Nagesh Kukunoor's Dhanak movie reviews/discussion

Director: Nagesh Kukunoor

Cast: 
Hetal Gadda, Krrish Chhabria, Vipin Sharma, Gulfam Khan, Vibha Chibber, Vijay Maurya

There's something irresistible about a road movie with small children. Ask fans of Majid Majidi. Nagesh Kukunoor's Dhanak is nearly the same genre as a Majidi movie and best of all, it even has the same kind of magic. It's a movie with a large golden heart. Its intentions are pitch perfect. The writing could've been a lot better. But end of the day, this movie has enough goodness and sweetness to warm the cockles of your heart. It leaves you feeling like sunshine on a summer day in Switzerland. Warm and happy.

The story deals with a brother and sister duo in a remote village in Rajasthan. The boy is called Chhotu and he's blind. The girl called Pari is the elder sibling and she's the mother figure to Chhotu. Pari is a sworn fan of Shah Rukh Khan and Chhotu is a worshipper of Salman Khan. They have a cute superstar fan rivalry too. She's the one who holds his hand and makes him feel secure. They're orphans but live with their uncle and aunt. As cliches go, the aunt is the veritable avatar of a cruel stepmother, who doesn't even feed the children, even when there's enough dry rotis to go around. All that Pari wants is to have Chhotu get his eyesight back. So when she sees SRK's 'donate your eyes' poster she decides to write him letters so SRK can help Chhotu get his surgery. When the adults refuse to send out her letters and when the cruel aunt's diktats get too tough, Pari and Chhotu decide to runaway from home. They make a beeline for Jaisalmer, 300-odd kilometers away, because that's where SRK is shooting for his new film.

While there's nothing new on offer in terms of story or characterisation, even the whole Rajasthan set-up gets a little too obvious with countless poverty, desert, ghevar and folk song references, the movie manages to keep your faith alive because of its earnestness. That comes from the two child actors - Hetal Gadda playing Pari and Krrish Chhabria portraying Chhotu. They're irresistibly adorable and their genuine smiles can make you feel fuzzy. So with these two kids fending for themselves out in the big bad world, you're emotions are instantly invested in their adventure. Their journey though predictable, is still invigorating because you want them to succeed. It helps that the kids have self-critical dialogues where they're constantly embarassed by the ludicrous nature of their quest. They're looking for SRK in a desert after all. So when adults enquire about their motives the kids spell out the outlandish but honest nature of their task. And surprisingly, almost everyone they meet lend out a helping hand. Is the world full of eagerly helpful people as shown in Dhanak? No, but going with the positive theme of this movie, you want the children to succeed and you want them to steer clear of an Anurag Kashyap sense of stark reality, so that's exactly what Kukunoor and his team serve up. The way things keep falling into place is almost too convenient. But that's what drives the goodness of this adventure.

This is definitely not Kukunoor's best film. Movies like Iqbal, Dor and Hyderabad Blues were leagues ahead in their scope for storytelling. But Dhanak does make good on the premise of being an honest children's adventure. At one point, you do feel like you're watching an Indian culture catalog for the Americans, they even throw in a Hippie from California walking the Earth for love and peace. But the movie never gets over-the-top or annoying. It let's the children take center stage throughout and their honest banter always keeps your mood upbeat. There are plenty of sweet performances by adult actors like Vipin Sharma, Bharati Achrekar, Ninad Kamat and Raghu Ram (MTV Roadies fame) to get the story to chug along as well.

If you believe in inspirational Instagram posts and the power of positivity, Dhanak is the film for you. The cynics might find the lack of gritty realism a bit too much, but even the most hardcore realists will agree that this little road movie ticks all the boxes when it comes to ending on a happy note. This is no award winning material, but it is well worth a watch. It proves that the happily ever after notion may be overused and old, but it still gets the job done.