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Tuesday, April 16, 2024
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BOLLYWOOD F.A.L.T.U
EDITOR'S PICK
Rating: ***
F.A.L.T.U? Not quite. A film that takes stinging swipes at our education system
cannot live up to a title as uninspiring as that.
F.A.L.T.U turns out to be quite a pleasant surprise. Fresh, feisty, vivacious
and vibrant, and with an important message on the gaping loopholes in our
education system, this film gets your adrenaline all pumped for its energetic
storytelling and more than a fair share of juvenile antics which stop short of
being annoying because they represent the dimmed aspirations of hundreds of
school drop-outs and semi-drop-outs who run adrift in the absence of the
requisite marks to get into college.
The film offers a solution borrowed straight from Steve Pink`s 2006 high-school
comedy Accepted where the losers and other unlikely heroes opened
their own bogus college to pacify their disgruntled parents.
Is Bollywood still doing unofficial remakes?
As in Ayan Mukerjee`s vastly superior Wake Up, Sid, the aimless
protagonist takes the earnest parents for granted until the terrible marks
precipitates a domestic crisis for the academic failures.
After a point, the storytelling acquires a life of its own independent of any
other films, desi or firangi. The film exudes a certain gaiety and ebullience.
Bright showy colours are used to convey the shallow life where the only thing to
look forward after a party is an after-party.
Post-debutant director Remo d`Souza (he has earlier directed a Bengali film)
lets the four principal characters do their own thing. A spirit of unconditional
bonhomie runs through the hyper-activity of the characters, as they party, party
and then party some more.
And then somewhere down the line they want to get serious about their education.
Interestingly, the bonding among the quarter of friends never goes into any
emotional tangents. There isn`t even a hint of a romance between Jackky Bhagnani
and debutante Pooja Gupta who are the official hero and heroine.
None of the four principal characters gets to lord over the proceedings. There
are no romantic duets, no attempt to create individual alcoves of emotional or
dramatic interest for any of the characters.
Not one moment touches your heart. This isn`t a film that encourages a
slackening of narrative energy.
The performances are largely functional. Jackky Bhagnani shows a marked
improvement since his last film. He gets dependable support from Chandan Roy
Sanyal and to a lesser extent Angad Bedi. Among the senior cast one is rather
taken aback to see Rameshwari who once played the charming scenestealer in
Dulhan Wohi Jo Piya Man Bhaye, as Angad Bedi`s South Indian mother.
Angad looks as South Indian as Bishan Singh Bedi. But then we aren`t really
looking for cultural specificity in these actors. These characters represent a
state of mind. They live in a world of vibrant colours.They are a part of a
world where poor academic performance has turned them into diehard
pleasure-seekers.
To avoid thinking of what darkness lies in the future for these young
losers,there`s always the next party. Come, let`s join the fun.
Actor-producer Jackky Bhagnani, who has been missing from the limelight as an actor since 2015 film 'Welcome 2 Karachi', says he wants to associate himself with films that inspire him as an actor. 'I have not been seen as an actor since Welcome 2 Karachi' and that was a conscious decision. From now on, I want to do work that inspires me as a human being and as an actor. I do not want to do films just for the sake of it. But you will be seeing me real soon,' Jackky told IANS. Read More
Important to be real in reality shows: Remo D'souzaChoreographer-director Remo D'souza, who has also judged dance shows on the small screen, says it is important to avoid melodrama and focus on creative content of the reality show to reach out to the audience. Read More
