Omkara
So, what am I doing with the preview of a movie which was released a couple of weeks back and enough has been written about it to hardly add anything more. “Omkara” a title never seen before I guess, so it was enough reason for me to drill interest in the movie. A barrage of stars in one of the most bizarre combinations. Can u imagine Ajay Devgan’s love interest to be Kareena Kapoor or Konkana Sen to be that of Saif. However, the combination of Vivek and Ajay stays on from the terrific “Company” days. Being in Mysore I could not help but wait for another week after its release to catch a glimpse of the movie. I missed out on the first 2 showz, but, determinedly fought out cramps and sleep after a 2 hour tennis game( to tame my tummy J), to watch the 3 rd and last show. It was at at 9:30. we were in our seats dozing off our asses, when the first dialogue poured in “Bewakoof aur Ch***yaa ke beech mein dhaga bhar ka…..” and that set the tone for the rest of the movie. We (or at least me) were all awake from then on. Words never heard of were fired all over us. I have a better vocabulary now, so beware J.
Well, thatz about the lighter part of it. But, the movie is terribly hard hitting, crass and naked. It’s all about people, the different kinds of us and their vulnerabilities. Considering the setting of a derelict village in UP, the director has been true to the ambience and tone of the rural setting and then comes biggest surprise, he adapts one of the most famous works of the “Bard” into all this. So, can we say that the adaptation is all about a traitor who turns hostile to achieve selfish interests? Probably yes, but, I disagree, why? ‘cos Shakespeare’s Othello was all about people and their thinking, attitude towards life, friends and spouses. If we consider only the story part, then, probably yes, the deceit by one of the characters is the only bridge between “Omkara” and “Othello”. Otherwise, I guess “Omkara” has been true to “Othello”. Well, I haven’t read “Othello”, but, this movie has fuelled me to read it. I’ll have better answers once am done with that.
Till then, Omkara is “Othello” J.
So does the movie achieve it’s stated objective of uncovering the human frailties. Well, yes I guess. The movie starts of with a marriage being stopped abruptly and the bride being abducted, for, she loves the local don out there. They decide to get married soon. Amidst this melee, the don (Omkara done by Ajay) must enter a new role in politics. So with his seat empty, 2 of his most trusted men vie against each other which eventually one wins over the other on the basis of his education and refined persona much to the angst of the other, Langda Tyagi (saif). Langda had been dreaming the don’s role for a long time, so when, he is denied the same, it’s just too much handle. He embarks on a long journey of deceit and dishonesty to achieve his ends, in the process of which, Omakra’s wife and the chosen Don (keshu done by Vivek Oberoi) are linked sowing the seeds of suspicion in Omkara. There begins a series of incidents culminating in the murder of the Omkara’s wife in the very hands of Omkara. Langda’s wife who comes to know of the schism planned by him kills him and herself. Omkara is broken at the very end of it. he can no longer bear the huge burden of guilt. He purges himself to death.
A gruesome gruesome story to the core. The movie is drenched in deceit, love, greed, betrayal, innocence, vigor, and truckloads of abusive language. It’s no movie to watch for families. Neither is it for those who have been bred in tales of love, dreamy-eyed, tearful stories which has the protagonist sobbing, fighting baddies, being dutiful to his parents, and at the same time romancing his ill-clad love interest in the mountains of some far-off lands. It’s all about us, the hidden self which is put to test so many times and how we succumb to that.
Well, I guess I have written enough about the story of the movie. But, let me tell u more than anything else, the best part of the movie was its performances. Wow! U can build a wonderful wonderful script and make people act according to that. It doesn’t require much from the actor’s side ‘cos all he has to do is dance according to the script. But, I guess it takes a lot of effort to get into the skin of the character to pack the real punch for the character. U must breathe the character. U must talk, walk, speak, see, hear the way the character does or u turn a misfit. The characters portrayed have been done their share of justice. The characters:
Langda:
The Nawab turns into the Don’s hench man with teeth painted tobacco, a limp, misfit dresses, a stubled face. If u watch closely Saif has worked on his voice immensely to maintain the coarseness. At the same time his mannerisms and gaze are so powerful. Well, for me he stole the show all along. He’s into a league of his own. The very first scene creates awe in us and he has been brilliant enough to carry on the same tempo throughout the movie. Hez bad, very bad. U want to hate him. So he lets out a sneering smile as Keshu is crowned the new don, makes love in the wildest fashion, pushes his close friend down the river, and is ready to go to any extremes to achieve his goals. U want to hate him and he does it with aplomb. Throughout the run, his sangfroid is captivating. He speaks the language as though it were his mother tongue. Even Ajay Devgan is not fluent enough. The expressions are subtle, but, beautifully captured.
