Dev D Review: His Vaginal Manologue
More for my sanity than anyone else’s, I trotted off to Dev D three days ago. All because I was being berated, okay you’re taking a break from the reviews, but how many stars would you give to it. This particularly from Facebook pals, super-photographer Natasha Hemrajani.
And from Sneha Mahale, a feisty young journalist who has learnt one thing from me, never to use the words ‘purchase’, ‘available’ and ‘provide’. The reason for avoiding those words in journalese were not clear to her, neither are they to me, all I kept yelling at her was that they just don’t sound cool. She would respond, “O Keee.”
Stop, I’m digressing even if the Dev D screenplay didn’t. It astonishingly stuck to the point throughout its length which did seem a bit much though. Yet, hang on, no critic should even attempt to pontificate to a director that he or she could have done with 10 to 15 minutes of editing. ‘Crisper’ goes the silly word as if a film is a piece of toast. Sliced. Most critics – sorry, sorry reviewers – who do that, haven’t imbibed the tenets. Believe me sisters and brothers, we’re supposed to comment on what’s up on show, we’re not here to tabulate technical finessing.
Okay again, damn damn damn, I’m digressing..and that’s because I don’t have to limit myself to a 500-600-worder newspaper format. I can even use the word ‘I’, because blogs, well on them you can do your own thing. Indeed, I could keep writing on Devdas 2009 till the crack of dawn, or I could wrap up in the next split second.
Just go on with the thought flow..then, a cup of tea closeby. Lopchu aside, I keep getting these flash images of myself, like Dev D, downing vodka with Thums Up (tonic water is best, I tell you). I keep seeing myself roll up a joint but just don’t have the expertise (like repairing light bulb blow-outs, it’s an art). I keep seeing myself looking at Yardley talcum powder and screaming with fright that it’s cocaine. Eric Clapton sang about it, coke that is. I wouldn’t, am too clean-cut, yaar.
Now, I scan the aforewritten paragraphs and tell myself, stop it, quit, get to the point, cut to the chase. Simple question: So did you like Dev D or not? Simple answer: Yes, yes, I did. Next not so simple question: how many stars would you give it. Complicated answer: since stars are being handed out like Valentine’s Day icons (mea culpa, too), so why go towards the star route at all. Now, there I see Natasha and Sneha frowning. No, no, don’t be evasive, you have to give the stars, they shriek like a Greek chorus. Right, so here they are..FOUR stars, neat, no soda. Or Thums up.
The most valuable aspect about Anurag Kashyap’s Devdas Resmoked is its new millennium audacity. It takes Sarat Chandra’s love triangle down today’s meanest streets, with tongue-in-chic, almost Fassbinderian self-flagellation. Kashyap is no narcissist, it’s evident that he sees his flaws and ‘f’-ups and mirrors them in his impetuous Dev, returned from London where he just drank beer as if it were dairy milk. Kashyap refers to Sanjay Leela B’s Devdas although another sidebar allusion to Bimal Roy’s would have been more appealing (to me, at least). Because that’s the asli baap of a movie about a man who would be a tragedy. Not the maar daala bling. No zing.
The free discussion of sexual dalliance, gratification and kinkiness is the trump card of Kashyap’s vaginal monologue. Take the scene in which an eager young man shows up at the doorstep of the white-skinned Debbie Does Dallas-type. The eager beaver has even been tested for HIV, he’s clean, no problems, he can’t wait. Excellently written and shot. Or take the scene of Debbie switching to Tamil and French to satiate a phone-sex customer. The teenaged hooker’s fright wigs, orange slice lips, her faux designer belts..if such raw and real aspects have been depicted in Indian cinema, they have been a well-kept secret.
This Debbie is Chanda or Chandramukhi from Canada (she names herself after watching Bhansalidas on a video coach). Once tricked into a sex clip, she’s the reason for her father’s suicide (extreme that..but when a girl asks her father..why did he watch the sex clip?..did it turn him on?), the gun blast is plausible, in cinematic terms. We don’t want the crawly to hang around the plot any more, do we? The girl’s mum does though, smoking like a factory chimney. But then Kashyap has a soft corner for chimneys. Ash you like it?
Paro is Paro, a Punjabi kudi who’s gunpowder in the hay, or that’s what some smalltown gadabouts claim. Dev, the idealist, hopes to be the first one (oh hell, et tu?), and is enraged when he eavesdrops on the rumour. Not to be fazed, Paro reminds him..what about him making out with a hottie in a chicken pen? She doesn’t know, he withdrew mid-passion because of guilt pangs. These two are the victims of classic ‘nasamjhi’, Dev loves her to distraction, carries a ring around for her, but she toodles off into a baraat with another guy. She even freaks out at her own wedding. The husband doesn’t look distinctly older than Paro but that’s what we are told later..whatever his date of birth he’s a cracker in bed. Palang tod. At least, no one is being coy, simpering and silly any more. Permissiveness is here.
Dev, Dev, Dev, our Abhay Deol, playing him with a rententiveness that you didn’t know he was capable of, is the retro-loser. Yahoo, he isn’t made out to be a victim at all. Hitting the bottle, tobacco, marijuana, coke..and hard after Paro’s Emosional Atyachar (the song is disappointingly picturised on two Elvis Presley lookalikes). Dev D drifts into what could well be Delhi’s GB Road. Since I haven’t been there in some years, the neon boarded gullies were a revelation, photographed with a slumdoggish authenticity. Incidentally, why Dev D is dedicated to Danny Boyle is a conundrum. Still director is boss. Thodasa playfulness ho jaaye guys.
