Best Picture [Drama]
Drama is the life of cinema.
At its core, every film in essence is a drama. That should highlight how profound every film is no matter which genre conventions it adheres to.
Even when that dramatic stance takes a more comedic approache. Yet for a sake of genre respect and distinction of deserving films unfrotunately judged by a certain bias.
So then by pure nature, these five films nominated may take a drama status they are indeed rife with different genre elements. There is a crime film here, an investigative thriller, a coming of age tale, a spiritual subversive revenge thriller and a poignant thematic film that would fit somewhere in realistic cinema.
All in all some films ripe with great drama.
There are also some neat honorable mentions to consider...
Baby: Featuring Akshay Kumar at his finest and a film that takes the spy genre to another level in Hindi Cinema, Neeraj Pandey's interesting take makes great subversion of tropes as well as remaining patriotic but not jingoistic despite the Argo/Zero Dark Thirty inspirations in plot.
NH10: A shot in the arm for genre cinema with one hell of a protagonist boosting a thrilling horror ride.
Detective Byomkesh Bakshy!: It falters with plot but there's no denying the cinematic quality is top notch in this noir thriller.
Bombay Velvet: It fails on many levels but the sheer audacity of Bombay Velvet is too hard to ignore.
Gour Hari Dastaan: An eye opener, Dastaan misses by a whisker because Mahadevan is unwilling to add some zap to what is an intriguing premise yet doesn't fail to be true and just to his subject which is admirable.
Main aur Charles: If only this could be a prequel to explore more of Charles Sobhraj, or be a mini-series because there is more material on the exciting serial killer despite how honest his portrayal is here through the eyes of Amod Kanth.
Now onto the big award of the night, the HIndie Award for Best Picture [Drama] nominees are...
Man made Revenge, Revenge broke Man.
Badlapur as mentioned is as much about change as it is about revenge. In essence it is the anti-revenge film and a throw up to the genre in the most non-violent and you could say spiritual form with its darker undertones that make the bursts of violence pop.
Some of the best things about cinema are when things are provided in the smallest of doses, it makes these moments much starker in the final picture. This holds true for the few moments of harsh violence in Badlapur.
It allows the film to become a psychological probe into the minds of men that seek vengeance and redemption and became an understanding of the poison that masculinity becomes in the wake of loss and anger that comes with it.
Badlapur is a station where the tracks of life change and in both a meta sense [for Raghavan and Dhawan] and a cinematic sense for it's protagonist this change heralds their entries into the opposite spectrum with finesse making for another great addition into the genre while evolving it.
To be Normal, means to be You.
The essence of a coming of age story is the undertaking a protagonist must go through in understand what they want to be, what they are and eventually come to terms or to put it positively; accept who they are.
The final shot of MWAS could not make this more clear as a cheery Laila enjoys the titular drink with herself, finally content with the woman she has become after her failed romances, her mother's deterioration and her acceptance of her condition,
It's a poetic moment that builds through this breezy but altogether profound character study that makes us understand in the most simplest of terms that normal is just a desire that is already within us.
The greatest achievement each player in this film makes is balancing the fine act between real and to terms with it's protagonist condition while never hampering it.
When two streams separate, they do so with hopes to meet again.
Okay so the meeting of the two streams in this case may feel contrived, but nonetheless become symbolic thanks to the overwhelming character of the river than runs through the banks of Varanasi and its indication that despite the murkiness about; purity is not all but lost.
Masaan's profound examination into our culture and its slowly deteriorating elements in a society placing shackle over shackle and label over label is what makes Masaan such a perfect philosophical piece.
This is a film that speaks of romance of a younger liberated generation but also of the identities we carry as a person and why neither should they be shed away out of embarrassment or regressive policies nor why these identities should keep us tied down to a certain social construct,
Masaan as the english title eloquently puts it is about Flying Away Solo, and Varun Grover, Neeraj Ghaywan and team do just that with a film that rises above the grave [Masaan] it so evokes about.
Freedom and Family can never go hand in hand
It's important as always as a film maker to bring something from a personal space, this not only approves the narrative of a core strength but also makes the cinematic touches flourish beyond disbelief.
