|
|
 |
|
|
Cast:
Abhay Deol, Kalki Koechlin, Dibyendu
Bhattacharya, |
|
Mahi Gill |
|
Year:
2009 |
|
Music:
Amit Trivedi |
|
Lyrics: Amitabh Bhattacharya, Shelley,
Mani |
|
Story:
Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane |
|
Banner:
UTV SPOT BOY |
|
Presenter:
UTV SPOT BOY |
|
Producer:
Vikas Bahl |
|
Producer:
Ronnie Screwvala |
|
Director:
Anurag Kashyap |
|
|
|
|
There's a
major difference between K.L. Saigal, Dilip Kumar, Shah Rukh
Khan and Abhay Deol's Devdas. The first three films were
faithful to Sarat Chandra's legendary novella, while Anurag
Kashyap's deviant take on Devdas is contemporary and in the
process, differs from the original work.
In Kashyap's DEV D, Dev is into drugs and vodka. Paro sends
her nude pic to Dev via email and later, wants Dev to have
sex with her in the fields. Chanda, a hooker, indulges in
phone sex mainly. Clearly, Kashyap's Dev, Paro and Chanda
are audacious and rebellious.. |
|
|
|
There's
no harm if you pick up an enticing story and tell it
your way, but Kashyap goes a bit too far, crosses
all limits and tends to get abstract once again. And
that's the reason for DEV D's downfall.
To Kashyap's credit, a number of individualistic
scenes are interestingly handled. Unfortunately, the
proceedings gyrate from absorbing to boring to
yawn-inducing. The writing [screenplay: Anurag
Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane] lacks consistency. |
|
 |
|
So what's the final word? Does Kashyap redeem
himself after the boring and listless NO SMOKING?
Unfortunately, he doesn't. Watching DEV D is akin to
doing atyachaar on oneself!
Son of a rich industrialist, who is sent away to
London when he was 12, Dev [Abhay Deol] returns to
his hometown and to Paro [Mahi Gill], his childhood
sweetheart. Inseparable as they seem, a
misunderstanding puts their lives in a tizzy; Paro
is married off to someone else and Dev goes into
severe depression.
Not one to take on responsibilities for his acts,
Dev digs deep into drugs and alcohol for salvation.
He stays away from home, but his finances still come
from a doting father.
Lenny [Kalki] likes to live her life on the edge --
a rich student with a penchant for adventure. After
a devastating MMS scandal, she's abandoned by her
family and is forced into isolation. As a runaway,
she finds shelter with Chunni, a pimp. With great
determination and inner strength she adopts an alter
ego -- Chanda. |
|
|
 |
|
As Chanda, she gets to be a high profile escort by
night, while Lenny remains a college student by day.
At this juncture, Dev enters her life…
Despite the fact that you know the basic plotline of
DEV D even before the reels begin to unfold, what
you're keen to know is, how has Kashyap executed the
subject? The sequences between Dev and Paro at the
start are captivating and the volatile relationship
they share makes you realize that Kashyap is on the
right track. Note the |
|
|
altercation between Dev and Paro, which prompts Paro
to marry Bhuvan, who's much older to her, besides being a
father of two.
Post Paro's
marriage, DEV D starts going downhill. Lenny/Chanda's MMS
scandal is straight out of life and the reasons that make
her turn into a hooker are well explained. But the sequences
between Dev and Chanda lack fizz. Equally sad are the scenes
between Dev and Chunni. Besides, there's not much movement
in the story after a point and the goings-on get boring. The
journey to the climax is prolonged and tedious.
Amit Trivedi's music sounds good to the ears. 'Emosanal
Attyachaar' is already popular, besides a couple of other
songs ['Nayan Tarse' and 'Pardesi']. But there're too many
songs in the narrative. Rajeev Ravi's cinematography
captures the rustic look of North India well.
Abhay Deol is
natural. Mahi is decent, while Kalki shows sparks in a few
scenes only. The balance cast, including the actor playing
Chunni, are strictly okay.
On the whole, DEV D is NO SMOKING II. Does one elaborate
more? |
|
|
|
|