Dev’s hositility since childhood to his father is left ellipitically unexplained..and that’s the way it should be..it persists even if he needs the dying curmudgeon to buy him a BMW to cruise around Delhi. That some deep-set resentment has made Dev the alienated, angry soul that he is felt, never overstated. His freak bouts of rage – smashing drinking glasses against the wall – are something that all of us have wanted to do..at some point of time, out of angst-coated helplessness. Smash crash.
The headblowing session at a speakeasy – with a ‘live’ music by three nutty balladeers – is as rough as it’s ready. Chunilal becomes Chunni the pimp, hilarious in a frosted pink car, living in a jhuggi and make a living out of white women at flophouses where the rooms aren’t cleaned because the guests are in a mind-haze. Practically, every frame, character and line of dialogue is ripped off from life. Bracingly, someone’s finally had the..guts to stop pussyfooting. If filmmakers don’t, then we might as well treat cinema truth as one big, never-ending teddy bears’ picnic.
Dev D stunned me..at times it irritated me..but it hooked me, anxious to know which taboo Kashyap would break next. He’s broken quite a few..so see maybe even this blog space isn’t enough to enumerate all. Readers would go zzzzzz on me if I continued, without worrying about word count.
Before I end two points:
1. The ending is a vast, vast, vast letdown. It’s like excessively sweet rose sharbet, Dev D’s fight for being his own self is suddenly reduced to aaaah, there’s always a love light at the end of the tunnel. Quiz: were two alternative endings shot? Did er.. Mr Screwalla, UTV producer, want the audience to go home popcorned?
2) Just a personal criticism history. When I saw Paanch at a Liberty-min preview centuries ago, and flipped over its Jim Morrison-kind of who-cares-a-flying-eff attitude, Anurag Kashyap (friend, foe, I know not) was steaming hot gaajar halwa, he came over to the office (then Times of India) and said I was a good man. Thanks.
I loved Black Friday, it’s the kind of movie that I wish I had the spine and supporters to make. And said so, writing then for Mid-day. No response which is the best compliment a filmmaker can pay to a critic (both are doing their individual jobs, blah blah..really). Then came No Smoking.I was with DNA then (.good lord I’ve knocked around) which I couldn’t inhale and said so. Puff puff. Followed verbal abuse in private and public (meaning PFC often confused as his portal..). Alright, no worries.
And yahoo, now there’s Dev D which I liked, loved and watched with amazed eyes. I’m not in a newspaper, I’m on common groud. U did it Kash even if you don’t earn any. Btw I won’t ever let you buy me a vodka-cola (ugh) even if you want to. If I don’t end up liking Gulaal, you’ll call me a boozeharaam. And who needs that?
Tags: Dev.D
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
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Saurabh Shukla
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Sujoy Ghosh
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Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
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bloody awesome.. i log on and pop.. there is your review.. thank you so much.. now it seems complete.. thank you and am so glad you like it.. drinks on me..
Khalid: Great review…in fact, fantastic..just like the film!!
But just like the film, I didn’t like the ending. And I agree with you on the tonic water bit :-) (Truly a gem!)
Great to have you give a review Khalid Sir =)
Incidentally, why Dev D is dedicated to Danny Boyle is a conundrum
Khalid saab, the answer is in the “making of” clip.
superb!
Hope to read more of your reviews here on pfc
Great read! Especially the ‘boozeharaam’ term! I might just use it in one of my scripts someday if no one else does first ;)
Everyone should thank PFC for granting true “Freedom of Speech”.
ah now i can be in peace, i’ve read Khalid Mohamed’s view on the film
True…
I too liked the movie… however the end was a letdown… a car crashes… dev has a realization and then a sweetish end… dont know why…
even an end like “Saturday Night Fever” would have been better… (does not necessarily mean Anurag had to copy it)
its not dedicated to danny boyle they just thank him
and the presleys were quite droll in my humble opinion…..
9
the way you use puns(like dev d uses his amphetamines and dopamines) are quite irritating….Irrit it?
“The girl’s mum does though, smoking like a factory chimney. But then Kashyap has a soft corner for chimneys. Ash you like it? ”
Brilliant .. that. I am going to read this again
Good Review:). I have never gone so crazy for any movie in my life. Watched it last weekend, still hasnt overcome from the effect. @Anurag-mahi gill is a fundoo discovery, i m in love with her.
Devdas Resmoked – Best phrasing ever! :D
“palang tod”…ha ha ha!!
agree with you on the lousy ending….
paanch paragraphs ki bhoomika was “kamar tod” but what followed was good!!
The first KM review I really liked after his monumental (pun intended) Hello Brother review. :D
BTW…am watching the movie tomorrow as wifey wanted to watch it with me and we somehow couldn’t schedule it yet. And I’ll be going in with great expectations. Incidentally, my wife hates emosanal atyachar – she says it reminds her of the typical cliched dilliesque sharaab binge. She happens to be a deep rooted conservative Iyer whereas I smoke Malana cream & Idduki gold. Would be fun to watch such a bold film with her and discuss it thereafter.
@ Rohan (14)
I didn’t read your deleted post but I’ve seen really vitriolic posts against Anurag on PFC stay without any issues because they’ve been put across in a civil manner. So all I can surmise is that you must’ve used language similar to what you’ve used here. Calling the entire community chutiya is just not done bro.
And while venting your spiel, you do so without even noticing that Khalid himself hasn’t been particularly kind on Anurag in this post and it was still welcomed by one and all without any malice.
And a sincere question : Agar sirf hum chutiye hain to aap kya scooter ki dikki mein se upje the?
