Talaash - REVIEW THREAD

'Talaash' is an incredibly rousing tale of deceit, betrayal and revenge, set against the backdrop of an unforgiving city.

It's a story that forces us to look beyond the obvious, and explore the unknown.

The narrative is slow, and intended, brilliantly capturing the essence of what truly lies beneath.

We surrender to director Reema Kagti's, and writer-director Zoya Akhtar's, exquisite story, allowing them to influence our sensibilities, unquestioningly.

As the curtains go up and credits roll, we are introduced to a mesmeric Mumbai that awakens to a whole new world at night through Mohanan's mesmeric frames and Ram Sampat's foot-tapping beats.

Just minutes on, a famous actor is found speeding to his death, as three unsuspecting witnesses watch the events unravel in front of their eyes.

A police investigation is summoned, and earnest cop Surjan Singh Sekhawat is appointed to handle it.

He examines the witnesses whose frank observations don't quite explain the tragic end.

It leads to an excruciatingly, daunting journey that forces him to push his boundaries, and accept the incomprehensible.

Reema's incredible genius lies in her ability to involve the audience without unveiling too much until the very end.

And, it's those few moments of revelation that's the most riveting.

Aamir turns Surjan into a credible cop, minus the Bollywood clichs that surround every uniformed hero these days. He gives Surjan immense depth and authority, controlling our emotions and moulding our beliefs with finesse.

From taking down street rogues without any remorse, to stepping out to save the life of a streetwalker, to being sensitive to his wife's inability to move on, to trusting another woman of questionable reputation, there are numerous layers to Surjan's personality.

While you'd question some of his decisions, you'd never doubt his integrity.

Despite investing his every wakeful hour in solving the murder mystery, it's the burden of losing his young son that constantly harasses him. An unfortunate event, which he believes he had caused due to his negligence.

Although he checks in his wife for medical assistance, Surjan refuses to accept he is suffering himself and spends every night reliving the horrors of that fateful day.

His wife, played by a make-up-less, light-eyed Rani Mukerji, appears more eager to nurse her aching heart and find ways to deal with her grief.

She's exceptional as the wounded woman who is unable to solve her failing marriage, and prefers to ignore the bad and focus on the positive. Despite being projected as the weaker parent, she shows great strength and resilience.

Kareena Kapoor pouts and charms as the third crucial character Rosy, as she controls Surjan's psyche immeasurably. Although she has dolled up to step into the murky red-light zone in her earlier movie 'Chameli', this act is far more convincing and daunting. yeh baby!!!!

Among the supporting cast, Nawazuddin Siddiqui is exemplary as the limping Tehnur, who hopes to benefit from the murky dealings to win his freedom, and Shernaz Patel plays the intrusive, quirky neighbour with aplomb.

Reema and Zoya have worked out the most enthralling suspense drama without succumbing to any Bollywood clich. Even Ram Sampath's striking musical compositions are played to accentuate the narrative and not puncture it.

It's by far the most honest movie in a long time.

Spoiler Alert.

Talaash Hindi Film Review -The excellence lies within

Directed by Reema Kagti (Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd), written by Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti, dialogues by Farhan Akhtar and additional dialogues by Anurag Kashyap, the latest film of Aamir Khan can be classified as a crime drama. It is a story of betrayal, loss of a loved one, deceit and greed set against the backdrop of the city, where only the fittest survive.
Reema sets the tone of the film in the credits, which shows the cross section of working society on a Mumbai night. The camera leisurely captures the road side dhabas, the prostitutes and pimps, the taxi drivers, the beggars who NEED to work through the night to survive. In this lonely night, a movie star crashes his car into the sea-face and drowns to his death. Enter Inspector Surjan Singh Shekawat, who starts to investigate the case. The case appears to be an open and shut accident case, but

Surjan's instincts take him into the underbellies of the red light district in Mumbai. He is helped by a prostitute, Rosie (played by Kareena Kapoor) and tries to put together the missing links. Why did Armaan, the star, sent his driver and his make-up man home and drove his own car, when he was not fond of driving at all? Why did he get Rs.20 lakhs from his accountant in cash in the morning? What happened to the money? Armaan's wife and family blame the cops that they are trying to cover up the case. Surjan suspects that Armaan's best friend and his wife are not saying the complete truth.
At this point of time, Reema introduces other characters in the film. The pimp Shashi, his girlfriend, his chamcha Tehnur (played brilliantly by Nawazuddin Siddiqui) and Reema opens part of the suspense to the audience. And she introduces us to the back story of Surjan, how he lost his son, how he and his wife Roshni are trying to deal with the loss. Despite trying to put together the missing links in the accident case, we realize that Surjan is trying to put together the missing links in how to cope up with the loss of his loved one. He does not know what he is searching for, but he continues searching hoping that it will lead him away from the pain and burden of having watched his son die.