Langda’s wife:
So the no.2 in my list is Konkana Sen. She’s a natural and she proves it again. From the hip hop journo of “Page 3”, she plays the village girl to the letter “T”. Again she is completely at ease with the surroundings. There are fewer scenes for her, but, she steals the show.
Langda’s friend:
When I saw this guy, I thought, he’s gonna come for just one scene, that’s it. But, no, he was there throughout the movie and was the next best. His personality and build was an added plus to the character. That of the slimy fox who is puny, weak, but, schemes around with help from stronger guys. He fuels the anger of Langda to achieve his goal of marrying “Dolly” (Don’s wife played by Kareena). He’s loud, looks a fool and ends up dead, but, he has already done the necessary damage and you never know it was him phew!!!!!!.
Well, my list ends here. Many may argue for Ajay, Kareena, Vivek. Ajay is his usual self. He is as cool as ever, engulfs the screen whenever he speaks. Still, his dialogue delivery suffers. He speaks as ever. The words are not natural to him and that shows some times. Otherwise, his tense demeanor lingers on through out the movie, hardly any variation from his erstwhile ventures. Only he could have done that role, but, I feel he is capable of more. Hope, the best is yet to come. Kareena, although she looks like been put into some planet at times, carries on well. She’s as the character should be- chirpy, sentimental, cute, captivating, nothing more. Maybe the character’s fault, I dunno. Then, Vivek, he has not much to do here. He’s innocent, being made a scapegoat in the melee and he has done it well. That’s it nothing more, nothing else.
It’s interesting to note that the Don who deifies his Master’s friends to abduct the girl he loves, ends up killing her. He is ready to suspect the girl solely on the words of her father who says “ What sort of wife will be a girl who’s rady to betray her own father”. All the more Omkara suspects the very guy who has helped him throughout and who was chosen to take his place. All this while Keshu(Vivek) has Bipasha as his love interest even though she’s a prostitute. He’s even ready to marry her. But, Bipasha starts suspecting Keshu on the basis of some X’s words on phone that Keshu’s having an affair with some other girl. All this conflicts with the personalities of the characters, but, then I guess that’s us. We all succumb in spite of all the hard demeanor we may project. We all are vulnerable and frail.
So, what am I doing with the preview of a movie which was released a couple of weeks back and enough has been written about it to hardly add anything more. “Omkara” a title never seen before I guess, so it was enough reason for me to drill interest in the movie. A barrage of stars in one of the most bizarre combinations. Can u imagine Ajay Devgan’s love interest to be Kareena Kapoor or Konkana Sen to be that of Saif. However, the combination of Vivek and Ajay stays on from the terrific “Company” days. Being in Mysore I could not help but wait for another week after its release to catch a glimpse of the movie. I missed out on the first 2 showz, but, determinedly fought out cramps and sleep after a 2 hour tennis game( to tame my tummy J), to watch the 3 rd and last show. It was at at 9:30. we were in our seats dozing off our asses, when the first dialogue poured in “Bewakoof aur Ch***yaa ke beech mein dhaga bhar ka…..” and that set the tone for the rest of the movie. We (or at least me) were all awake from then on. Words never heard of were fired all over us. I have a better vocabulary now, so beware J.
Well, thatz about the lighter part of it. But, the movie is terribly hard hitting, crass and naked. It’s all about people, the different kinds of us and their vulnerabilities. Considering the setting of a derelict village in UP, the director has been true to the ambience and tone of the rural setting and then comes biggest surprise, he adapts one of the most famous works of the “Bard” into all this. So, can we say that the adaptation is all about a traitor who turns hostile to achieve selfish interests? Probably yes, but, I disagree, why? ‘cos Shakespeare’s Othello was all about people and their thinking, attitude towards life, friends and spouses. If we consider only the story part, then, probably yes, the deceit by one of the characters is the only bridge between “Omkara” and “Othello”. Otherwise, I guess “Omkara” has been true to “Othello”. Well, I haven’t read “Othello”, but, this movie has fuelled me to read it. I’ll have better answers once am done with that.
Till then, Omkara is “Othello” J.