“Quiz: were two alternative endings shot? Did er.. Mr Screwalla, UTV producer, want the audience to go home popcorned?”
exactly my question.
Good review…please do keep writing
Critics ka atayachar! it never happend before, a film getting rating from one to five stars (bollywood hungama 1 star, ibn line 2 stars, mid day 3 stars, mumbai mirror 4 stars and Times of india 5 stars) I dont know about others but 5 stars from times of india is too much (it means that Dev D is better then Lagan, Tare Zameen Par, Wednesday, Jab We met) I dont think even Anurag will say that Dev D is a best film of last may be last five years… I think last film which got 5 stars review in Times Of India was Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gum (which itself was the joke)
Dev D had many flaws… Mahi paro is a computer savvy girl (she chats with Dev on the net) but when she has to send her nude photo to Dev, insted of buying thousand rupees digital camera and uploading photo herself she goes to Delhi and develops and scans her nude photo at diffrent shops.. no girl will do this. 2) film tries to be very modern (look at language of the movie) but still chanda’s fathers shoots himself… like a seventies movie 3) film has too many songs. 4) its bit boring.
But Emosanal Attyachaar is highlight (first time I saw Multiplex crowd behaving like single screen crowd), few lines were good. I will give Dev D three Stars
“Quiz: were two alternative endings shot? Did er.. Mr Screwalla, UTV producer, want the audience to go home popcorned?”: No. Look at Anurag’s reply in Baradwaj Rangan’s review (IMO, the best review about the film yet)
Khalid, engrossing stuff, and keep doing your reviews here and don’t edit them, for God’s sake!
Wonderful. Ek aakhri aas poori ho gayi. Thank you Khaled ji.
chk dis out guys!
http://blessed-curse.blogspot.com/2009/02/review-of-devd.html
good morning sir,
i am glad pfc giving a chance to readers to have a direct note with the writer.i am glad that you have liked the film as much as i do.
i want to raise a pount on the editing of the movie,as you said the movie drags a bit(towards the second half),honestly i feel the same but if we see those extra 10 to 15 mins are the so called ”hindi film masala” which was really important for the filmmaker to earn something out of the movie(as in the past both cinematic brilliant films black friday and no smoking could not do well).
Dev D is not only about the three characters,there is another character ”RASIKA”(not present in the classic text) which played a vital role to discover dev’s sexual politics which i guess has missed by the viewers.
The movie’s end, i really felt for as it does not gives us the streotypical majnu who screws his life for love. I guess every person of our generation(X) lives sometime or the other the life of dev.the films plot with the emotions and feelings have been presented well.I understand the sub text and the theme around which the movie is based.
i am really happy to see you giving the movie honest approach as most of the indian viewers might have change their opinions after seeing those five stars and i guess the five stars have really worked well for the film as after thet people had gone to see it. The reviews of the audience are really extreme either they are loving it or they disliking it to the core.
But i really loved the film and i guess its a good entertainer with a lot to learn (technically and general).
in this i also want to comment on ghazi’s view on the film.
The stars and the ratings are given on one individual’s view on the film.my fellow writer if you see times of india (14 feb 09) issue , the readers rating is 4 and a half which is almost equal to the critics rating. All the movies which you have mentioned i guess are of different genre’s so it would be not unfair on us to compare as every movie deals with new indian cinema.Jab we met cannot be closer to dev d as (JWM)was a years old story presented in a brilliant manner and also it did well because no smoking (same release date) went bonkers on box office and another usp of (JWM) was that it was shahid’s and kareena’s post relation film.
it was like old wine in a new designer bottle.Though the other two films you have mentioned were different.POINT (A) i want to make is that paro never goes to delhi to print and scan the photos ,she goes to chandigarh sec market and if she had the digital camera she would not have bothered to go so far to mail it,why she does not buy it is another story but yes the film maker had tried to show how far she can go to make dev happy (child love) and please do not generalise to every girl as lovers tend to do all that,if you say morally no girl would do it that will be a different story all together.
(b)It was leny’s father not chanda’s (didnot existed).Look dev d is a contemporary adaptation of the classic ,but they are still in india and they have not shown 2060 they are still in the present day.Sk sir(leny’s father) shoots himself because of depression and the insult so i guess his character was justified they way it was designed.(c)yeah the film has 18 background score and ost but if you have seen the movie they are not add on the film but plays a vital role narrate the story.The song are like narrative to the story and they take the story ahead unlike other hindi films in which songs are put in them and has nothing to do with the plot.
(D)the last is your own choice and every individual has a right to have own views,so for that NO COMMENTS.
But the film is really good.
and honestly if you are giving three stars to a film which you have find boring please do not critically analyse anything. Its nothing personal here its one views which are welcome in the democracy.
lets have a word on no smoking,honestly sir i really liked the film and i guess indian cinema is not ready for absurdism for next ten years.”no smoking” was a brilliant crafted film which had something different to offer and i feel the protagonist of the film had genuinely gave one of his best performance. Hard luck it went straight on box office and sir the critics who had smashed the film at first glance had said that the film is worth a second view.
ps- i am not the producer or the disciple of the film maker.but students like me really loved the film and i had bought 25 dvd’s of it and distributed.
that was my contribution to the different cinema.
