Piyush Mishra and his 'courtroom antics' are exceptional. Dhritiman Chatterjee is extremely convincing in the role of the judge. The rest of the film's characters help tremendously in the progress of the film.
While the film has absolutely no scope for music (Shantanu Moitra), its background score (Shantanu Moitra) is extremely haunting and creates the ambience for the film. The film's cinematography (Avik Mukhopadhyay) is decent. The film's editing (Bodhaditya Banerjee) is average.
On the whole, PINK is a compelling film which exposes hypocrisies and double standards against women in our society. With powerful performances from the starcast, the film leaves you shocked, stunned and speechless. At the Box Office, it will be patronised by the multiplex audiences and the positive word of mouth will translate into healthy footfalls for the movie. Don't miss this one as it hammers home a very powerful message.
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