I can’t recollect a better performance by a debutante than Karthi’s in Paruthi Veeran . While his brother Surya was stiff as a starched shirt in Nerukku Ner, Karthi was confidence personified in a role totally alien to his upbringing. “He was simply amazing,” agreed Surya when I pointed out the contrast in their debut performances. “I wished I could disappear into thin air after watching myself in NN ,” he added. Karthi is a die-hard Rajni fan while Surya worships Kamal. The brothers today fetch a fortune if a producer is lucky enough to sign them. The added advantage is that they’re both very popular in Andhra Pradesh too.
Karthi’s rise as a box-office bet has been much swifter than Surya’s. His Paiyya was a surprise hit while Siruthai was a blockbuster. Somewhere on the road to success stars start believing they’ve developed ‘script sense’. The choice of films depend more on their roles than the film as a whole. They start depending on the clique they’ve cultivated. When an extremely talented director friend of mine wanted to sign Karthi, a cousin was sent to get a first impression of the story. My friend walked out. I’m sure he was offered better films but Karthi chose Saguni , which is the kind of film a friend will recommend for ‘timepass’. I’d rather watch The Big Bang Theory at home for free. Saguni is the kind of film that mocks the audience. “This is the kind of pea-brained fare you deserve,” the director seems to be saying. Well, the film got an overwhelming opening but collections have nosedived in Andhra and reports from elsewhere are not too good.
Santhanam, who’s having a dream run and gets a deafening applause when he appears on-screen, is the soul of the first half. He’s conveniently sent to jail during most of the second. He’s the darling of producers but I’m pretty sure insecure stars will either start sidelining him or will have his scenes chopped. It has happened to the best of comediennes like ‘Thai’ Nagesh. It won’t be long before Santhanam will be forced to don the hero’s role.
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Anurag Kashyap is the kind of passionate filmmaker whose work is worth waiting for. I sidled up to him and struck up a conversation when I spotted him sauntering around at Dubai airport a couple of years ago.
The Bachchan clan was being mobbed nearby but Anurag seemed to be enjoying the anonymity. He was personally taking the reels of his The Girl In Yellow Boots to the Berlin film festival. “I don’t want them getting lost in transit or copies being made surreptitiously,” said Anurag.
He enquired about what Bala and Shashikumar were up to, before excitedly telling me what his most ambitious venture, Gangs Of Wasseypur was about, in a nutshell.
“We always underestimate the audiences. They’ve started enjoying kitsch because that’s what they’re fed,” said Anurag. GOW has been released and the wait has been worth it. It’s a searing, unwavering depiction of how little has changed in and around Bihar over the years. The region seems to have been caught in a time warp, culturally and economically. There’s no hero here. It’s a sordid tale of revenge with a protagonist who’s driven by lust. The tale is a bit confusing, stuffed as it is with sub-plots, but it has the sweep of an epic. The protagonist doesn’t thirst for his rival’s blood but systematically breaks him down by humiliating him. The acting is simply brilliant from Manoj Bajpaye and Timangshu Dhulia down to the briefest character on the fringes of the frame. The dialogues, true to the local lingo is peppered with expletives but also loaded with mirth. Ironically the character Manoj plays is very similar to the one he portrayed in Satya . He’s the terror in the town but is obsequious when confronted by his wife (brilliantly played by Richa Chadda).
There are complaints about the pace but I found it riveting. I wouldn’t have minded watching the five hour saga at one go. Now we have to wait for the rest of the film. It’s not going to be a sequel because the tale is not over yet. GOW bares all the emotions a human being is capable of. Ironically, at the beginning of the film, Anurag humbly thanks the Southern triumvirate of Bala, Shashi Kumar and Ameer for reminding him of his roots. This film is probably Anurag’s way of exorcising childhood ghosts.
sshivu@yahoo.com