For black friday i am still shocked as it could not get the kind of response which it should have and moreover when it was released i guess by then larger audience had already seen it,all thanks to our ”PIRATED FILM INDUSTRY”
pps- Honestly we should do something on piracy
even i have high hopes from gulal aS this is anurag sir’s six year old dream
but yes indian cinema is changing and all thanks to people like anurag sir and his contemporaries who dare to think different from the league. i wish them good luck….honestly the people are changing their taste for cinema…..
and i am still waiting for paanch
Paanch is releasing in two months.Revealed by Anurag in Bombay Talkies in NDTV
i actually liked the ending. it was a new version of devdas for the new generation so the ending was aptly new. devD maturing and learning to move-on, probably taking a cue from paro who had learned to move-on and compromise a long time ago [since the novel was written
].
great review…
Quite deja vu… you might not believe it… This is what I wrote on my scribbly when I saw DevD last week…
The reason why this movie will receive more brickbats is that it does not provide you with any stand on which you can sympathize with the characters. Rather, if at some stage you identify with them, you will need guts to admit it,even if to yourself. If Paro wants to sleep with her lover, its a raw,pulsating desire, and she is willing to set the stage for it. If Dev is a substance abuser, he was the same before he decided not to marry Paro. Earlier, you could blame the social niceties for the self destructive path which Devdas took, how his father refused permission for him to marry Paro and blah blah… here, you have Dev’s father all willing and wistful for him to be married to Paro, its Dev who decides not to marry her. Wrong decision, he takes refuge in dope, alcohol (coke with vodka). He is not strong enough to face his own guilt, a spade is a spade is a spade…. (getting quite fond if this expression, arent we Nonu?) Paro, having been sexually and emotionally rejected by Dev decides to cut her losses and move on, her choice entirely. Chanda aka Lenny having been raped by an entire nation over a lack of judgment decides to turn to prostitution on a single thought, “It’s easy money”
Here you have heroines who are emotionally,mentally stronger then the man (men) in their lives, who still have the courage to pick up the pieces and move on, and no Dev, its not easy, this moving on business… But like I said, Kashyap offers no excuses, its all lying there, bare for everyone to see, black, white, gray…. No moral excuses, no painting life and its quirks in rosy colors… all Gothic, all psychedelic, what you see is what you get. When love and relationships fail, they fail not because of any external causes, but rather because one or both the protagonists are not strong enough, because one or both dont care enough or have spine enough to fight.. but then, wasnt that always the case? What he does do, however, is redefine the word Slut. All of his characters are sluts, they all sell themselves at some point or other for either security, or love or power or whatever, but then who does not? And in this honesty lies the warmth that pulls you,tugs at your heartstrings. Where the film lost its steam was the ending, where it seems Kashyap has played to the commercial galleries….
Breaking News:
AK said on BOMBAY TALKIES on NDTV that Paanch is releasing in April.
Really waiting for it.
Whoppeeeee
Yup
Anurag Kashyap said it on NDTV’s BOMBAY TALKIES.
During a chat show involving Zoya Akhtar, Navdeep Singh, Dibakar Banerjee and AK, towards the end they were asked what are they busy with right now.
AK said he has 2 films releasing one after the other.One is Gulaal releasing on March 13 and the 2nd was Paanch sometimes in April.All others were shocked and congratulated him with an “atlast”.He himself was quite senti.
thanks a lot to prasanna for the information…..
great year indeed for indian cinema…..
and i am really sorry for the gramatical errors in the previous post ….as i did not edited it before posting
You wrote about the film from the seventh para?!!!!!???!?!?!?!?! i mean u wasted so much of your time and ‘creative’ installment (of words) in the first 6 paras…
Nevertheless, I am glad u liked the film…looks like somebody has buried the hatchet. lol..
I liked the way you wrote “sexual dalliance” and the line – “The free discussion of sexual dalliance, gratification and kinkiness is the trump card of Kashyap’s vaginal monologue.” It explains a lot about your opinion on the film and the way its written is cool. Otherwise, what I feel is your review is overtly pretentious and simply too hard to digest… Perhaps, you should tone down a little on your style and the use of verbose, rather than drift us away from the pleasure reading your article.
(I didn’t want to offend you with the above comment…I am only being honest about what i felt while reading your review on Dev D. However, I apologize if you are offended by it.)
The way the “three nutty balladeers” kept popping into scenes and sticking their face into the camera, I thought it all was a discreet digg at the three nutty balladeers from Life in a Metro.
And yes, the trailer of Gulal promises something even more awesome.
i wish..just wish…dat thid wud hav been mad in hollywood…damn..it wud hav got nominated for atleast 3-4 oscars….its such an awesome movie…its madly brilliant…can we say dat anurag kashyap isIndia’s quentine tarantino….oh yes we can…as i dnt think der is any mindfull or mindless. director..present in India..who wud put his feet in such..fanatically different shoes…but anurag kashyap rises lik anythng…nd more..SONGS….i guess….nd with sure outing dat amit trivedi..is the best musical debutant of India..after..A R RAHMAN…after aamir..if a man can giv dev d…he is way ahead of…all the pretendin-to-b-busy…sort of music directors…pls..watch..hail…wish..wat ever u want to do..just..feel gud at tha end…nd praise..the NEW AGE CINEMA…….
For me ending was apt
Abhi Khaled bhai ne bhi haan me bhar di hai. Abhi Anurag, aap to apna response do yaar. Usi ke liye roj yahan pe aata hoon.
Anurag,not fair man.Why hasn’t it released in Toronto?
Vintage Manologue
What are you talking a about man? Did you really see love for Paro from Dev? He just wanted to get laid. Plus, you said Paro started freaking out at her wedding?? She want freaking out. She was enjoying herself. There wasn’t anything for her to freak out about..? Unless ur take on the term freak out is something completely different.
