REVIEW: Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey (3)

HISTORY PRIMER

After trying his hand rather unsuccessfully at comedy, Ashutosh Gowariker returns to familiar territory with Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey. After all, it was with the patriotic drama Lagaan with which he had first proved his métier. As far as intentions go, it is laudable that he brings into focus what has been a forgotten chapter in Indian history, that of the Chittagong uprising and the band of revolutionaries, many teenagers amongst them, who engineered a raid on a British armory. Unfortunately, the scant attention paid towards characterization makes this a rather plodding affair that overstays its welcome by at least an hour.

This is a story of revolutionaries, and indeed it is immediately apparent that there is a slant to the tale, in which the British overlords and their minnows lie decidedly on the fall side, but for the purposes of evocative drama, it is important for us to be emotionally connected to the people whose lives the film chronicles. This is not attempted by Mr Gowariker with the gusto that he expends into creating the period flavor (authentic for the most part). He bestows upon Abhishek Bachchan (understated for a change) as the mastermind Surjya Sen, an aura of immediate gravitas while Deepika Padukone is instantly cast in the mould of a proto-feminist, without scarcely a nod at her back-story. Although in a de-glam avatar, Ms Padukone's Max Factor eyes and general deportment betray no hint of a period inflection. Even when caught up in a bomb blast, her beauty remains unaffected by shrapnel. Just pithy lines do not make great conflicted heroines, and this is a missed opportunity.

Elsewhere he assembles a young cast of ruddy-faced enthusiasts, hand picked for the purpose of cinematic gloss. The performances may be well judged across the board, but the youngsters are uniformly touched upon by a brand of idealism and self-righteous valor and a lack of timorousness that doesn’t quite seem identifiable. These are archetypes not flesh-and-blood people with real conflicts, not quite the lost generation to the cause of freedom. Somehow this fits in with the fairy-tale treatment that pervades much of this film, which seems to be intended more as a history primer (even Vande Mataram is paraphrased). There is cheerfulness in the manner they go about the planning, without any palpable angst at being subjugated. The meetings are conducted openly and brazenly, it is a sunshine revolution. The shackles of imperialism are all but invisible, and only through that familiar signifier ‘Dogs and Indians not allowed’ lazily hung on a sign outside the European Club, betraying bad writing more than anything else.

A steady supply of firearms keeps the illusion of easy struggle going. This aspect of the film receives particular attention to detail, and fire-arms of every conceivable vintage procured as if by sleight-of-hand. This is not a film that preaches pacifism. Gandhian principles are set aside. Women and children are blown up with impunity and because they were British, there isn’t a second take. There are more broad strokes employed by Mr Gowariker. There is the good (but ‘othered’) Muslim who shelters a revolutionary, and a bad one who’s an officer in the British army, and isn’t afforded a change of heart.

By the time we head towards the cat-and-mouse denouement, and each member of the principal cast must be hounded out and martyred or incarcerated (‘transportation for life’, as says a judge), we are past caring. The perfunctory battle scene in the hills of Jalalabad does not quite galvanize our spirits. The deaths of the revolutionaries become matters of incident rather than portents of a collective laceration. Mr Gowariker has tried to create what he presumes will become a parable of pride, but which instead devolves into a jingoistic tale without even the chutzpah of say, Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds. In Lagaan, such simplicity was effective in creating the ‘Asterix and the Gauls’ ethos that became its calling card. Here, the treatment is just too simplistic. The bloodless buildup frustrates its ambitions of becoming a tale of grit, resilience and authentic rebellion. Ultimately, the film doesn't serve the revolution it seeks to reinstate well.

Comments

[AVBM]

Somebody see Rakta Charitra 2.. will ya?

[Vikram Phukan]

Struggling with our day jobs, AVBM! But we should have a review up soon :)