Mumbai Meri Jaan
Posted On Sunday, August 10, 2008 at at 9:43 PM by Harshit GuptaIt was a movie I had loved the promo of. Recently I found a review by Anurag Kashyap on in.com which is here.
Possibly India’s “Crash”.. or i don’t know how else to describe it..Saw the rough cut , on Nishikant’s avid.. he wanted to bounce it off me and i was cleanbowled.. again the familiar feeling went through me.. why did i not think of it and why did i not make it..
The film begins in a police station with cops discussing sunil more(the marine drive rape case), one(Vijay maurya) of who is going on a holiday and the other(Paresh Rawal) counting his last few days in the service..then it introduces us to the computer salesman(kaykay) with his unemployed friends in a irani cafe talking about cricket and you also see that he has a phobia of muslims or probably distrust and hatred, then you see the bicycle coffeeseller (Irrfan) who is fond of perfumes and then the film introduces us to the bite hungry TV journo(soha ali khan) and her boyfriend who disapproves of her job and how they are indifferent to the the subjects of their story and she defends it (before she herself becomes a story) and finally we see the US phobic executive(madhavan) who prefers to commute to his work by local train and not invest in a car.. and then Nishikant tells us the day and date of all these random observations into the life of people..
It’s the 9th of july 2006.. the numerous blasts in the train and what it brought out in people.. some of them victims.. their fear and paranoia.. Kaykay is sure that the suspicious muslim guy who hangs out at the irani cafe is one of the perpetrators of the tragedy and his subsequent rage and loss of innocence.. Madhavan’s mortal fear of trains.. his unaware pregnant wife of the tragedy that almost missed him.. Irrfan wanting to avenge his humiliation in front of his family by the floor incharge of the perfume section by figuring out a dangerous game that he can play with the paranoid distrusting police and administration.. the wisdom of the retiring cop always in confrontation with the idealistic cop who had to cancel his holiday.. and the tv journo who has now become the story.. anger,humility, fear and fearlessness, paranoia, self realizations, hate and self loathing, all surface over the facade of the perfect lie of a life we dream of in a metropolis..
It tells us of a beautiful time and the way city was before the national security became the ultimate excuse for invasion of privacy and privacy became such an aspiring word..Outstanding performances by a stellar cast and the best ever of their lives by Paresh rawal and Soha Ali Khan.. an incredible and courageous followup to DOMBIVALI FAST by NISHIKANT KAMAT..
The kind of a film that we all need to go see it in theatres and take our friends along with us, this film needs our effort for the sake of the kind of cinema we talk animatedly about. Spread the good word.
Find the original review here.