Blood Brothers Review

Living each day differently for 100 days is a more fulfilling life than living the same day for 100 years. This would summarize what Blood Brothers from Vishal Bharadwaj is all about. Its 18 minutes of spellbinding storytelling with each frame and minute more distinguished from the previous one. Blood Brothers is a study in contrast of a man’s reaction when he learns that he has AIDS. It captures the essence of what drives one man to call quits over life while another takes it in his stride and is living his shortened life better than before. It’s a story that exhibits the fear of AIDS and for once explores the mind of the virus carrier rather than those around him. The acting of Siddharth of RDB fame and Ayesha Takia are spot on and I take extra delight to see Pankaj Kapoor back in this small but brilliant film. Watch it and be proud that this came from a Bollywood director. A sheer genius this Vishal Bharadwaj.

Blood Brother is part of the Mira Nair’s production of AIDS JaaGO project that brings together 4 short stories each directed by acclaimed directors such as Nair, Santosh Sivan, Vishal Bharadwaj and Farhan Akhtar.

Oh! Saawariya!!

Mr. Raja Sen’s critique of Saawariya is extremely well written and my only hope was that the scriptwriter of the film would have taken the pains to think through the lines as carefully as Mr. Sen has thought through this critique.

I enjoyed Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam a lot even with its flaws. But since then Mr. Bhansali has got this absurd notion that Indian audiences think from their heart and feel from their ears. Why otherwise would he have loud characters with overflowing emotional quotients and a hyper-imaginative backdrop to all subsequent movies? He's better suited to paint abstract art with his vivid imagination and give Mr. M. F. Hussein’s a run for his money. If escapist cinema is his excuse then please at least show me the backdrop of Switzerland in your gazillion songs so we so-called poor Indians can visit these countries for free and importantly without the hassle of long visa lines. If Black had a black and white backdrop and Saawariya a blue hue I shudder to think what color combinations are next. If you Mr.Bhansali can focus on the various shades of characters and not just on the cinematic hues it would better serve to narrate a story which I thought was the primary purpose of cinema. I better stop now before my stereotypical over emotional Indian state of mind gets the better of me!