The narrative is mostly linear and intentionally slow and Reema insists on connecting the dots for her audience in a detailed manner. And this is sometimes painfully slow but you realize the conceit only when it is pulled right in front of your eyes. What a masterstroke! Unlike Kahaani, to which this film's story was being compared to(no connection there – it is just a rumour), the conceit here is just the catalyst. The movie continues well after the conceit is revealed and you completely surrender to Reema's narrative. But the best potions of the film are the scenes between

Aamir and Kareena. The sensitivity in which Reema handles these portions is remarkable. You really are very confident about the integrity of Surjan even when he follows her to the hotel room, and this is precisely achieved by the way the director handles these portions. There is one truly fantastic moment where Aamir looks at Kareena silently for a whole 10 seconds (10 seconds silence in movie time is really long) and says "You don't belong here (in the world of prostitution)". Only a confident director (and a confident actor) could have pulled this off.
The final scenes are so inclusive that it brings tears to your eyes and content to your hearts. Remarkable achievement from a director, for whom this is just the second film. This is a difficult film to make where the audience always knows more than the protagonist. And Aamir brings in so much of depth and layers into his performance, that this could be considered one of his very best. From trying to figure out the games Kareena plays with him by giving him information in bits and pieces, to the constant pain he exhibits in his eyes, to trying to be as helpful to his wife as possible to help her cope up with the loss – the role is multi-dimensional and Aamir does full justice to it.
Rani plays Roshni, Aamir's wife, who shares his loss, and she is simply outstanding. In the beginning, the director gives us only a glimpse of her character and makes us believe that she is unable to deal with the loss. But the character has a fantastic arc and she is the one who is actually positive and full of hope. (I asked Surjan about having a second child, but he did not even want to discuss it – she shares with a friend; her reaction of genuine warmth and joy to seeing her son's friend is another example). Kareena plays the mystery girl Rosie– a prostitute with a golden heart – and it is again a difficult role. What Rosie thinks is not reflected in her face, but all along her career, Kareena has played just the opposite. It is the triumph of the director, the actor and the casting director to have pulled this off. In fact the way she plays it is so effortless, but when you look back, you realize how well she had pulled it off. The other supporting cast including Raj Kumar Yadav and Shernaz Patel is excellent and so is the work of the crew. Ram Sampath's background score and Mohanan's camera work deserve special mention.

The team of Dil Chahta Hai, Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd, Luck by Chance and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara have given their best venture till date. So what are you waiting for? The search for this year's best film is over.

http://www.madaboutmoviez.com/2012/11/talaash-hindi-film-review-the-excellence-lies/

Film: Talaash (UA)
Director: Reema Kagti
Cast: Aamir Khan, Rani Mukerji, Kareena Kapoor, Vivan Bhatena, Nawazuddin Siddiqui
Ratings: ***

Aamir Khan is back and yes, with a bang. Even though this reviewer is not a die-hard fan of Aamir Khan, the truth is that you can love him or hate him, but there's no escaping his films. Talaash, which was originally slated to release last year, proves once again this actor's films are not to be skipped and completely worth the wait.

As the credits start rolling, Reema Kagti introduces us to the dark side of the city of Mumbai, which is known to be glamorous. Cinematographer KU Mohanan goes beyond clichd depictions and showcases the actual night life of this city, which is more than glitter, parties and a fashion-crazed world. And by the end of it, you understand how each opening frame is important to bring the film to a fitting conclusion.

Minutes into the film, we see a speeding car meet with an accident. The driver is a well-known actor Armaan (Bhatena); the witnesses, three unsuspected men; the investigating officer, inspector Surjan Singh Shekhawat (Khan). The deeper Surjan sinks into his investigation, the more he realises that there is a lot going on than that which meets the eye. Meanwhile, a parallel story unfolds, that is, of Surjan and his wife Roshni (Mukerji). While the couple hardly communicates, it is revealed that they lost their child in an accident. While Roshni undergoes therapy to get over the shock, Surjan, who spends sleepless nights, drowns himself in work when he is not thinking of the ill-fated moment in which he lost his son.

While Surjan goes on to investigate the mystery behind Armaan's death, he comes across various seedy people, which includes a pimp, his right-hand man Tehnur (Siddiqui) and a sex worker Rosie (Kapoor). As he faces the daunting task of finding the reason behind Armaan's murder, Surjan unveils the murkier details of an intricate mystery.

The plot of the film is what proves to be a real winner as it leads to a logical, yet questionable end. While the movie is slow before the interval as it tries to establish the plot moving back and forth in time, the second half will leave you scratching your head as you try to piece everything together along with the lead actor.

Khan is not particularly brilliant in the film, but he does complete justice to his role. To his credit, he plays the multi-layered character of a grief-struck father and an honest cop with complete ease. Mukherjee does not have much to do in the film, but her deglamourised avatar creates a strong impression. She is quite convincing in the role of a devastated mother and a concerned wife. Kapoor does not have much to do in the first half of the film, but her character takes a front seat in the second half. She is charming and looks even more convincing in the role of a sex worker than she did inChameli. Siddiqui is commendable. He plays an important role and he plays it with sheer brilliance.

Reema and Zoya Akhtar have spun a gripping tale that will capture your attention from the very first minute and will definitely leave you surprised by the end of it. Though there are a few clichs, they can be ignored when you consider the entire package.

The music by Ram Sampath helps carry the movie forward with some soulful melodies. My personal favourite is Jiya Lage Na. The background score is fitting as it adds to the mystery. The cinematography is laudable as it portrays a compelling picture of the red-light areas of the city. Anand Subaya's editing is crisp.

In all, Talaash successfully whets the appetite of all the Aamir Khan fans. As for the story, you can always trust Zoya Akhtar to give her best. Talaash is not a flawless film, but it is a fascinating tale that compels one to look beyond that which is evident. You can't miss this one.