Aarakshan (2011)

Just what I expected

Absolutely Brilliant!

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

The story is based on effects of The Reservation Bill on Dr. Anand's world. The Bill is passed, people of different standings and positions put forth their perspective and those are shown unabashedly. Unfortunately, audience does not seem to settle for anything less than a typical brouhaha. The story goes along the lines of what Dr.Anand has to face after his indirect stance on the whole matter and then ultimately following the un-noticed but the precious advice of his better half, to give ample opportunities to all to create equal chances for everybody of every financial status. That may not solve the whole problem but at least can set a small example. You have to do what you can do in your circumstances and everybody is not Sivaji, The Boss!!

During a humid winter in the mid 1980s, in a small town in the remote Indian North-East, many people waited for a movie named Billa-Ranga to arrive. The memory of the rape-murder of Geeta and Sanjay Chopra was still relatively fresh, and Billa-Ranga were the epitome of evil for most people. Finally, the movie arrived, and lots of people, including many senior citizens covered in shawls or blankets, flocked to the cinema hall, which were screening it only for the night show. Interestingly, though, this was a South Indian movie dubbed into Hindi, where Ranga And Billa sang and danced, wooed women, turned out to be undercover cops and ended up getting special Police medal for bravery and achievements.While watching Aarakshan, I had deja vu; it was as if I was re-watching Billa-Ranga (which, to me, has been a cruel joke played on us poor fellows!).This movie could as well have been named "Infrastructure Problem in the Chambal Region" or "General Theory of Relativity" or "Autobiography of Idi Amin" or the "Health Benefits of Yoga" or anything one may think of the top of one's head. This is because Aarakshan has as much to do with the issue of reservation in India, as with any of the titles that I have at random mentioned. Probably Jha was aware of what was going on, and that is why the waiter brings two glasses of Limca (or some such whitish thing) when our hero clearly orders two cups of coffee. You do not get what you expect to be delivered!This also reminds me of a couple of interviews of Naseeruddin Shah, where he steadfastly proclaimed his love for movies of Dara Singh; after watching Aarakshan, I have a gut feeling that I understand why!

As an American (now living in America, despite my profile), I occasionally go to Indian movies to sort of clear my head and watch a story told in a completely different way than most American movies. For this purpose, Aarakshan fit the bill just fine. In the controversy over the school entry quota, there was an obvious parallel to the controversy over affirmative action quotas in the U.S.The story did drag on and on a bit. The bad guys, particularly the vice principal, were a bit too over-the-top evil, and the noble persecuted principal stuck to his guns so firmly that at some point (specifically at the point where he sent the boys away rather than invite them to help him tutor the poor children) he went from principled to sort of stubborn and stupid.A few other random thoughts that distracted me during the movie: The "American" accent, if that's what it was supposed to be, of the Cornell professor was truly lamentable. I laughed, I grimaced. It was awful.In the scene where Sushant orders two coffees, it appears that the waitress delivers two glasses of milk.The actor who played Prabhakar Anand, the university president, seemed too young for the character he played; the one who played low-caste love interest and firebrand student Deepak Kumar looked decidedly too old, especially when compared with the character of Sushant, who I assume was supposed to be the same age and who looked age-appropriate. I also found that "Deepak Kumar" looked gym-toned in a way that was attractive, but detracted from the verisimilitude of his character ... and a further distraction was that to me he bears a strong resemblance to American comedian Robin Williams! Well, I told you these would be random comments. I did more or less enjoy watching the movie as a way to pass the afternoon, but it was no profound experience.

