Udaan Review

What is it all about?

Anurag Kashyap's cinema is radical, it defines norms but the question is how far can one Go? Its not `unbelievable' that some people don't `believe', but a good cinema always tells two sides of a story. Anurag pens `Udaan' with Vikramaditya Motwane and also gives him the chance to helm the film where the story is told in only one angle from the boys point of view and further it doesn't explain the era, means in which year, period, decade the incident took place is absent. If done so, the questions which will follow might not have come up.

The Story...of course

Rohan (Rajat Barmecha) is thrown out from his high profile boarding school with his bunch of friends after they are caught watching a C-grade smut film , off campus. Rohan is forced to return his dad (Ronit Roy) a factory owner of a small industrial town of Jamshedpur and finds himself closeted with an authoritarian father and a younger half brother who he didn't even know existed. Forced to work in his father's steel factory and study engineering against his wishes, he tries to forge his own life out of his given circumstances and pursue his dream of being a writer.

What to look out for?

An entirely performance based film shot in docu - drama style. The move has some biter sweet moments like the first encounter of Rohan with his step brother, when his sloshed father asks him, `sex kiya kya', the morning workout and race where the father always wins, the sequence in hospital when Rohan takes care of his step brother and starts loving him, the confrontation between the brothers, the scene when the future of Rohan is discussed in a family dinner are major highlits of this flick where first timer Vikramaditya excels.

Technically sound and fine production values, `Udaan' boasts of  some great acting by Ronit Roy who plays the arrogant father to perfection. Ram Kapoor as his brother excels. The two kids, Rajat Barmecha and Aayan Boradia, are simply superb. Rajat gets into the skin of the character with such ease that he looks like a seasoned performer. Aayan, the step brother is cute.

What not?

The principal character of Rohan is not very much focused and he is not a thinker, that's the major flaw of this film apart from its alien period where the son of a factory owner even in small town in Jharkhand talks to his friends in Mumbai from STD booth. This makes the film feel outdated which may not connect with tdys youth. No internet, no mobile.. The father wants his son to stand on his feet first then he can pursue his dream that's fair enough. Rohan doesn't thinks, he is ruled by his emotions, he doesn't like his dad but steals his money and car for a booze night outs. Hostels are not for spoil brats; it provides quality education and brings discipline also. In one scene Rohan asks his father to keep a cook where he replies that you earn and have whatever you want.

But here Anurag goes further and tries to show the father a villain and threatens the film. The end is illogical.

Conclusion: `Udaan' is edgy, well performed drama which could have been much better an uplifting. A `dekho' for those who wanna see something different but nothing worth `Cannes'.

Rating ***