Anyway, leaving that aside, the conflict between the characters was really not that well written leaving all the drama that followed to look unnecessary. But it was really well shot!
Anyone who looks at this please tell someone responsible that on the site indiafm someone has put out the whole story of “Gulaal” in the Movie Previews Section. Its in so much detail that it will take away the freshness that a movie should have. PLEASE DO SOMETHING about this SPOILER…
Dear Mr Khalid
just now i came across the news that timesofindia got some recognition for Promoting simple and plain ENGLISH.
And here i am reading your review and smiling, you know why ? ……..
If you still dont know , then there is no need to tell you.
Good Luck.
This is a real treat! Thanks for the review Sir!
@ Anmol Ahuja: I appreciate your views but I differ :-) Rating are like awards, it has nothing to do with the genre of the film… for example if Slumdog wins Oscar it means that Academy Members found Slumdog best film of year 2008, irrespective of the genre… otherwise they would have given best film in Musical, Best In Comedy, Best in Action and so on. And rating of the movie gives the same signal, for example Lagan and Ghadar (both released on same day) had diffrent genre, Mr Khalid Mohamed had given more stars to Lagan then Ghadar so I assumed Lagan to be better and went to watch it. And I think its a very basic commen sense that if one film is getting 3 stars and the other 2 stars, then it means that 3 star film is better according to the critic.
Second point when Paro goes to chandigarh for photo scan, feeling didn’t come on screen that she went there because she loves Dev so much… Nowdays Directors are doing anything for few laughs from the audience, and I think that few laughs were the only intention of the Director in that scene of photo scan shop when saleman looks at Paro and she says in the voice over that “jaise kabhi ladki dekhi hi nahin”.. and Director succeeded because the whole theater was laughing… See my point is there is nothing wrong if Director does such gimmicks to make his film a success… my problem is with five star rating of Times of India, only perfect film can get five star rating… not such gimmicks.
On the positive side, last night I forgot to mention the fantastic performance of all the actors. And Director should also get the credit for casting foreigner girl in a story which is traditionally so Indian.
COMMENTS are as long as the review…
AK is the first person to comment and is fondly called Ash & Kash!
I’m glad that finally AK won’t be a Jinx…and it seems 2009 is his year!
FEB – DEV.D
MARCH – GULAAL
APRIL – PAANCH
Good line up!
ALL THE BEST AK…
Khalid Sir…aren’t you joining any newspaper soon? You have worked almost everywhere…TOI,DNA,MID DAY…
What next…
Anurag kashyap’s DEV D brilliant and has scripted the movie as per todays scenario. Eagerly awaiting for his ‘PAANCH’. Hope it doesn’t have the dated look.
Dev D – movie of the year (so far! and let’s see!)
And I really liked the three dancers, and that song they sing (Saali Khushi) which reminded me of ‘The Man of Constant Sorrow’ from the Coen brother’s O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Wonderful piece of writing! Some brilliant moments like “almost Fassbinderian self-flagellation”, also “Anurag Kashyap’s Devdas Resmoked” and the whole “Debbie-Does-Dallas type” bit.
Do not always agree with you, but then that’s the sign of a truly great writer, that he create ideas in others, not spoon feed his readers or try to brainwash them. I say YAHOO for this review!
I would echo Kashyap’s view, “Now its complete”! A in your face, crude, blatant, modern, egoist movie deserves an equally in your face, crude, blatant…blah blah… review.
These two are faces of true modern cinema in their own ways! I loved No smoking and have seen “Dev D” in parts.
Anurag please release it for international audience. I dont want to go piracy way for this “most eagerly awaited movie of the year for me”!!
When Khalid Mahmood bashed No Smoking people were going against him, he write one positive review and people are going ga ga.
I loved No Smoking and hated Khalid Mahmood’s review and I love Dev D ( not as much as No smoking), but praising the same man who was termed as ” Your time has passed” Retire ho ja is just hypocrisy.
This is something serious guys. i need to contact with AK. but dont know how to?if andbody of u have his phone no or his email id or some postal add then plz give me. it will be greatful. help me with this.
good review man…
i thought it was a fucking awesome movie.. cudnt have asked for a better ending… waiting eagerly for gulal.. which looks like another milestone movie..
Carry on kashyap..
where can i get Paanch..
Dev D is movie atleast 20 years ahed of its time.now we have another Gurudutt in anuraag.every frame of a movie is a compelte story in itself.be ready for one more classic-GULAAL
If You’ve read Fountainhead, You are Ellsworth Toohey. Ellsworth Toohey asks Roark after trying his best to destroy him, “What do you think about me” ? Roark says “But I don’t think about You.”
Read that book if you haven’t read it. That Toohey is your characterisation.
Stop commenting on Anurag Kashyap’s movies. You don’t have the quality and honesty to comment on his movies. He’s reaching his audience and Dev.D is the movie that has changed many aspiring film maker’s life. I’ve seen my friends, standing at the threshold of a career choice, between the comfort and the difficult dream, choose the difficult one and take the jump.
Dev.D has revolutionised Indian cinema. Can guys like you please make way?
three nutty dancing balladeers:
http://www.twilightplayers.com/
Brilliant film.I went to see Kalki , and got blown away by the film.What do you say that KM hasn’t….fantastic piece o writing sir.
I did not know where to put this but if Anurag is seeing this… Anurag ji.. kal dekhein Dev D. aur jindagi change ho gayi… waah.. waah!!
Hi, can someone tell me when Dev D will be released on DVD in the UK please? I am desperate to watch this movie and I don’t want to see it on a low quality pirate. If it will be available online in India to be shipped to the UK before a UK release please let me know where I can get hold of a copy, many thanks.