I have always kept Prakash Jha in high esteem since I watched Hip Hip Hurray (1984) and Damul (1985) on Doordarshan and Gangaajal (2003) and Apharan (2005) in theatre. I always appreciated his guts of calling a spade a spade and dealing with his chosen theme without fear or favour. Further, nowhere I found him going astray from his track until I watched Rajneeti last year in which he turned the hard-hitting political drama into a Mahabharat-wrapped revenge saga in the post-interval session of the movie.In Aarakshan (reservation), he has gone a few steps ahead in the wrong direction. Before release, it was thought in the cine-circles that he has dealt with this sensitive issue with sensitivity and maturity. Pro-reservationists having a vested interest in the Indian voting politics, had started making a hue and cry under the impression that perhaps it has said anything against the reservation policy of the state. And it's been banned in some states too which, now I know, is ridiculous because the movie speaks in favour of reservations for backward classes. Instead of presenting a balanced view, Prakash Jha has taken a stand this time, the stand in favour of the caste-based reservations. He had (unsuccessfully) fought the Lok Sabha election a few years back and he might be willing to make any such attempt in future as well. And therefore, he knows very well that no anti-reservationist can win any election in India in the given scenario. So the politician in the disguise of the filmmaker also has not taken any chances in this regard.I always admired Prakash Jha's guts to point out a finger at the system. But now I can see the hollowness of his guts. Now I realize that the times have come when you can criticize the shameless cops and the thick-skinned politicians because they have now got habituated to their criticism (and condemnation). However, you can't dare to speak a single word against the reservations in the state-owned (or state-aided) educational institutions and govt. offices (and PSUs). Since the reservations have become an ever-milkable cow in the hands of the politicians, themselves as well as the beneficiaries of the system have become intolerant enough to behead the people who speak a single word against them or even demand a healthy debate on them. Prakash Jha understood that the reservation issue is a tough nut to crack, hence he chose a softer target to attack - the private coaching institutes.To justify the title, the filmmaker has considered a few statements and arguments for and against the reservation system enough. Otherwise, he has focused upon the commercialization of education. Well, that's also a good subject and a burning issue for the middle-class parents who dream big for their children. But then, what's the need to make the movie under the title Aarakshan and what's the need to create some traditional villains in the movie and showing them as anti-reservationists (and even castists) ? By showing the baddies as cursing the reservation system and humiliating the lower caste people, the moviemaker has made his own stand pretty clear. The main protagonist opines in favour of caste-based reservations and terms the social rift created by them as the price is to be paid to correct the social injustice. Well, is it the correct price to be paid and is it the correct way to ensure social justice, he does not delve deep into it. And can one injustice be corrected through another injustice ? Prakash Jha (and his hero - Amitabh Bachchan) is unable to comprehend that the reservations are being expanded only because they have become a means to catch votes. The social harmony and the national unity has got shattered to pieces due to them but do the pro-reservationists really care ? Politicians are not interested in increasing resources and means, they are only interested in restricting access to them through reservations and strengthening their vote banks consisting of the beneficiary communities.Commercialization of education is definitely detrimental for the society and Prakash Jha has rightly said at a place that even the among the reserved classes, the real beneficiaries will be those only who have money to buy education. However he has presented a too simplistic picture of it and offered a too simplistic remedy for it. This is a traditional hero versus villain clash and the larger-than-life angry young (now old) man comes triumphant in an utterly filmy manner. Not really expected of Prakash Jha.The main characters (except the baddies) seem to be real but their activities do not seem to be realistic. Other than Saans Albeli (sung by classical singer - Pandit Chhannulal Mishra), the music is just passable. However, let me admit that the cast has invested hard and sincere work in performance and despite some characters being caricature-like (especially the character of Manoj Bajpai), the cast has done pretty well. I still recommend this movie because it's impressive in patches and it's an entertaining movie which keeps you glued to the screen like a regular masala flick. Let me tell one thing to Prakash Jha loud and clear - the performance of a race-horse is to be compared with that of a race-horse only. It cannot be given any concession for the fact that it is running faster than the Tonga-pulling horse or the horse used in Baaraats (marriage-processions). Prakash Jha's work is to be evaluated against the high-standards set by him for himself only and those standards cannot be relaxed for any film of him. If he delivers a movie which does not live up to his set standards, he should be ready for brickbats.