Sunday, February 22, 2009

Delhi 6 - From Chandni Chowk to Nowhere

For the first half, you don’t know what the movie is talking about. Then, as the story develops, it starts to tie a few threads and make a few new ones to leave them untied. The jump from thought to thought is abrupt. But then, I like the old world charm, be it Montreal’s cobbled streets or Old Delhi’s crowded, heavily wired rooftops. I guess that is why I went to watch Delhi 6. Somehow I was disappointed. I don’t get disappointed easily, I go on looking for some saving graces in the work till I find them or till I abandon the work. I found some in this movie too-but they were so far removed from each other that I ended up waving my hand and telling Mahesh, “no its not worth all this time I am spending here. " But then most of the movies I watch, I watch to be with Mahesh, to laugh with him, to get scared, to just have those 3 hours all to ourselves. So it is okay, I went on watching Delhi 6.

Abhishek is cute, I like him, he could have done a good job in the movie if there were any job for him to do. He disappoints but then the director hardly appointed him. Sonam Kapoor tries to do that girl next door act, but she fails miserably-she ends up behaving and getting filmed in a clichéd way. I normally get impressed very easily by people, but she couldnt even use that ease to impress me. Mahesh even had a suggestion for her (obviously she failed to impress him too) that she should find a good boy and get married asap before it is too late. Waheeda Rehman is one of the redeeming factors in the movie; the others being Vijay Raaz in the role of Inspector RanVijay who has avenged all the slaps he has had to suffer in other movies and Divya Dutta in the brief role of an untoucable sweeper. Atul Kulkarni impresses in his own way.

I expected more from Rakesh Omprakash Mehra after Rang De Basanti . This movie also tries to say things through symbolism. RDB had its legend of Bhagat Singh and his comerades; here it is Ram Lila transmitting the message of communal and religious harmony. But this movie is not even close to the charm of RDB that refuses to fade even today. Rang De Basanti had all the new comers except Aamir and they ended up governing the entire psyche of the youth of the nation for quite a while. This movie has a cast of accomplished, senior, mature actors; unfortunately the director has been unable to handle their talent-he got to get them to do nothing. The message could have been given in a stronger, far stronger way (and it is the need of the times too) but the director somehow lost interest somewhere in the middle-it shows. It ends up as a sweet and a clean kind of movie, but then you cannot go on having Mamdu’s jalebis for three hours.

However, symbols like masakali (the pigeon) , the tulsi, the temple and the mosque, the black monkey, and the song with the combination sequence i.e. Dil Gira Dafatan are the few things that I will remember the movie by.

Moral-I could have watched it on the DVD if there were not the danger of having to see Mahesh fall asleep during the movie.






37 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi, inspite of the brilliance of RDB, Delhi6 disappoints. first of all, its name should have been Dilli-6. It does not come out to be a very coherent account of Dilli. But being Dilliwallah, anything remotely concerned, attracts us, and sheer familiarity evokes nostalgia and then some emotions.

Gazal said...

i think the movie should not be compared to RDB at all.It's a legend.Still the comparision creeps in.Will watch it and try and keep the comparision at bay.

ABHI is cute.....only CUTE???

Eternal Rebel said...

Hello Mampi,

Thanks for the appreciation. Well if you want to work on 1857, you need to start from Wikipedia, if you wanna go deeper into this, you will have to get out from net and search some really old books in libraries. Sometime back I read an Englishman's account on the massacre of Kanpur and the seize of Lucknow. They were good albeit onesided. We have some in google's ebooks also.

Unknown said...

Hello Mamp.

I think it is a lighthearted entertainer.

Here is a funny mashup video.
Laurel and Hardy dancing to Masakali from Delhi 6:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeEIhpnBYfw

Rajindarjit said...

You expressed your veiws nicely.
However, Chandni Chowk is a place which is known for the super sacrifice- a sacrifice for those who had no solution of their own problem. And Guru Teg Bahadur ji is known as 'HIND DI CHADAR'.
He saved the sect to survive.
Dhindsa

Monika said...

oh mampi i actually loved it i have written a short review

Usha Pisharody said...

I rather enjoyed this take, and will want to see it, just to see how little it impresses. love that song too.. Masakali, so maybe for that :)

Sucharita Sarkar said...

I think your post is a balanced review of a good-at-heart but bad-at-execution movie. Sad for Abhi and Sonam, they performed so well despite the dis-appointment.

Sidhusaaheb said...

Hmmm...

I like the music, though I am yet to watch the movie.

To be honest, I think that RDB, too, was over-hyped.

Indian Home Maker said...

I loved Masakali :)
We are planning to go see this movie tomorrow ... the city is a home to me, and I have shopped in Dilli 6 - so I guess it is going to make me go all senti :)

LOL @ your last line!! (The Moral)

Pinku said...

hey!!

something is very wrong...Mampi criticizing Bollywood...is like unbelievable stuff..

I had no plans to catch the movie though I do like the promos in which the heroine dons those nice ballis and jootis....

DeeplyDip said...

i agree...a pathetic movie - i mean for how long can you watch the natural falvour of the place - without a storyline??

Hip Grandma said...

never mind the movie.I got to read your daughter's story.Impressive narration.How old is she?pat her on the back for me.Itis good to see a child take up a serious topic and do justice to it.

Mampi said...

Himalayan Adventurer-Dilli 6 would have been better, agreed. Even I have a fascination for anything remotely related to Dilli, thats why i went there.