Kya haina.. 4 stars matlab you have buried the hatchet.. 1 star matlab you are $@$@#%@#$@$@$@$
Mujhe wahi dikha jo mai dekhna chahta hoon…
Your last para says it all..
Khalid Saab iam surprized if the end was vast vast vast ( 3 baar) let down, how can you say its 4 stars?? Pressure?
Man when does this thing get released here (US) on an original DVD?? Has UTV even got around to making one yet??!!
Aaaarrghhhh!!!!
Is this movie gonna release in High definition?
when will Indian movies come out in high def format?
Thank you Mr Mohamed for not going down the morality, culture path in your blog about Dev D unlike other people who have walked down that path.
The reason that I say this is because critics often have an insight into the artform that they critque. They know that motion pictures are the canvas for the storyteller director. Like any other creator of art for that matter, the storyteller is projecting his vision for you to see. Like a singer/songwriter puts out his thoughts for you to hear and feel. It is truly amazing how inspite of knowing such things, they react to individual expression so violently. They forget that art has no purpose but to exist for itself. A morality which was missing in their lives suddenly takes birth just because they are out of their comfort zone. They are willing to tear and plunder in the name of their newfound moral sensibilities.
It is truly a lack of understanding of their own “culture” which they so proudly want to protect. And what is culture but an amalgam of influences over millennia.
The rest is as they say, “To each his own”.
I personally loved it and consider DEV D a milestone in Indian cinema. The composition and usage of the soundtrack was brilliant along with everything else that was brilliant about this film. I would go so far as to say it is a work of Art.
He smokes like a smokestack….snorts coke…like Apna Munna in Mahesh Manjrekar films,(shudder)… drinks Vodka like Nimbu paani…. Anurag carry on Jaani….
Meet Anurag’s hero Dev a egoistic, impetuous nymphomaniac who Only cares for palagtod sex(with Vodka offcourse) . He has Superb taste buds.. he prefers Vodka more than Whisky, Fish More than Chicken and obviously size 0 chicks more than augmented Punjabi babes…masterstroke when he says “ I love Paro very much, but I love u too Chanda”…………….U also have a Grandmaster GOGO lookalike saying “ mera medical certificate clear hai”…lol u never know about that… What I loved the most followed after the movie? Mr Taran Adarsh commenting “ Bilkul no smoking 2 hai”.
Taran Scorsese spoke on four E’s of cinema( enlighten, educate…lol) MR Adarsh 1 question “ why do u write reviews, when u r a dim-witted trade analylist? Retire ho ja naitoh Court se petition bhenjooga?
The film is playing in one theatre in New Jersey, USA.
Just one show at night
http://www.fandango.com/northbergencolumbiaparkstadium12_aapov/theaterpage
Well, I guess the movie was better! Sometimes, like hitting the head with a brick and sometimes, felt like bingo! Anyways, the movie has got a nicer ending as well, maybe because there was a string of hope.
Kudos and genuine thanks to Anurag and Abhay!
it’s been more than a week now that i[confession-confession----I too love blogs!
] saw Dev.D…and was looking for wallpapers and bump into this place[tch!..I know!..where was i till now??..i ask that to myself..more than often!..oops sorry again going offtrack and treading the personal terrain(and hey terrain sounds so much similar to the word train..oops mia culpa!..going offtrack again...…but then that reminds me of the train sequence in the film..when paro is going to chandigarh..to get her ..yak yak yak yak…yak…sorry slipped the unnecessary details...let’s get down to the point..yeaa i didn’t like what paro is wearing in that sequence…that stupid maroon kurta…anurag I hated it!..doesn’t go with the situation at all…I mean that looked totally a party wear…who wears that kind of stuff while traveling?..am really unhappy with that maroon kurta…..really disappointed!...TOTALLY!..umm wait a second..was it maroon??..umm or yellow…or green..umm… don’t remember….am I going senile??...how I hate self questioning mode but do need to at times na for my own good..) …so much place for metanarratives..i LOVE blogs..kitna masala…sachchi! 
] never really believed in reading reviews and care for the stars(on a newspaper/otherwise) and mirchis(believe me they actually use this term in one of the radio stations to rate the films and stuff!)to guide me if i should be watching this film or not…or rather to be more elaborate[i love cyber space..i love blogs.. ïŠ] -how and what i should be feeling/thinking/saying about a certain film….i don’t appreciate that…I think I can be more direct about it and say it really sucks!(since it is blog space and all that stuff)
I love ‘Dev D’ movie,
but this article by KM is boring and irritating,
Hello Kalid,
I just don’t understand you language man. I mean do you think its stylish to write like that. Just a small suggestion man, throw in a few words of plain English as well so that people like me can actually understand what you are taking about buddy :0)…….Peace……..
Khalid,
I think you need to post here at least once a week. I loved this review, I love your writing, and I am anxious for more!
What I like about anurag is his courage to play with the medium…and this time with Dev.D..he’s stricken the chord with his audience too….I loved Dev.D!!…took me one whole day for it to actually seep in…it was a Monday morning 11 clock show that i could catch…in the last 6 years of my stay in delhi…first time that I saw jampacked priya cinema for a morning show….i kind of agree with khalid on neon lights…but if we can have a house in bhatinda with a balcony opening in switzerland and front door in new zealand with one window opening in goa and other in china in our films then why not poor (us ney aisaa kya bigada hai!) neon lights!.if that’s the only parameter to judge a good film to bad then…I don’t know what to say….personally I thought those neon lights managed do some visual magic on screen…I loved them!