Some of the finest works in cinema find themselves from a reality and a humanity no matter how harsh it may be. In Titli's case, the freedom that the titular character fights for, the liberation he seeks surely comes somewhere from within Kanu Behl.
There's no need for him to highlight the red fort or other such places, this is the Delhi he know. The by lanes brimming with small houses, housing close knit families with some dark secrets. Titli is another example in the growing view into the world of patriarchy and how it just as horridly effects the young men brought up to wield it as it does the young women threatened by it.
The beauty of Kanu Behl and his mentors [Banerjee, a producer here] has always been about the greys in situations that would normally be painted white or black on celluloid and using that to stir great drama.
On a side, a tip of the hat to Aditya Chopra who with this film and more is taking great strides in helping change the face of cinema today and making statements for film studios/producers fighting for some great quality.
Reality is a myth birthed by the Media. Justice is a myth birthed by the System.
The meta plane in which Talvar plays can be considered a conniving method in instigating an uproar to reopen the horrendously mishandled Noida Double Murder Case. It can be considered propaganda, but when has that ever truly stopped a film from being a splendid film?
Talvar does both, with the aid of those around her and despite her vested interest in the case; Meghna Gulzar finds that apt balance. She has an opinion, it's clear from the opening of the film. She has an agenda, that she never lets come in front of her technical craft and its superiority.
Those around her bring the technical edge, the finesse that adds a touch of objectivity to each situation that plays out. Yet she keeps that tug of war going without ever letting the rope slip from either hands, it helps that her emotional core is handed to someone as capable as Irrfan Khan.
The beauty of Talvar is in its understanding of the human condition and the emotionality that develops in the cold hard facts. The beauty of Talvar is in the objectivity of the situation being punctuated by a firm understanding of the characters within rather than remaining cold without.
This is what makes the film such a sweet merger. It's what makes Talvar.
And the Winner is...
There are also some neat honorable mentions to consider...
Baby: Featuring Akshay Kumar at his finest and a film that takes the spy genre to another level in Hindi Cinema, Neeraj Pandey's interesting take makes great subversion of tropes as well as remaining patriotic but not jingoistic despite the Argo/Zero Dark Thirty inspirations in plot.
NH10: A shot in the arm for genre cinema with one hell of a protagonist boosting a thrilling horror ride.
Detective Byomkesh Bakshy!: It falters with plot but there's no denying the cinematic quality is top notch in this noir thriller.
Bombay Velvet: It fails on many levels but the sheer audacity of Bombay Velvet is too hard to ignore.
Gour Hari Dastaan: An eye opener, Dastaan misses by a whisker because Mahadevan is unwilling to add some zap to what is an intriguing premise yet doesn't fail to be true and just to his subject which is admirable.
Main aur Charles: If only this could be a prequel to explore more of Charles Sobhraj, or be a mini-series because there is more material on the exciting serial killer despite how honest his portrayal is here through the eyes of Amod Kanth.
Now onto the big award of the night, the HIndie Award for Best Picture [Drama] nominees are...
Dinesh Vijan and Sunil Lulla for Badlapur [EROS International]
Man made Revenge, Revenge broke Man.
Badlapur as mentioned is as much about change as it is about revenge. In essence it is the anti-revenge film and a throw up to the genre in the most non-violent and you could say spiritual form with its darker undertones that make the bursts of violence pop.
Some of the best things about cinema are when things are provided in the smallest of doses, it makes these moments much starker in the final picture. This holds true for the few moments of harsh violence in Badlapur.
It allows the film to become a psychological probe into the minds of men that seek vengeance and redemption and became an understanding of the poison that masculinity becomes in the wake of loss and anger that comes with it.
Badlapur is a station where the tracks of life change and in both a meta sense [for Raghavan and Dhawan] and a cinematic sense for it's protagonist this change heralds their entries into the opposite spectrum with finesse making for another great addition into the genre while evolving it.
Shonali Bose and Nilesh Maniyar for Margarita With A Straw [Viacom 18 Motion Pictures]
To be Normal, means to be You.
The essence of a coming of age story is the undertaking a protagonist must go through in understand what they want to be, what they are and eventually come to terms or to put it positively; accept who they are.