Gaz-Yeah you are right, but then one expects better from the director of an epoch making work. Yah, Abhi is cute, he failed to inspire anything else in me.

Eternal Rebel-Your blog is lovely. Yes I have explored a few of the links related to 1857-as also the google books available on the subject. I start on the project soon and would appreciate more such links. I am also to analyse those 'one sided' accounts.

ArtVeda-Its okay kinda movie. Thanks for the link, will check it out soon.

Mama-Absolutely, That was the message, though they forgot Guru Teg Bahadur while lecturing on Communal Harmony in the area, strange though it is.

Monika-Where is the review babes? I didnt see it on your blog.

Usha-Thats a nice reason to see the movie-to see how little it impresses, hehehe.

Sucharita-The two people could have performed but strangely their performance was totally cramped.

SS-Apna apna vichar hai, I think RDB was a totally Hatke movie-and quite inspiring- that is if one is looking for a message in the film.

IHM-Hope you enjoy the movie.

Pinku-Mampi didnt like it much, so she is criticising. Ballies and Jooties are a jhootha ploy.

DeeplyDip-Did u watch it?

HipGrandma-Thank you sooooooooo much for your encouraging words. She is 11. I will definitely pat her on her back in the morning on your behalf.

Mana said...

Fortunately, I haven't watched any of the recent releases: Ghajini, Dev D and Delhi6.. Now a days, movies lack strong point and its truly not worth spending a rupee on them. Old movies were such good that I feel like having a DVD collection of 90's, 80's and even 70's :)

Devika Jyothi said...

Hi Mampi,

I wanted to see this movie, just for the name --

Something related to Delhi -- and I am hooked. :)

I loved most of the songs, for the music and voice...Hindi lyrics are difficult for me :)

wishes,
devika

Mama - Mia said...

:)

i loved it! i think it was not meant to make a strong point and raise hell like RDB.

it was subtle and talking to a time which is more divided by religious strife than anything else.

i felt proud to be a part of this country and was touched in an odd sort of way that i cannot really describe.

i would recco it totally! :D

cheers!

abha

vandana said...

Thats interesting , I want to watch it more now because of mixed reviews
in blogosphere...

Anonymous said...

I thought it was a terrible film, though I loved "maula" and "genda phool".

And I didn't think RDB was great either.....

Cheers,

Quirky Indian

Anonymous said...

Yet to see it! Pardon me if I don't comment-haven't read it for fear of spoiling my surprize....will comment later

Anonymous said...

see now u hv me swaying towards "dnt watch it"... till yesterday i had mixed reviews from friends so there was a 50% chance of seeing the movie in the theatre...now its down to 10%.
i like bachchan jr. i think he's a great actor..cant comment on sonam, hvnt seen any of her work.

Anonymous said...

A disappointment to hear that the movie is not upto the hype.

I liked 4 of 10 the songs though.

my space said...

badi pictaren dekhi jaa rahi hain....accha hain aapne bataya...paise bach gaye ;-)

Indian Home Maker said...

Hey Mampi I finally saw and loved the movie ... it's getting extreme reviews, some just love it others just hate it :)

Manvinder said...

mei vi dekhi hai ...achchi lagi ....bolg also

Iya said...

Hey, I watched a movie a few days back and came here to read the review... rememebr I told u I wont read this untill I have seen the movie :)

My take - I like it, it is obviously not RDB... but its not bad either... I had heard such negative remarks that my expectations were at an all time low...
other than Abhishek’s fake American accent the movie is nice..

How do we know said...

:-) and when will u post next? I went and saw this movie in a theater... and quite liked it. But i can understand most ppl's not liking it.

Sujata said...

Wow...Mampi you really did not like the movie! I am glad to have read your review...it was on "my on my things to do to feel closer to home list".

man in painting said...

it is also nice to imagine movie from the images you see in the cinema posters.i have a story for this movie.. lol!after reading reading your review i just don't want to disturb it by watching the real movie..
nice as usual mampi...

PARRY said...

just came after commenting on ur review on dev d.
as for delhi 6 the director has certanly disappointed us. u hav already stated it.

Imp's Mom said...

hmmm...so its good that im watching it on dvd tonite :)

btw have something for you :)

ThoughtSafari said...

Hello jee... mennu teh changi lagi movie... but its probably Delhi as people who are away.. would like to thing of it... not people who stay :)

And how come no post for such a long time??

Oreen said...

well, i think i will still watch it. for the five years i have spent in Delhi... :)

wish I could go back... maybe i will soon...

and i will also watch DevD, the movie you recommend...

Anonymous said...

I liked Delhi-6, its like some hollywood movies I have seen that celebrate a place not a story. Its vignettes, loosely woven, with the walled city and its people and their relationships with each other. It captured the walled city beautifully

SHWETHA said...

I watched the 1st day st show of it!! I'd even come on News9 for the same. Its a kinda boring n i found it exaggerating at a few places.

Anonymous said...

I dont know why, but I actually liked this movie ...May be because it had some moments which I can identify with myself. i knw a movie wouldn't be like based on some moments but its entirety , but to me that was enough.

Dr. Ally Critter said...

Delhi 6 was Much ado about nothing. And I am being kind. As a documentar/ never ending serial yes, maybe it had its merits, but as a movie, no. And Abhishek Bachchan needs to decide to act if he wants to be an actor( papa's wishes notwithstanding!)