@t!
Your hubby has been brought up Khalid’s articles..Khalid is his inspiration.and for manny manny long years was his ONLY source of information on hindi cinema..
:-)
Ankit – this was the film review….we love KM for his film review.
NS was not a film review. PERIOD
IF u think he has praised the film to the hilt…..read again…it’s not a fanboy-review…yes he has taken personal digs as well…but then again the purpose of this blog-post was to review the film and that he has done to a very large extent…..No Smoking review was not the review of the film at all.
Dr. Fu Man Chu… Ni Hao
To make things clear I am a big fan of AK and love his movies.
When NS was released it was marketed as the product of AK, his first movie which will release without any hassles from the Censor Board.
If you remember most of the reviews talked about AK along with the review. Rajeev Masand mentioned in his review I am disappointed with AK as this was a big let down.
KM went extreme but for a movie like NS one would expect extreme reactions.
I remember AK retaliating on PFC saying KM should retire. People actually compared him to Taran Adarsh( which is the biggest insult for any critic)
I am just saying its so convenient to bash up somebody if he says something which you don’t like. If people sing your song you will praise the same guy.
Secondly I know its not a fanboy review and I never said that but its a positive review.
Although TOI claimed to be a national newspaper it used to be published
only in Bombay , Delhi , Calcutta and Madras until 1995 or so.
There were no TV channels apart from DD and not too much emphasis on movies in terms
of reviews etc.
Around 1995 things changed dramtically with the the boom of TV channels and then around 1999
the boom of internet. Until then Most of the english reading audience had subscription to TOI even in small towns where it
used to reach around 4:00 pm instead in the morning. I only knew Khalid Mohammed doing
reviews of Hindi movies and then Rashid Irani reviewing English movies.
When DNA , HT came to Bombay and Rajiv Masand / Taran Adarsh / Komal Nahata and
several others came in to picture.
There is no denying the fact that Khalid Mohammed is a disaster as a director but he has
written some great scripts like Zubaida / Mammo and Sardari Begum.
His command over English and unique way of writing is too good. If he has written
around 500+ reviews then we can discount 10-12 bad reviews.
On PFC sometimes I get a feeling that appreciating and liking No Smoking is a criterion
to judge a film reviewer / critic. No Smoking was about individuality and freedom to express
then how not liking it makes one dumb or stupid? How many of us actually understood
what Anurag was trying to say in the movie before reading Anurag’s clarifications on his blogs?
Love him or hate him there is no denying that KM is still one of the better film critics that we have around.
I guess the ‘boozeharam’ is directed at a certain Juhu residence illustrious blogger? Ahem.
KM,
You were with DNA when you wrote the review of No Smoking? * me choking* But I read it on HT, dear Sir. And as like an old enemy, my memory seldom fails. You mentioned ” Quitter’s incorporated” in that review. Phew. Please correct me if I am wrong. Dong.
Good to see I can agree with you on Dev D. Sad, could not contradict much this time. Lime ( with Vodka, please )
Cheers!
~uh~
Hmm, if there’s any one else who can rival Bacchi Karkaria from TOI in (mis)using the English language to amp up someone’s frustation/irritation level, then it has to be Mr Khalid.
aargh.
Hey o boss,
PFC sure has more visitors.. courtesy you. Keep it up.. the review is fab.. as always.
Dev D is in the same league as Maqbool and Omkara….Awesome Job, AK.
Khalid Sir – Nice to read you. We are missing you !
I have had a love-hate relationship with Khalid’s reviews… hated it with Bheja Fry.. loved it with most others. But I like it that he is writing here. Glad he can write longer. Thanks Mr. Mohammad.
Great to see that the two of you are still indulging in some friendly bickering.
I totally agree with the part where you say “No response which is the best compliment a filmmaker can pay to a critic”
I write for a little – known (except in college circles)magazine JAM and had messaged Anurag after watching Dev D. Dunno if he considered too unimportant, or whether it was “no response is the best response”
Every saturday, the first thing i did after coming back from college was to grab HT and read your take on the movies that hit the theatres the previous day. My movie bible – Khalid’s review!
Always to the point, always… which was apparently a very difficult task for most other reviewers who’d harp (or whine) about the ‘editing, screenplay, direction, lights, costume’ which is all and good, but makes one go ‘whats the verdict yaar?! should i shell out 150 bucks to see it or not?!’.
Really missing your articles Khalid!!!! Waiting for your review of Delhi 6
Amazing stuff..I remember a year back or so I read a review from KM on WELCOME..I remember one of the lines in which he wrote”Give me a break..I am a geniune lover of good cinema. I want to enjoy my movies”
Thank God KM is still enjoying his movies and for a change he is a free soul so now I guess he is enjoying his writing even more..Good for us.
Our journey of Indian Cinema can not be complete without KM’s comments..Thank you sir
And yes 4-stars is over-rated..But chalo never mind..KASH needed this..He directed one of India’s greatest movies (Black Friday) and then India’s worst(No Smoking)..so 4-Star rating from KM will make him and is fair enough for his immense talent:)
Khalid,
Muaaahhhhh….loved to read ur words…though i miss all that razzmatazzz (thankfully u wrote some zzz in the last para)…some more reviews dear till i am i9n phoren land of the bawarchi..modern muscled one..akki…thailand..will write on ur gmail soon…u have fun…i miss all the goss & bitching im returning soon in april…
neeta
(Paaniwali
>> Chanda or Chandramukhi from Canada (she names herself after watching Bhansalidas on a video coach).
