Gulabo Sitabo | Review Repost

Gulabo Sitabo is undoubtedly the meekest entry yet in the filmography of Shoojit Sircar along with his rockstar writer duo Juhi Chaturvedi,  but a cinematic marvel nonetheless. The film set in Lucknow might be the cinematic equivalent of a 80's Basu Chatterjee outing with lesser melodrama and a better sense of the ever changing exploitative world around us! Bachchan and Ayushman blends in to the Lucknow dialect with ease and elevates the onscreen antics,  mining heartfelt laughs even at most odd juncture in the story. The story dissects the helplessness of the common man in the new world where everything has a monetary value associated with it and clinging onto nostalgia becomes a luxury for the underprivileged section of our society.

 

 Mirza and Baankey along with the other inhabitants of the "who -knows -how old" Haveli stand out as solid individuals with grey shades and little or no moral character arcs,  a result from their need to survive in the "Big Bad World". The Begum played by a wonderfully serene yet fierce Farrukh Jafar is a treat to behold, she being the pivotal link in the proceedings leading to an exquisitely written third act reveal! The light heartedness of the narrative is juxtaposed with more pressing and serious issues like dire consequences of greed, cultural degradation and uprooting one from one's home by an unresponsive system too busy to care for the frailties of the common man. Vijay  Raaz as the cunning Archeological officer and Brijendra Kaala as the scheming Lawyer Christopher Clark has a separate movie of their own within the story in hand and these stewart's brings out the nuances of these modern day fraudsters aplomb. Baankey's sister Guddo played by Srishti Shrivastava was also a well etched out part with layers similar to the other key female characters in the movie who had their own reason for their actions in the screenplay

Shoojit Sircar like his previous outings like Piku, Vicky Donor and October just tries to be there to capture the moments rather than going for gimmicks associated with such small town films. Avik Mukhopadhyay's frames lend eternal beauty to Lucknow with beautiful restraint use of lights and colours to suit the mood of the film coupled with Shantanu Moitra's poetic and subtle background score. The scheming cat and mouse games between Mirza and Baankey often takes dig's at the human psyche in absurd circumstances with the  playful humour.

 

Amitabh Bachchan seemed to be having a ball with a character tailor made for his current reputation as an "Diverse Actor". Bachchan with the help of a little prosthetic makeover glides into the headspace of the greedy, miser "Mirza" with his usual mastery over the craft. The performance is even more  commendable as he makes us feel sorry for the scheming Mirza ( who is waiting for his wife's death to be the sole owner of the Haveli) when things don't go as per his plan. Ayushman Khurana too shines in a part that is a cakewalk for an actor of his calibre. Although Baankey seems not too far away from the " Boy Next Door" roles the actor has found huge success in lately. The central characters of Baankey and Mirza seems to be lived in, flawed people rather than being just caricatures in the bigger scheme of things.

 

The low key comedy might not be in par with the writer - director duo's earlier collaborations in terms of vision and cinematic mastery but is an important work of art that makes us question the many flaws that we tend to overlook as part of human nature. The subtlety in the movie making might seem jarring for those who associate the louder "Punch on the head" morale studies approach adopted by most hindi filmmakers today but in those little things left unsaid lies the beauty of cinema as all great films have thought us over the years. Juhi Chaturvedi and Shoojit Sircar seems less interested in portraying events as either " Black or White"  but prefers to traverse the grey shades that these characters evolve through the course of the film.

Nostalgia and love for the seemingly old is an recurring element in the narrative and the film seems to be interested in dwelling into the aspect of commercialising our rich cultural heritage and history for petty gains and the irony that humans present themselves in the ensuing efforts.The very last shot before the end credits where an old sofa owned by Mirza worth only 250rs turn into a priceless addition in a antique sale perfectly wraps up the intention of the makers. Shoojith Sircar's new film has things to say to the ones who would care to lend him an ear and surrender to the imperfections.