Originally posted by: dizzyonlemonade
Bluemoon86 said it all. I don't think I have much to add. But I will explain what I find lacking in Madhur's films. Yes, he often tackles subjects that are deemed to be controversial or not mainstream per say. The problem in most of his films is that he always seems to prop up one group against another and say one group is good and one group is bad. Issues are often simplified, and it is just casting judgment. There is no gray or subtlety at all. So the last film of his that I liked a great deal was Chandni Bar. It accurately showed the plight of Tabu's character and how she cannot get her offspring out of the cycle of abject poverty and exploitation in the murky world of crime and dance bars. Though I watched the film long ago, I remember the sense of hopelessness and there being some nuance in the tale.
Though he does have strong female protagonists and the example of Page 3, I did like that he showed the bond of female friendships, which was kind of reminded me a bit of Dil Chahta Hai in bits. And I liked Konkona, Boman Irani, Sandhya Mridul's performances in that movie.
Overall though, my favorite movie is Chandni Bar of his, and the other one I liked a bit was Page 3 probably mostly due to Konkona. Traffic Signal was incredibly muddled and the only part that seemed intriguing was the Konkona-Ranvir vignette, but it wasn't developed enough due to Ranvir's premature death.
That is (the bolded part) probably the only reason I didn't absolutely hate Page 3. The performances by the rest of the supporting cast were really not up to the mark. Some of the dialogues in that movie made me cringe. And yes the Ranvir-Konkana vignette was the only interesting part of Traffic Signal - but he cut it too short.
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