The final shot of MWAS could not make this more clear as a cheery Laila enjoys the titular drink with herself, finally content with the woman she has become after her failed romances, her mother's deterioration and her acceptance of her condition,
It's a poetic moment that builds through this breezy but altogether profound character study that makes us understand in the most simplest of terms that normal is just a desire that is already within us.
The greatest achievement each player in this film makes is balancing the fine act between real and to terms with it's protagonist condition while never hampering it.
Vikas Bahl, Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane, Guneet Monga, Manish Mundra, Melita Toscan, Marie-Jeanne Pascal and Shaan Vyas for Masaan [Pathe]
When two streams separate, they do so with hopes to meet again.
Okay so the meeting of the two streams in this case may feel contrived, but nonetheless become symbolic thanks to the overwhelming character of the river than runs through the banks of Varanasi and its indication that despite the murkiness about; purity is not all but lost.
Masaan's profound examination into our culture and its slowly deteriorating elements in a society placing shackle over shackle and label over label is what makes Masaan such a perfect philosophical piece.
This is a film that speaks of romance of a younger liberated generation but also of the identities we carry as a person and why neither should they be shed away out of embarrassment or regressive policies nor why these identities should keep us tied down to a certain social construct,
Masaan as the english title eloquently puts it is about Flying Away Solo, and Varun Grover, Neeraj Ghaywan and team do just that with a film that rises above the grave [Masaan] it so evokes about.
Aditya Chopra and Dibakar Banerjee for Titli [Westend Films]
Freedom and Family can never go hand in hand
It's important as always as a film maker to bring something from a personal space, this not only approves the narrative of a core strength but also makes the cinematic touches flourish beyond disbelief.
Some of the finest works in cinema find themselves from a reality and a humanity no matter how harsh it may be. In Titli's case, the freedom that the titular character fights for, the liberation he seeks surely comes somewhere from within Kanu Behl.
There's no need for him to highlight the red fort or other such places, this is the Delhi he know. The by lanes brimming with small houses, housing close knit families with some dark secrets. Titli is another example in the growing view into the world of patriarchy and how it just as horridly effects the young men brought up to wield it as it does the young women threatened by it.
The beauty of Kanu Behl and his mentors [Banerjee, a producer here] has always been about the greys in situations that would normally be painted white or black on celluloid and using that to stir great drama.
On a side, a tip of the hat to Aditya Chopra who with this film and more is taking great strides in helping change the face of cinema today and making statements for film studios/producers fighting for some great quality.
Vineet Jain and Vishal Bhardwaj for Talvar [Junglee Pictures]
Reality is a myth birthed by the Media. Justice is a myth birthed by the System.
The meta plane in which Talvar plays can be considered a conniving method in instigating an uproar to reopen the horrendously mishandled Noida Double Murder Case. It can be considered propaganda, but when has that ever truly stopped a film from being a splendid film?
Talvar does both, with the aid of those around her and despite her vested interest in the case; Meghna Gulzar finds that apt balance. She has an opinion, it's clear from the opening of the film. She has an agenda, that she never lets come in front of her technical craft and its superiority.
Those around her bring the technical edge, the finesse that adds a touch of objectivity to each situation that plays out. Yet she keeps that tug of war going without ever letting the rope slip from either hands, it helps that her emotional core is handed to someone as capable as Irrfan Khan.
The beauty of Talvar is in its understanding of the human condition and the emotionality that develops in the cold hard facts. The beauty of Talvar is in the objectivity of the situation being punctuated by a firm understanding of the characters within rather than remaining cold without.
This is what makes the film such a sweet merger. It's what makes Talvar.
And the Winner is...
Vineet Jain and Vishal Bhardwaj and Team
for
Talvar!
So there's the winner, a bit predictable I admit. With huge wins in editing and direction, Talvar was the front runner and rightful winner...still what film is it then that despite these aclaims makes a statement for being just a bit better?
Up Next: A father-daughter duo on a constipated road trip, A robot finding the hero within, Star crossed lovers on the path to eternal fulfillment, A romance where the weight of their world burdens them and a Vasu on a trip of his own...The HIndie Award for Best Picture [Comedy/Romantic]
'Nuff Said
Aneesh Raikundalia
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