No sir, at that time she had not decided upon becoming a Randi. She decides on the nick while watching SLB’s Devdaas again while sitting in the suite given to her by Chunni.
Anyways, just a minor nit-picking. Am in one of those moods today.
I don’t understand what Anurag liked about Khalid’s review. It is utter crap. Show me a single, intelligent line. It is frivolous self-indulgence. Khalid has to act smarter than the film and the film-maker he’s reviewing. But then this is the general state of film-critics. And I don’t mind particularly because most Bollywood films are worse than the critics. Bad films have seeped into the critic’s habits. But for once there should have been some effort to be intelligent – because Dev D is a phenomenal film. Will review it for my satisfaction soon.
Yes I agree with you. The ending was a ‘not-so-anurag] ending.
I almost got up from the seat after the car hit the wall while abhay was collecting coins.
Alas it did not end there.
Had it ended the way we liked it to be, would it not have been another No-Smoking?
a really good and subtly written review is the in this issue of Frontline.
link: http://frontline.in/stories/20090313260509700.htm
Hello Khalid ji,
Mujhe bahut dukh hua ye sunkar ki aapne HT chhod diya hai. Mujhe laga ab aapke Miss karunga, but I m very Happy right now ki review PFC par bhi padhne ko mil jaya karenge. this realy nice review. Ravi, NavBharat Times, Mumbai.
from what i heard danny helped A.K wid da tripppy
shots…dats y he thanked him at the start of da movie..
i was really impressed by Black Friday but today after watching DEV D i became a devote of Anurag, what a film, everything was so perfect, cast,location, background score, camera angles and especially dialogues, hats of to anurag sir.
A brilliant film, Anurag!
I was hooked onto each frame… couldn’t take my eyes off the screen. Well, I was also slightly pissed when the interval banged right in.
Also, Khalid, excellent review.
I so loved the screenplay, that I would like to read it. Can you make it available here?
…i got to see DEV D yesterday…..i don’t understand why all the hype???
i think it is just an average film. Only other Anurag film i have seen is Black Friday….it looks like Anurag has gone few steps back with DEV D.
the biggest problem i find with the film is that as the audience you don’t ‘feel’ for any of the characters…..
after the first half i was just waiting for it to get over, but it was just going on and on…like watching a series of music videos.
Hari
This was like Fanaa, where the first half beautifully develops the characters and plot… and then you come back from intermission and somehow the film goes haywire and falls flat. Too much information given too quickly and too half-heartedly in the second half.
And then there’s the ending. I agree completely on your point about the ending. I was just watching Kashyap’s interview with Koel Purie and he mentions that he wanted to give Dev a way out, to have a chance at redemption because that’s what happened to him with his own substance abuse. He actually said he wanted “a love story”. Come on. I think he should have resisted the temptation to project his personal needs onto Dev’s story because it did a significant disservice to what could have been a truly great film.
Dev D’s mainstay is its unpredictability. That’s why the ending is a welcome and surprising change. I was gingerly waiting at the theatre throughout the movie, wondering when Dev would kick the bucket, preparing myself for the most graphically violent scenario (duh). So much that it was an anti-climax when Dev got his chance of redemption. But I am not complaining!
Dev D in IMDB TOP 250
here’s the link
http://www.imdb.com/chart/top?tt0440963
wat i don’t understand is that why is the rating only 8.0 . help me out pls..
Saw the movie today. I liked it. Yes, agree with you that the length is a bit long. The ending was somewhat unexpected. Maybe it was intentionally so.
I saw DevD yesterday in a theatre in Vizag.The vizag pulic which is used to commercial telugu flick was in full attendance.During the film whenever a film or a social taboo was broken there was a collective sigh among the crowd among utterances of the ‘F’ word.I personally was absolutely dumbfounded while i was viewing the film.It was a motion picture event for me.Strangely enough,I underwent the same emotional experience during the screening of ‘kingkong’ and ‘return of king LOTR’.
I wish to raise couple of questions though
1.What was the intention behind having Dev calling his Father by his name?..was it to show he was autistic?
2.Why Chanda’s character comes across milder as compared to Dev and Paro?..i thought it was delibrate..but why?
3.Was the film released too soon to cash on the hype its music generated?..Isnt more post production required..?
hi Manash I agree with you. yes…Bad films have seeped into the critic’s habits..
Havn’t seen the movie yet.Willing to see it ASAP.
Anurag Sir- I am your huge admirer and will be in future. But thora sa dekh liya karo plz,,,Names Like (Dev & paro), Soni & Mahivaal),Heer & Raanjha) are like holy and sacred and Devdas daaru piita thaa, baaki the love that bloomed in between those ancient couples were sacred n holy. In Dev D, if you wud have changed the characters name, it wuld have been good. Jese hum log, apne Behen, wife etc ke baare me bura nahi soch sakte, wese hi,,inn ancient acche names ke saath esa emotional atyachaar nahi kar sakte..I understand the world is changing and we all have to adapt(Charles Darwin’s theory of adaption), but esa cheap changes nahi plz!!!!!!!.Sarat Chandra might have written a novel if he wud have known that u wud be raping and toying with the main characters of his beautifully written Novel.But i’ll watch Gulal for sure!!!
The last comment (100) by Rups is hilarious, im assuming it’s a joke, cannot be anything else
Heyyy
loved reading this.. this is awesome…
I used to buy HT just to read ur review every Sunday though later they started showing a day in advance….
I along with my many many friends was such a big fan of ur work, we have a group on facebook fr u, i am the owner of the group.. do join it..
regards
Joe
p.s. The group is called khalid mohmmad’s movie review fan club..