So does the movie achieve it’s stated objective of uncovering the human frailties. Well, yes I guess. The movie starts of with a marriage being stopped abruptly and the bride being abducted, for, she loves the local don out there. They decide to get married soon. Amidst this melee, the don (Omkara done by Ajay) must enter a new role in politics. So with his seat empty, 2 of his most trusted men vie against each other which eventually one wins over the other on the basis of his education and refined persona much to the angst of the other, Langda Tyagi (saif). Langda had been dreaming the don’s role for a long time, so when, he is denied the same, it’s just too much handle. He embarks on a long journey of deceit and dishonesty to achieve his ends, in the process of which, Omakra’s wife and the chosen Don (keshu done by Vivek Oberoi) are linked sowing the seeds of suspicion in Omkara. There begins a series of incidents culminating in the murder of the Omkara’s wife in the very hands of Omkara. Langda’s wife who comes to know of the schism planned by him kills him and herself. Omkara is broken at the very end of it. he can no longer bear the huge burden of guilt. He purges himself to death.
A gruesome gruesome story to the core. The movie is drenched in deceit, love, greed, betrayal, innocence, vigor, and truckloads of abusive language. It’s no movie to watch for families. Neither is it for those who have been bred in tales of love, dreamy-eyed, tearful stories which has the protagonist sobbing, fighting baddies, being dutiful to his parents, and at the same time romancing his ill-clad love interest in the mountains of some far-off lands. It’s all about us, the hidden self which is put to test so many times and how we succumb to that.
Well, I guess I have written enough about the story of the movie. But, let me tell u more than anything else, the best part of the movie was its performances. Wow! U can build a wonderful wonderful script and make people act according to that. It doesn’t require much from the actor’s side ‘cos all he has to do is dance according to the script. But, I guess it takes a lot of effort to get into the skin of the character to pack the real punch for the character. U must breathe the character. U must talk, walk, speak, see, hear the way the character does or u turn a misfit. The characters portrayed have been done their share of justice. The characters:
Langda:
The Nawab turns into the Don’s hench man with teeth painted tobacco, a limp, misfit dresses, a stubled face. If u watch closely Saif has worked on his voice immensely to maintain the coarseness. At the same time his mannerisms and gaze are so powerful. Well, for me he stole the show all along. He’s into a league of his own. The very first scene creates awe in us and he has been brilliant enough to carry on the same tempo throughout the movie. Hez bad, very bad. U want to hate him. So he lets out a sneering smile as Keshu is crowned the new don, makes love in the wildest fashion, pushes his close friend down the river, and is ready to go to any extremes to achieve his goals. U want to hate him and he does it with aplomb. Throughout the run, his sangfroid is captivating. He speaks the language as though it were his mother tongue. Even Ajay Devgan is not fluent enough. The expressions are subtle, but, beautifully captured.
Langda’s wife:
So the no.2 in my list is Konkana Sen. She’s a natural and she proves it again. From the hip hop journo of “Page 3”, she plays the village girl to the letter “T”. Again she is completely at ease with the surroundings. There are fewer scenes for her, but, she steals the show.
Langda’s friend:
When I saw this guy, I thought, he’s gonna come for just one scene, that’s it. But, no, he was there throughout the movie and was the next best. His personality and build was an added plus to the character. That of the slimy fox who is puny, weak, but, schemes around with help from stronger guys. He fuels the anger of Langda to achieve his goal of marrying “Dolly” (Don’s wife played by Kareena). He’s loud, looks a fool and ends up dead, but, he has already done the necessary damage and you never know it was him phew!!!!!!.
Well, my list ends here. Many may argue for Ajay, Kareena, Vivek. Ajay is his usual self. He is as cool as ever, engulfs the screen whenever he speaks. Still, his dialogue delivery suffers. He speaks as ever. The words are not natural to him and that shows some times. Otherwise, his tense demeanor lingers on through out the movie, hardly any variation from his erstwhile ventures. Only he could have done that role, but, I feel he is capable of more. Hope, the best is yet to come. Kareena, although she looks like been put into some planet at times, carries on well. She’s as the character should be- chirpy, sentimental, cute, captivating, nothing more. Maybe the character’s fault, I dunno. Then, Vivek, he has not much to do here. He’s innocent, being made a scapegoat in the melee and he has done it well. That’s it nothing more, nothing else.
It’s interesting to note that the Don who deifies his Master’s friends to abduct the girl he loves, ends up killing her. He is ready to suspect the girl solely on the words of her father who says “ What sort of wife will be a girl who’s rady to betray her own father”. All the more Omkara suspects the very guy who has helped him throughout and who was chosen to take his place. All this while Keshu(Vivek) has Bipasha as his love interest even though she’s a prostitute. He’s even ready to marry her. But, Bipasha starts suspecting Keshu on the basis of some X’s words on phone that Keshu’s having an affair with some other girl. All this conflicts with the personalities of the characters, but, then I guess that’s us. We all succumb in spite of all the hard demeanor we may project. We all are vulnerable and frail.
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