Directed by: Anurag Basu
Starring: Ranbir Kapoor,
Priyanka Chopra, Ileana D´Cruz
Released: 2012
Verdict: destroy every
copy – horrible – bad – whatever – flawed but enjoyable -
good – great – amazing
It was with great fanfare
that Barfi was announced as India´s this years entry to Oscars, and
it was with almost apologetic and „you know“ smiles it was
reported the film did not make it into another round of selection.
Upon its release in India Barfi stunned almost every critic and more
notably also viewers, and while I definitely am among those genuinely
charmed, I am not surprised Barfi was rejected by the Academy (if
they even bothered to watch it). It was just too obvious a film like
this cannot succeed in this particular competition, and I have to
wonder why Kahaani or Paan Singh Tomar were not send to the US
instead. They were more „Indian“, more authentic, and most
importantly original. Barfi is not a remake of any one film, it tells
a story previously unseen, however it practically copied scenes from
other movies and then moulded them together for the sake of story
telling. A job brilliantly done, and in a way I did not find
offending in the least, but still, not something you want the
(self-proclaimed) most important film award platform to see as the
best what you can do - which in this case would mean "copy others".
Murphy Munna, Jaisa Lala |
Copied scenes matter apart
(and I myself couldn´t have been bothered less about them, as I have
not a single one of those films that were used for inspiration),
Barfi is the ultimate feel good film of 2012, and that too with some
of the best performances we´ve seen. Ranbir Kapoor has, in a short
span of five years, that he is that one thing to watch out for in the
future. Extremely versatile and convincing in any role, his own
persona always engulfed by the character he plays. It is same with
Barfi (Murphy), a deaf young man with an eye for girls and great joy
of whatever life brings his way. Sometimes he illegally sells alcohol
and is involved in minor crime, which irritates the local police to
no end, because Barfi may be short of hearing ability, but is as
cunning as a fox and so they can never catch him.
When Shruti and her family
come to Darjeeling (a small town where Barfi lives), it doesn´t take
long before she bumps into him, and he immediately (and almost
literally) offers her his heart, not caring she is already engaged.
Even Shruti finds herself in love after a while, but pressured by her
parents, she is ultimately not that brave as to let go of all
certainties in her life for Barfi. After the disappointment with
Shruti Barfi´s father suffers a heart attack, and penniless son
knows that desperate times call for desperate needs. And so he sets
out to kidnap an autistic girl Jhilmil from a rich family and demands
ransom. Too bad somebody kidnaps her right before him....
Barfi is told in multiple
flashbacks, flawlessly put together. There is an attempt to tell the
story in a rather documentary way, and that too works beautifully
combined with more common narrative. Music is very different from
what we are used to in Bollywood films, it actually has a very French
feel to it (didn´t someone say it was inspired by Amelie soundtrack?
Needless to say I´ve not seen Amelie.). The film overall not only
feels wonderful, but looks wonderful as well. The hill station of
Darjeeling, the crowded but somewhat cozy streets of Kolkata, camera
work does all places justice, and captures some truly beautiful
details.
Above all Barfi is
brilliantly acted. Ranbir, as already mentioned, is a complete
natural, and both his leading ladies hold their own against him as
well. Ileana, the best newcomer to Bollywood this year for sure,
makes Shruti very elegant, gentle girl, very relatable for many. She
would like to chase her dreams, and is not exactly forbidden to do
so, but society norms are always there to remind her that she should
just sit down and be happy with what she already has.
Priyanka Chopra, very much
like Ranbir, is probably the most versatile and daring actress in
Bollywood right now. With Jhilmil she more than made up for the
disappointment which was Teri Meri Kahaani. There was no shortage of
great female performances this year, but I believe Priyanka takes the
cake. Vidya Balan was nothing but excellent and Sridevi too was pure
delight, there was also Kareena who impressed me, and of course
Deepika was the best surprise of 2012. However none of them had a
role as challenging as Priyanka. She became somebody she has absolutely nothing of in real life.
To portray a person with disability
of any kind is always risky. There are too many examples and
possibilities of where to go wrong and make such a character nothing
more than either a caricature or a pitiful thing that needs to be
cried over, but Jhilmil, in spite of being several autistic, is
neither. She is innocent, but not pitiful, she is „different“,
yet definitely not someone who cannot make a place for themselves in
the society. She is capable of utter devotion, that does not come
from her being dependent on a person. The girl makes her own
decisions. Just like Barfi, who is deaf, autistic Jhilmil does not
feel discriminated by being born a bit different. It is a bit
uncertain for me to pinpoint which of the ladies was actually the
main female lead, because Ileana dominates completely in the first
hour, but from then on Jhilmil mostly takes over.
The story may seem naive
in a way, and perhaps is, but it is also heart-warming and extremely
endearing. The only complaint I have is the make up artist, who
couldn´t make a believable „old“ make up for Priyanka and
Ileana, and instead they came off looking as if they haven´t washed
in weeks. But really, other than that, I loved Barfi. It made me happy. Something no other film this year really managed to do.
The only thing I disagree with is your mention of Priyanka being the most daring and versatile female actress today. I think Vidya takes that cake but I by no means wish to downplay the amazing achievments Priyanka has gained in the past couple years. :) Wonderful review.
ReplyDeleteWell, as much as I love Vidya, when she takes a risky film it is not AS risky for her as it is for Priyanka, who is more mainstream and is one of the actresses who are "glamorous". Vidya never had such an image. She was a "serious" actress. I hope I make sense.
DeleteI agree with Gaja. Vidya may be bold and daring, but she's always had this serious image attached to her. With Priyanka, its different. She's had this glamorous image attached to her and coming out of that comfort zone to give us one of the best performances of the year through the portrayal of an autistic girl, is something extremely commendable. Hence, I also believe that Priyanka is probably the MOST daring and bold actress in today's generation :)
DeleteI would say Priyanka is definitely the lead. After all, the story is about love and friendship between Barfi and Jhilmil where Shruti lends support to the characters by providing perspective to their lives and story :)
ReplyDeleteYes, I also tend to think Priyanka was the main lead :) Thank you for stopping by!
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