Dec 24, 2007

Movie Review :Taare Zameen Par – A Gem in Indian Cinema.

For all parents and parents to be, here is a movie that you should be watching to know how hurt your child would feel even when you come with a very casual statement.

How often do you remain speechless after leaving a movie hall? That too after watching a Bollywood movie? Rare; it is a known and accepted fact and I guess the previous attempt was only with ‘Gandhi, My Father’. Well, Taare Zameen Par (TZP from now on) is a sincere and novel attempt and is remarkably well told too. The movie lingers in your mind even for a couple of days, after watching it.

To make a movie on children is not that easy and that could be the reason why movies of similar genre are just a handful. TZP is not a childrens movie; but a movie about children. It also explores much more than these - the way parents react when they come to know about their childs performance at school, the way teachers treat children at school, the way a child is looked at by the classmates when he/she is a total loser. All the emotions are shown beautifully and there is absolutely no scene where you feel that the messages are going overboard or where the scene looks artificial. The movie impresses from the very beginning as one sees Darsheel Saffarys name appearing during the credits before Aamir Khans. Again, how many film makers have let this happen? The story unfolds gradually and does not bore you even when the movie is going on a slow pace. Each character shown is someone that you could relate; be it the brother, the best friend or even the bus conductor!

The story revolves around a kid, Ishaan (Darsheel Saffary), with dyslexia and how he overcomes his difficulties and wins the heart of everyone with the help of his teacher Ram Nikhumbh (Aamir). Darsheel, from the Shiamak Davar camp, is the backbone of this movie and it is amazing when you notice that the kid single handedly carries the whole movie on his shoulders. All the right expressions -controlled and equally composed. Spontaneous acting and powerful screen presence, this kid could go places. Tisca Chopra who plays Darsheels mother is also excellent. However, Vipin Sharma who acts as Darsheels father is sometimes dramatic.

One could witness Aamir as the director and story teller in this movie more than Aamir as the actor. The entire first half revolves around Ishaans character and the superstar is shown only 30 seconds (literally!!!) before the intermission. He lives upto the brand that the media has given him—Aamir , The Perfectionist. He is the real superstar of Bollywood- directing, acting and even to have the guts to produce an offbeat movie of this kind.

Though the script is almost flawless, it is only after Aamirs entry that makes the movie a little less natural. The first half shows the movie from Ishaans point of view, depicting his emotions and his mental trauma. The second half loses its grip on the audience as the teacher becomes more important and the screenplay moves from his point of view. If the first half makes you search a hanky, the second half would make you just moist-eyed.

The screenplay
of the movie has let in cinematic liberties too. For example, the predictable climax, the intro scene and dyslexic past of Ram Nikhumbh, the reduced mothers character in the second half and the clumsy teachers in the boarding school. But these negatives are very negligible when compared to the positives highlighted. Moreover, there should be some element of happiness in this complete tear jerker and that should be the justification for the negatives mentioned.

Music by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy is simply brilliant and goes well with the mood of the film. Even the BGM’s are equally outstanding. The other departments; editing, camera graphics, art, extra actors all have done an equally wonderful job. Hats off Aamir, you have extracted the best from each one of them and gave us a powerful film.

On the whole, this debut venture of Aamir Khan is for all the age groups. Highly recommended; a movie one shouldnt miss at any cost. Aamirs TZP deserves repeated viewing and I am sure most of us would do that. This movie is certainly a Taara, bollywood mein.

1 comment:

theSaintlySinner said...

You haven't credited the story and its brains - the story conveyed a strong message. And it makes one wonder as to how many brilliant minds would have been hampered, or is being hampered owing to the pressure of doing good in academics and amongst their peers. We ourselves have gone through it, but are we willing to make a change after learning from our past? Or we willing to remain just a point on the circumference of a vicious circle?
TZP is a wonderful movie. And Aamir, has proved that he is a brilliant actor, a clever and brave producer, and a director who knows his skill. It pooh-poohs the efforts of so many "great" directors these days, who end up converting the black money of their financiers into wholesome crap.