MYTHICAL MAGNUM OPUS

is not utterly satisfying. Like most Rajamouli's films, Baahubali too is a regular revenge drama. The only difference is thatit'ssetin an imaginary world made on a lavish scale and againstthe backdrop ofa royal family.

BAAHUBALI: THE BEGINNING

STARRING: Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka Shetty, Tamannah Bhatia, Nasser, Ramya Krishnan, Prabhakar, Rohini

DIRECTOR: S.S Rajamouli ..,......,�\

Thisone has everything Indian cinema hasn'twitnessed sofar.

Baahubali: The Beginning almost placesTelugu cinema on parwith Hollywood standards withitsvision, extravagantvisuals and the lavish scale on whichit's made. In his attemptto make a world class product, Rajamouli maynothave passed in distinction but this attempt, despite ts inconsistencies, can't be forgotten easily. But all that glitters is notgold, and although Baahubali is neatly enveloped in a golden wrapper, whatyou find inside

Masaan

STARRING: Sanjay Mishra, Richa Chadda, Vicky Kaushal, Shweta Tripathi, Saurabh Chadhary, Vineet Kumar, Pankaj Tripathi, Nikhil Sahni, Bhagwan Tiwari

DIRECTOR: Neeraj Ghaywan ***i. ,;

An Inda-French co-production, Masaan is a poignanttale oftwoyoungcouples, whoselivesare intertwined byfate, set against the backdrop of a crematorium ontheghatsofthe riverGangesin Benares.

Educated and fairly independent, Devi Pathak- although living in a small town - is unconventional, experimental and unapologetic aboutherlife. Whilethe unexpected death ofherlover Piyush has her internalizing hertraumatic loss, shesimultaneously balancesto maintain trucewithherfatherVidyadhar Pathak (Sanjay Mishra), a formerSanskrit teacher,now selling knick-knacks onthe bankoftheGanges.She is in disagreementwith herfatherwho is forced toshell out a hefty bribetothe police inspectorin orderto keep her "shame" underwraps.

Onthe otherhand, Deepak'stale is a tragic romanceofa promising engineeringstudentborn intothefamily ofcorpse-burners. Hefalls in lovewith an upper-caste girl, Shalu Gupta, who is willingtoelope if herfamily opposestheir

It's thestoryofa son vyingto avenge his father's death fora kingdom. But Rajamouli is no ordinaryfilmmaker. Only he can make a simple tale as entertaining, engrossing and aweinspiring as Baahubali, albeit with some minor flaws

Earlyon,we're introduced toqueen Sivagami (played byRamya Krishnan), runningforherlife clutching a baby. Shesacrificesher lifeforthe infant,who issaved and raised by a tribe residing atthefootofa giganticwaterfall. He's named Shivudu(Prabhas), afterShiva, and is asstrongand powerful asthe lord himself. Raised unawareofhis lineage, Shivudu developsgreatrock-climbing skills. He getsinquisitiveaboutthe world beyond the giant mountain that separates histribefrom the otherside. Soon, hestarts climbing, in search ofa world he envisions.

On the othersideofthe mountain alliance.

For a maiden venture, Ghaywan's Masaan, is a sensitivelyhandled, honestfilmwithsomeintrepid truths aboutsmall townsin India, givingyou an insight intothe mind ofthe internetsavvyyouth. These are adroitlywoven intothe narrative.

Varun Grover's layered script, with a seemingly complexscreenplay, oscillates between romance and melodrama.Thescreenplay unlocks simply, throughtherealisticlivesofthe characters, bringingtothe fore, societal taboos like morality,sexual exploration and romance in a caste-driven society.

Every character is intricatelywelletched and theactorsleave an indelible markwiththeirpowerful butnatural performances.

Vicky Kaushal as Deepak, with his boynext-doorlooks, is impressive. A bundle oftalent, heslipsintohis characterwith unquestionable ease and sincerity. He stealsyour heartwith his coy demeanour when hewoos his lady love.You empathisewith his pain and frustrations. Thescenewhere he breaks down before his friends after losingShalu is heartwrenching. He is aptlysupported in a realistic performance byShweta Tripathi as Shalu, a collegian, whofalls in love with his simplicity. On screen, they make an endearingpair.

Richa Chadda witha stoicallyglum and a stubborn demeanouras Devi, borders on being a rebel without a cause. A misfit is Mahishmati,the mythical kingdom ruled by Bhallala Deva (Rana), a ruler consumed by hisown ego; a narcissist whoturns hisown people intoslaves. He's equallystrong and takes a giant bison bythe horns, literally. Bhalla keeps Devasena (Anushka), a formerprincess in his captivity, and shestronglybelieves herson will come and freeher.

Rajamouli's idea oftwoworlds separated bya mountain is impressive. He usesittoseparategood from evil. If Mahishmati comprises peoplewho kill theirownforthethrone. peoplefrom the tribegooutoftheirwaytosavea life.

