Film: Luck By Chance (Drama)
Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Konkona Sen Sharma, Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia
Direction: Zoya Akhtar
Critic's Rating: ***1/2
If the underbelly of Mumbai, Kolkata (read slums) has been the perennial flavour of international cinema, then the Bollywood underbelly has been the current flavour of desi cinema, with more and more filmmakers opting to lift the curtains on tinsel town. And like the slums of the neon-lit cities, here too you will find a similar sleaze and grime that fails to hide the inspirational stories of success and dream-fulfilment. Like Farha Khan, debutant director Zoya Akhtar too looks at the Davids and the Goliaths who fill the film studios of Mumbai with their sweat and dreams. But she takes a totally different vision of the strugglers, the stars and the star makers. Rather than adopting the tone of an indulgent spoof as in Om Shanti Om, Ms Akhtar gets more realistic, life-like and soft-toned.
And it's here that she manages to create some riveting character studies which have nothing filmy, nor flimsy, about them. Watch Farhan Akhtar and Konkona Sen grow from nobody to somebody in an industry which is harsh, brutal, nasty and non-compromising, and you are sure to get your paisa vasool. Of course, you've got to cruise along patiently, since success and self-identity are things that cannot be achieved in a nano second. Not in real life at least. Not in the world that Vikram Jaisingh (Farhan), a struggler from Delhi and Sona (Konkona), a runaway from Kanpur, inhabit. Here, things happen more by chance; mostly by luck; but survive, only by talent. So, there's nothing chancy about Vikram ending up as a successful film hero and Sona wowing TV viewers with her saas-bahu enactments. Yet, before they get there, they must survive a million rejections, heartbreak, misuse and separation.
While Sona waits for her big break from a film producer she has been `friendly' ever since she landed lonesome in Mumbai, Vikram bides his time, confident he'll get the big break. The duo get friendly and spend many happy `waiting' moments on their terrace until the big break actually comes. Reigning superstar, Hrithik opts out of a film being made by Rishi Kapoor, a mainstream producer, for a Karan Johar film. Enter newcomer, Vikram, on the recommendations of the heroine's mother (now that's another sweet story) and the rest is history. Yellow journalism, the ill-famed heroine's mummyji (Dimple Kapadia), the heady cocktail of success, the lovers tiff, ruthless ambition, unbridled me-centrism: the film holds a mirror, not only on the film industry, but on life itself. Success is great and dreams are intoxicating, but they can be dangerous too, says Zoya, the story writer. Yet, never stop dreaming!
The highpoint of the film are its performances. Both Farhan and Konkona are complete naturals before the camera, just as Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia prove that vintage never does lose its flavour, does it! The jibes are gentle, the tenor is fond, yet firm. But most importantly, the characters are completely real: feisty and flawed, even as the end is exhilarating.
Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Konkona Sen Sharma, Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia
Direction: Zoya Akhtar
Critic's Rating: ***1/2
If the underbelly of Mumbai, Kolkata (read slums) has been the perennial flavour of international cinema, then the Bollywood underbelly has been the current flavour of desi cinema, with more and more filmmakers opting to lift the curtains on tinsel town. And like the slums of the neon-lit cities, here too you will find a similar sleaze and grime that fails to hide the inspirational stories of success and dream-fulfilment. Like Farha Khan, debutant director Zoya Akhtar too looks at the Davids and the Goliaths who fill the film studios of Mumbai with their sweat and dreams. But she takes a totally different vision of the strugglers, the stars and the star makers. Rather than adopting the tone of an indulgent spoof as in Om Shanti Om, Ms Akhtar gets more realistic, life-like and soft-toned.
And it's here that she manages to create some riveting character studies which have nothing filmy, nor flimsy, about them. Watch Farhan Akhtar and Konkona Sen grow from nobody to somebody in an industry which is harsh, brutal, nasty and non-compromising, and you are sure to get your paisa vasool. Of course, you've got to cruise along patiently, since success and self-identity are things that cannot be achieved in a nano second. Not in real life at least. Not in the world that Vikram Jaisingh (Farhan), a struggler from Delhi and Sona (Konkona), a runaway from Kanpur, inhabit. Here, things happen more by chance; mostly by luck; but survive, only by talent. So, there's nothing chancy about Vikram ending up as a successful film hero and Sona wowing TV viewers with her saas-bahu enactments. Yet, before they get there, they must survive a million rejections, heartbreak, misuse and separation.
While Sona waits for her big break from a film producer she has been `friendly' ever since she landed lonesome in Mumbai, Vikram bides his time, confident he'll get the big break. The duo get friendly and spend many happy `waiting' moments on their terrace until the big break actually comes. Reigning superstar, Hrithik opts out of a film being made by Rishi Kapoor, a mainstream producer, for a Karan Johar film. Enter newcomer, Vikram, on the recommendations of the heroine's mother (now that's another sweet story) and the rest is history. Yellow journalism, the ill-famed heroine's mummyji (Dimple Kapadia), the heady cocktail of success, the lovers tiff, ruthless ambition, unbridled me-centrism: the film holds a mirror, not only on the film industry, but on life itself. Success is great and dreams are intoxicating, but they can be dangerous too, says Zoya, the story writer. Yet, never stop dreaming!
The highpoint of the film are its performances. Both Farhan and Konkona are complete naturals before the camera, just as Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia prove that vintage never does lose its flavour, does it! The jibes are gentle, the tenor is fond, yet firm. But most importantly, the characters are completely real: feisty and flawed, even as the end is exhilarating.
Article Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/moviereview/4050572.cms
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