No fluff or truffles here. This one’s all about loathing the
family, and some more.
Welcome to the world of gore, secrets behind closed doors,
ill-begotten Italian marble floors, the works. Cut rightaway, then, to a despotic dad, a diabolical mom and their
spineless son who’re joined, one
tempestuous evening, by an underling employee at the ritzy dining table. Sparks
fly.
In fact, that single scene in Zubaan, co-written and
directed fervently by Mozez Singh, grabs you by the collar. It’s disclosed that
all’s not well with the Sikands: a filthy rich clan which adds more bucks to a
business empire by hosting corporate guests from Japan to a cabaret, and has no
compunctions about resorting to violence and bribes. Yikes.
All the money in every bank from Gurgaon to Swiss scapes,
can’t buy this nouveau riche family a shred of love. Now it’s up to that
dining-table intruder – Gurdaspur-born boy Dilsher (Vicky Kaushal)— to help
himself to a piece of the pie with the cunning of a talented Mr Ripley. Stealth
means wealth? Right.
Hang on though, the outcome isn’t all about avarice, deceit
and woe though. On the contrary, there is something refreshingly placid about
the introduction of the knee-high Gurdaspur boy who reveres his father, a
gurdwara singer. Impaired by a pronounced stutter, the boy can’t ever aspire
to sing with as much devotion and
dedication. His mind’s boggled by confusion.
Optionally, Dilsher resolves to look for a placement somewhere in the booming satellite
townships of New Delhi. Inspired by the rags-to-riches story of construction site supervisor Gurucharan
Sikand (Manish Chaudhary), the boy dreams big. After all, hadn’t Sikand once
gifted him a pen, saying words to the effect, “Keep that. You can become like
me some day.”
That’s easier dreamt than done, of course. The boy uses
every fair’n-foul trick in the book, gains entry into the Sikand real-estate
empire, and with Machiavellian ease assumes the role of a surrogate son to
tycoon Guru Sikand aka the ‘Loyan from Gurdaspur’. Any allusion to Ajit the
Loin, unintended.
Meanwhile Sikand’s ditzy son is in a terrible tizzy. Mrs
Sikand has her own game-plan. So what if a 1,000 skeletons begin to tumble out
of her wardrobe? Tough.
There’s more: Dilsher who’s quite a Dude by now strikes up
chemistry with a pop singer (Sarah-Jane Dias). Oh oh. Unwittingly, the female
quotient emerges as an airhead. However, if you’re the sort to have a thing about
nostalgia, Lady Pop’s an updated version of Zeenat Aman’s flower-child from
Hare Rama Hare Krishna. Dumb maaro dumb anyone? Sorry but this romantic
section, serves as a speed-breaker to the otherwise snappy storytelling tempo.
Indeed the cooing-billing, vaguely existential dialoguebaazi
and a drug-induced hallucinatory interlude, erode the plot’s central and far
more exploratory conflict. How you wish the clash of nerves between Guruchand
Sikand and his ‘surrogate’ son, had been elaborated to the maximum degree. That
both the 50-something tycoon and the 20-something ersatz son, are actually
clued into each other’s tactics is stated, yes, but insufficiently.
Such grouses aside, the film has lots of uppers. It’s a hard
look at the facade behind smile-flashing hi-society types who in reality are as
uncouth as they come. It’s as critical of the youth’s aspirational drive
towards successdom. Best of all, the finale –let’s keep it under wraps -- is
pitch-perfect, leaving you with goose pimples.
Of the music score, there’s an overload. The traditional
ballads, devotional songs and an
oriental-Sufi fusion, are excellent. Not so the pop-rock ditties, especially
the TV talent audition thingy, which is an ear-sore.
Stylewise Swapnil Sonawane’s moodily-lit cinematography, the
authentic locations and Khyatee Kanchan’s production design are top-of-the-line
assets.
For most part of the way, Mozez Singh’s direction reveals an
iconoclastic edge tempered by
senisivitity. Plus, he has extracted remarkable peformances from his acting
crew. Meghna Malik as the dread-exuding dragonette of a mother is
impressive. Harmehroz Singh as Dilsher
Jr is eminently likeable. Despite their ill-written parts, Sarah-Jane Dias and
the ne-er-do-well son, Raaghav Chanana, carry out their alloted vignettes
competently.
As the nouveau riche tycoon, Manish Chaudhary is
near-flawless. And it’s a pleasure to watch Vicky Kaushal as the
hick-turned-smart-Alec. Close on the heels of Masaan, he affirms that he’s an
actor who applies intelligence, study (note his accurate accent and
well-punctuated stutters),and conviction into a role of severe complexity.
Notwithstanding its unevenness, Zubaan speaks up quite fluently. It’s a
welcome addition to B-town’s output which dares to buck the formula.
For those who relish the daringly different, here’s a ticket
to ride.
Image Source: facebook/ZubaanTheMovie