Thefrst halfhardly has anything riveting happeningto keepyou hooked. Aswefollow Prabhas on hisquestto learn about his own identity, we meet Avantika (famannah), a warrior,who is partofa small rebel groupthat has chosen herto free Devasena. Instead ofspeedingupthe proceedings, there's a needless romantictrack between Shivudu and Avantika, who is initially portrayed as a brave, mission-focused warrior.

Andjustfor a few minutes itwas a treattowatch a leading actress perform without the trappings of an archetypal Telugu cinema heroine. Alas, it doesn't last longand wesoonseeAvantika and Shivudu in a sensuoussong andatthe end ofit. she's restingon his chest. Suddenly, she's reminded of her mission asthough somebody had the button tothe mission bell and had pressed it. Shegetsbackinto herwarrior costume, leaveswith a heavy heart, only to be rescued byShivudu later.The whole pointofhavingTamannah play a warrior justdoesn't makesense. Goingbythe approach, itappears like she wasmerely castto play Prabhas's pair because hisfanswould liketosee him romance somebody. in hersurroundings, she tells herfather, "jitni chhotijagah, utni chhoti soch". While she portrays Deviwith conviction, thestreakofindependence in her character isnotentirelysubstantial.

It's in thesecond half Baahubali is truly majestictowatch. Itprovidesthe kind ofvisuals, entertainment and action that'll makeyou fall in lovewiththe film, though briefy. The 20-30 minutes warsequences are breathtaking, as an armyofthousands lockhornson a battlefield. Senthil Kumar'sspectacular camerawork isanother reasonwhy every frame is beautiful and it elevatesthe whole experiencewhen coupled with greatsound.Sabu Cyril and Srinivas Mohan deservethunderousapplausefor creatingincredibly realistic sets and lifelike visual effects.

Prabhas and Rana match each other withtheirsolid performances. Rana as the ruthless Bhallala Deva is excellent. Butthe pick oftheactorshasto be Ramya Krishnan asSivagami, who is effortlessly at ease in her character. Sathyaraj tooshone as Kattapa.

Ifonly Rajamouli had shown halfthe creativitythatheused to choreograph the battlescenes in hiswriting, Baahuba/1would've been a much better film. The kind of creativity that turned a fyintoa revenge-seekingcharacter in Eega. Itneedsthe kind ofwritingthat'll makeyou believethat Baahubali is more thanjustgloss.

Sanjay Mishra asVidyadhar Pathak, thesmall town Sanskritteacher and fatherwho is burdenedwithsocietal pressures,rendersa realistic and brilliant performance.

Plagued bythethoughtofthe ignominy he will bringto hisfamily, Saurabh Chadhary as Piyush, in a small but significant role, is convincing.

Bhagwan Tiwari asthecorruptpolice inspector, Pankaj Tripathi asSathyajiDevi's besotted colleague, and Nikhil Sahni as Jhonta -the earnestlittle boy whoworksfor Vidhyadhar, maketheir presencefelt.

While thestory and performances are intense, whatbreaksthe monotony and provides relief, isthe humourthat is strewn occasionally in theform oftaut one-liners and old flm songs. The earthy background score alongwith thesoulful songs bythe indie band Indian Ocean is soothing and meditative. It encapsulates theflavourofthe place and mesheswell intothe narration.

CinematographerAvinashArun Dhaware's camera work brilliantly captures Benares in all its elements.The atmosphericlightingatthecrematorium addstothe eerie and aestheticvalue of thescenes.

Overall, Masaan keepsyou riveted emotionally and hauntsyou long after you leave thetheatre.

Troy Ribeiro

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Harshaali Is A Chatterbox

Child actor Harshaali Malhotra, who plays a mute girl in Salman Khan's Bajrangi Bhaijaan, hastouched the heartsofviewerswith her endearing performance. Butshe is extremely talkative in real life, saysher mother.

Harshaali is a livewire, her mother Kaja! Malhotra revealed recently. Duringworkshops, she would worry aboutwhether the chatterboxwould settle down and toethe line, she added. "There is no difference in her as a person.Thewayshewas earlier is exactlyhowshe is now," she said, emphasising howshootingschedules haven't affected Harshaali.

Yet main lead Salman Khan and directorKabir Khan did all they could not onlytotakecareofher by playing with her between shots, but alsoto bringoutthebestin her.

There's been flood of attention on the young actor eversince the film was released (Farah Khangoingso far asto call her"thefind ofthe century''). Yet Harshaali's parentssaytheywill ensure she enjoysa normal childhood while still workinginfilms.

"Whatwe decidefor her career would obviously dependon the offers we receive," a beaming Malhotra told reporters, but added they are not keen on TV rolesfortheir buddingstar.