22 February 2007

Eklavya: Romance in Celluloid without a Soul



Problem with Chopra is that though he knows the Language of Celluloid but he lacks the ability to connect with audience and engage them. The end Result is easy to predict, a good-looking movie that has great cinematography and art direction but lacks the Soul.

A great Star Cast and fresh storyline go wasted due to sluggish pace and confused style of story telling. The Movie has so many unfulfilled promises like it has a plot that could have explored so many gray and dark areas of human psyche but rather it ends as a movie that has moth-balled stereotypical roles. Nowhere the internal confrontations and conflicts of decaying royalty are explored, nowhere the impact of choices made by erstwhile maharajas to live in a time warp rather then in contemporary democratic world. Similarly, the conflicts of Saif and Bacchan were not brought out though that could have given the audience a real feast, as both of these actors are very much capable to bring out the most subtle and negative aspects of human psyche with a convincing authenticity. Only Boman Irani shows plausible portrayal of a Not-So-Royal Royalty and also successfully brings out the internal agony and turmoil that one will go through if ones responsibility to carry forward the VANSH is shouldered by a low-life servant.

Apart from that so many fine actors go wasted, as they were never challenged by the director. Jimmy Shergil and Jacky Shroff were given the stereotypical roles of money-hungry-all-evil bad guys. On the similar lines, Sanju Baba is wasted in a role that could have given voice and expression to the agony of all those Dalits that had suffered the torture and humiliation on the hands of so called benevolent royals.

Precious Seconds and Celluloid Reels are wasted on the scenes that doesn't do much to bring out the internal confusion and pain of characters (for example, the scene involving the murder of Shergill and the scene of Balan and Saif that involves nothing but inaudible whisperings) whereas various important conflicts are either not attended (such as conflict of Saif when he comes in term with the fact that Eklavya is his real Father) or attended with a casual attitude (the relationship between Sharmila and Bacchan).


So in the end we have a movie that had made Lofty Promises and desperately tried to live up to the Expectations But could not deliver.

1 comments:

Anonymous said...

who says u r stupid shark ,u r very wise shark!! Nikhat kazmi ki roti cheenega kya !!.
anyways it was cool!!! keep it up..


kailash joshi