Black Friday

Year: 2007
Country: India
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Kay Kay Menon, Pavan Malhotra, Aditya Srivastava.
Rating: ***1/2 (out of ****)

Before I forget, there's a shabby sequence midway through the film where two police constables humiliate a mother and her daughter in front of the father. Such a disturbing scene, thinking of which alone shakes me to the core. Rakesh Maria tells journalists, these animals (the 93 blast suspects) will open their mouth only when their loved ones, especially children, elders and women are humiliated. This immensely powerful picture is filled with such barbaric truth about police investigation. The film almost always manage to tell us both sides without bias and that's what makes it a great movie.

Movie starts with investigation and shows criminal investigation proceedings of India's largest criminal case with accuracy and balance. I can not praise Anurag Kashyap enough for it. It takes a genius like him to depict every sequence with this much care and never losing the track or being biased. Truly commendable. But Kashyap does not stop here. He goes back to the Babri demolition and tries to explore the events those eventually led to the infamous riots and then the blasts. The writer director who crafted everything so brilliantly till almost 75% of the film then goes on to show file footage of a Pakistani minister and affected people thus trying to find a solution or at least to show us the cause of what happened in those communal riots. Now, I'm really not sure whether this is a good thing or not. Firstly, I personally don't like real documented footage used in a feature film. If somebody needs to know about that can read the book by Zaidi. Secondly it takes the attention away from a wonderfully built drama and suddenly becomes heavy-handed. I think, that was unnecessary.
I don't know how sure am I about this comment so probably I should stop but not before heavily recommending this tremendous motion picture by debutant director, an artiste to look for. A must watch.

Gandhi

Year: 1982
Director: Richard Attenborough
Caste: Ben Kingsley, Alyque Padamsee, Roshan Seth, Martin Sheen, Amrish Puri
Rating: **** (Masterpiece)



It is indeed safe to say that independent India is seeing the second generation now that failed to understand both the Mahatma and his principles (and I include myself) completely. This movie is a compelling not only because it's painstakingly made, but also the man it represents, his life, his sacrifices, his selflessness. However naive this may sound nonetheless, it is true. Those of you, my friends, having the slightest of doubt whether Mr. M.K. Gandhi was merely a leader, revolutionary, politician or he was truly a mahatma, I beg you, watch this movie.
The more times I watch this marvelous cinema, the more unsettling experience it's becoming for me. This piece of writing is a result of that. To my misery, I don't seem to understand the reason. The political scenario in India, losing identity of once glorious rural India, slowly diminishing values like honesty, simplicity and morality from Indian society, I don't know. I really don't. Sometimes while watching the movie, I ask myself why do I need things, more things. All means of sense gratification. Nobody seems to care for others, except few honorable exceptions. This has to stop somewhere. This is not the India our fathers wanted, Gandhiji wanted, is it? ( This maybe Christopher McCandless(Alexander Supertramp) in me talking.)
I ask myself, what am I doing? What have I done for my country, or humanity for that matter. But these are all words and words only. One need to stand up and start working, for equality, justice and most importantly for truth. And then I find an ounce, however small it may be, of that great man called Mahatma Gandhi in me, if I can show the audacity to say so. My tiny heart does not seem to contain him...
Ben Kingsley is mind-numbingly brilliant. Here's an adjective I never thought I would use for an actor's work. Only problem is that he isn't Indian. So the accent, at times, seems to be the distraction. Everyone else is apt and adequate. A perfect piece of cinema. Thank you Attenborough.