Saturday, September 24, 2011

Mausam - Love in 2011

Mausam starts wonderfully.  Aayat (Sonam) arrives from strife torn Kashmir to sadda pind Mallekot where Muslims and Hindus live in harmony, to stay with her aunt, wife of the local baker.  The local rake, Harry urf Harinder Singh (Shahid Kapur), likes to race trains and make it through the unmanned railway crossing just before the train does.  He awaits his joining letter from Air Force, and is content to hang out with his friends, and helping out with the preparations for his sister's wedding.  He falls for Aayat, and just before they get to confess their love for each other formally, she leaves.  But not before his sister gets married, Punjabi fashion, celebrated with the rocking song Sajh dhaj ke tashan me rehna, to which both Mika and Shahid do full justice.

All ye people who go to watch Mausam despite my review, would do well to enjoy the amazing song to the full, because this is where the fun ends.  Up to this part, everything is nearly perfect.  I love the authentic feel of the punjabi culture, the language, the ambience, everything up to this point.

Ok, so next stop Edinburgh.  Aayat is selling tickets to a Mozart concert on the streets of Edinburgh, when she runs into Harry again.  This time, they are older, and slightly more forward.  Things are slow, but yet sweet.  Just when Harry is supposed to come to her house to ask for her hand formally, he has to leave because of Kargil war.

And so on and so forth, they keep missing each other sporadically till the audience falls into a stupor.  There are  some stand alone scenes that are good, but generally everything is so soporific, that you know the movie is beyond redeeming.  A pity, because the first hour or so is so wonderful and so full of promise.

I really don't know whether I should recommend the movie or not.  I shouldn't, but the first part is definitely worth a look.

Such a pity, such a pity.

19 comments:

  1. Been reading similar reviews for this one. Pity indeed because I had high expectations from this one.

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  2. Groan, wohi toh. I really want to see a soft romantic film. par yeh kya kar dala Pankaj Kapur ne?

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  3. Hmm the songs are what is drawing me, plus the whole feel of the movie feels epic. If i go in with that attitude, I'm sure I won't be disappointed

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  4. The Times of India gave this 3 stars - good movie, they said, but meandering and slow. Then I met a friend yesterday who trashed it and warned us off. She said pretty much what you did - that the two would-be lovers nearly meet again and again, but wherever they go, their steps seem to be dogged by one tragedy after another.

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  5. Yup, I agree with bolllywooddeewana. Thats exactly the expectations you should go to watch the movie with. Its an art movie with beautiful frames that shows the angst of true love. Loved the grit shown with which Harry fights the circumstantial pain inflicted by coincidences that the audience finds it hard to digest. Its poetic.
    And then there is bodyguard... sigh!

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  6. Dusted-off - You were warned rightly.

    Bollywooddeewana: The songs are all awesome, no doubt about that. The first hour is so good that I want to recommend watching the movie just for it. But the the second part is mindnumbing.

    Eyenstyn - Did you watch the movie? If so - Vir Sena Medal for you.

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  7. yup, i did watch the movie... its idealistic and hence dubbed as an art movie. quire different than the other drivel being passed off in the name of entertainment. I do agree with you when you say the 2nd half is mindnumbing, it could have been better, but then again, it could have been worse ;-)

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  8. EISI - it could have been worse. Haha. I just wish there had been more stuff you know. Even the political situation was not milked properly, but just sort of mentioned in passing.

    BTW, there seemed to be no link between the babri masjid demolition in Allahabad and the family having to leave mallukot suddenly. There was no local animosity against them.

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  9. I dont recall that situation right now, but they could have left for some other reason?
    also the horse connection was a disconnect ;-)
    However, the movie has beautiful frames. Both actors look a delight! Atleast it looks decent to see an actor who actually looks like a youth chasing a young girl. These days the Khan Brigade is in no mood to give up chasing young starlets! Case in point, Asin looked like Sallu's daughter in ready! Kangana looks like Sanjay's Grand daughter in the new flick with the shake it saiyan song....

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  10. You are right on that point EISI. The Khan brigade is too old. Ranveer, Imran and Shahid are the ones who are young.

    Actually it was the beauty of the movie that made me feel sad that it flopped so badly in the second half.

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  11. It was good for inducing a headache. So if one is in the pharmacy business, it was an excellent movie. And if the khan brigade playing college kids was not bad enough, we had kareena (i can't act) kapoor playing the same. Yup it was a good movie if one is deprived of quality cinema or has lowered their standards so much that anything on the screen is good cinema. But then you are a book worm so its ok for you to make such statements as he ripped off his shirt to show his steroid muscles.

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  12. Shahid is a good actor.. but I dont find any of movies (except for jab we met) interesting.

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  13. Hema, I liked his first movie, Ishq Vishk. Then there was another where he tries to find his lady love - Dil Mange More. Then Fida was not too bad. Of course, Jab We Met was the best of the lot.

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  14. Seems like a film made with good intent, but unfortunately no content! Hey, that rhymes!
    Shahid Kapoor abhi baccha nahin reh gaya. I liked him in Kaminey. And on a bus in India, I saw this movie, wose name I don't know where he was paired with Anoushka Kapoor. He was quite good in that as well.

    As for a strong dose of punjabi culture. I think I had enough! ;-) Please don't get offended Ava! :-)

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  15. Harv - you are a poet!

    BTW - any movie seen on a bus looks good. I saw Life Ho To Aisi where he plays a guy who runs an orphanage, but is killed. His yamdoot - Sanjay Dutt - returns with him when he sees that the life of the little little orphan bachche depends on him - sniff. I quite liked it.

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  16. Actually Harv - I do dislike the balle balle thingie of Yash Raj films. His 'culture' is so faux. Here it was quite real, as in Jab We Met.

    Lekin you are right, it is overdone.

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  17. Life ho to aisi ? never heard of that, but it sounds good. Films to do with orphanages always have a good sympathy quotient. Even Shammi Kapoor got a Filmfare award for Brahmachari.

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  18. Kiddie movies work for a long time. They get played on disney, Nick, CN along with regular movie channels. More royalties ..

    Plus as you say, sympathy factor.

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