Shudh Desi Romance = Ashudh Chalu Romance

Shudh Desi Romance - The title doesn't suit the movie, as there is nothing 'Shudh' or 'Desi' or 'Romantic' about it. Yes, there are 27 kisses, but none of them is shot aesthetically neither does it arouse any emotions in the viewer.
The story revolves around three characters - Raghuram (Sushant Singh) who is a tourist guide in Jaipur, Gayatri (Parineeti Chopra) who works as a English lecturer and Tara (Vaani Kapoor) who is a fake air-hostess.
Raghu and Gayatri also work as rental baratis (Kiraye ke Barati), a concept I have never heard of.
Raghu is getting married to Tara in the arranged way while Gayatri is a rental baraati in his wedding. He is attractd to Gayatri and runs away from his own wedding. He and Gayatri start living together post this episode and soon decide to get married. Next time Gayatri runs away from the marriage leaving him behind. He meets Tara (remember he ran from her wedding), falls for her instantly and starts dating her. In the end, love triangle surfaces in another wedding where these guys are rental barati's again and the decision is taken as to who is the winner and looser in the deal. 

These are a few observations which strike in this movie -
- A stupid tourist guide, who dresses up like a street hawker, doesn't have any family background, is indecisive, lacks confidence and runs away from commitment - can also land up with two beautiful women. In fact, not just lands up, he sleeps with them, kisses them, moves into their apartments and has a good time

- 27 kisses (on the lips), yeah but you don't remember a single one, so tardy and threadbare. They are nasty rather than romantic

- The hero and heroines go to the bathroom a dozen times , don't they have any other place to run from their weddings? Oh yes, all the bathrooms are unclean, shabby, dirty yakk... (remember the movie Delly Belly), Jaipur me toilets ki kami hai kya??

- When Raghu meets Tara on his wedding and she lifts her ghunghat, all the people are amazed at her beauty. Raghu's friends' say - "Bhai, tabhi arranged karne to raazi ho gaya ye, love ke market me ye isko nahi milti".. so true

- Hero still leaves Tara and runs away from his wedding - meets Tara again in a market and runs behind her to become her boyfriend. She also takes full advantage. She says - "Jab arranged me ladki milti hai, tab us se duur bhagte hai, aur jab vo bhaav nahi deti, tab uske peeche peeche baagte hai.. alag hi nasha hai" ...  true... Ego satisfaction happens when you achieve something unachievable, not when it is given to you on a plate.

- Gayatri, a smart independent 'cigrette vali' madam. She has had 4 boyfriends, one who taught her to smoke, another taught her sex, the next one casual love and another who made her pregnant and left. After so much, how could she fall in true love with Raghu almost immediately after meeting him - can you believe it??

And in the end, Oops, the hero is confused whom to choose among the two. In fact, he is not confused, 'Dono acchi hai, apne ko to koi bhi mil jaye' , aukat to ek ki bhi nahi thi...

Basically, all the characters are 'Chalu' who want to have a good time, without attaching much feelings to the activity. Its not about Love, its about 'making love'.

Dialogues, characters, story is definitely bold for the India audience. Not recommended for family people.
My Rating - 2 out of 5


 

Book Review : Whisper of the Worms

Book Title - Whisper of the Worms

Author - Marcardian

Published by -  Cactus Publishers

Reviewed for - The Tales Pensive

All our lives we keep running to fulfill our basic needs and loose track of what we call "Life". Such is the story of Thobias Mathai (protagonist) who longs for life when it is about to end. He is a god-fearing and peace loving man who lives in USA with his wife and kids until he comes to know about his impeding lung cancer which has reached its last stages.

He decides to spend his last days in his childhood town and so travels back to India after 20 years. As soon as he lands in India, his passport is seized by the authorities claiming that he has committed a serious crime. But as a dying man, he doesn't really care and moves to his old house. The memoirs of a man on his last journey are inspiring but start to drag after a few pages. He thinks of his childhood, paddy fields, the big banyan tree, teachings of his father, his best friends and much more. The story only picks up after 60-70 pages when the frauds in Smile bank of Marcardia come to surface and Tobias is held for charges. Marcardia is a fictional place, which is true sense depicts India, but sarcastically. The amazing view of corporate world, culture of Banking Industry, carrot and stick approach given by the author keeps you hooked and craving for more. The usage of a term 'Asinisation' of an employee, basically meaning how an employee is made to work like a donkey, is relevant and enables the reader to draw analogies in real work space. The strategies that Smile Bank adopts to 'asinise' its employees, make them work tirelessly for the same money, lure them into promotions if they achieved targets (Carrot) and tire them with frequent transfers (stick) is showcased through short instances of Tobias' memory.

There is an inquiry against Tobias about fraudulent loans that he had issued as part of his service in Smile Bank. Tobias is shocked and determined to proove his innocence, but at the same time, he is detached as he knows that justice in Marcardia is slow and he may not be alive till then.

In his quest to find the truth behind his involvement in the case, he meets several of his colleagues from old days which leads to a series of shocking revelations.

 Tobias' chemistry with his childhood friend and his mother is on and off. The novel ends of an emotional note.

The title "Whisper of the Worms" and the cover design is not coherent with the story of the book, except for the last 2-3 pages where the worms talk about humans. I wish it could be better.

The key to reading this book is patience, the first few chapters are dry and will want you to quit, but later the story picks up pace and thankfully keeps it till the end. Strongly recommended for those in corporate jobs, especially banking.

 

My Rating:

The book was received as part of Reviewers Programme on The Tales Pensieve.