Mithya reminds him ” White ” & her ” Kafka’s trial “
iView Author:
Adesh Prasad (New Delhi, India)
E-mail:
prasad_adesh [at] yahoo.co.in
Mith – yeah !
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Earlier when I wanted to talk about Rajat Kapoor with my friends, I used to say things like “woh Dil Chahta Hai ka mama” or sometimes “Monsoon Wedding ka villain” to explain them who is this guy I am talking about.
But I think now I should not have hard time in doing that, I can simply say the person who directed Mithya.
As a viewer I feel privileged to see something as good as Mithya, specially in an industry where most are vary of taking risks (something which is reflected and scoffed at in it’s screenplay also) and few are able to pull off something unconventional.
I know many people who like to defend some films by saying “atleast it was different” and my argument has always been “different doesn’t mean good”.
With Mithya, its not the story which is different but the idea and treatment which is novel- like with most other good films. At the end of the day, stories, in general, remain the same but it’s the point of view of the makers and writers, which brings uniqueness. It’s the thought and the way one chooses to play with it that matters the most
A very small example of this uniqueness would be,
—————-(Spoiler begins…) ——–
when it was pacing to its climax, I was completely convinced that anything can happen but protagonist is not going to die. After all, that doesn’t happen in a Hindi film, that too in a comedy and even if that has to happen, it wont be able to pull it off… but wow! the way it contradicted me.
Another small example would be the scene where Vinay is trying to click VK’s pictures but not getting it right. – We’re always taught that while writing one must think visually, even if its comedy but visual comedy usually translates into slapstick but here its clever and hilarious.
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Small and several touches like these make Mithya special.
Moreover, it reminded me of Kieslowski’s White, not just in terms of comedy being on surface and irony being the underbelly but also, to a certain extent, in terms of smartness. Although by the time, White ended my heart went out for its (grey) characters and the way it played around with its theme of equality in so many scenes and senses, which didn’t exactly happen here but definitely the idea, treatment and audacity did click with me and I jumped off my seat in excitement the moment film ended.
I like Mithya for the choices it makes except the choice of not focusing a bit more on characters other than VK. I wouldn’t have mind knowing a little bit more about Neha’s character and life, or probably more about Saurabh and Naseer’s friendship or may be more about Vinay and Brijendra’s quirks, or probably about Iravati’s side of story. (Ok you can forget about Vinay and Brijendra, it was already enough)
But all this might have brought in a bit of more complexity, interest and dignity.
But inspite of its flaws, Mithya is not just worth watching but highly recommended for its smart one-liners, Ranvir’s superstar performance, Dhupia and Iravati’s warm presence (why Suhasani Mulay was wasted like that?), Vinay and Brijendra’s chemistry, wonderful background score (please forget the disappointing songs) and a very well done camera work.
Now I am eagerly waiting for Rajat’s next, which a flying bird told me, is going to start in May this year.
Actually I also wouldn’t mind Rajat making a trilogy on the theme of ‘Mithya’(as in, not taking the story forward but exploring the literal sense of the word- probably with the same cast)… its just an idea… a small suggestion… you can ignore it… ok forget it… sorry! J
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iView Author:
Medha Dutt(Kolkata, India)
E-mail:
primidutt [at] gmail.com
Ho Ya Na Ho, Sawaal Yehi Hai!
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Rajat Kapoor’s Mithya surpasses any film that has come out of Bollywood of late. And Ranvir Shorey has proved his mettle again. Not that there was any doubt about it. After all, there are very actors who can carry off a Khosla ka Ghosla, Traffic Signal, Mixed Doubles, and of course the outstanding Bheja Fry, with such ease!
In Mithya, Ranvir has gone a step ahead.
— (Spoiler begins)—-
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He plays a small time actor who loves to practice Hamlet in Hindi – Ho ya na ho, sawaal yehi hai (To be or not to be, that is the question), finally getting a real life role of playing Mumbai’s biggest Don, who incidentally resembles him. Ranvir’s portrayal of a man who has completely lost his identity, the pure pathos of a man who sincerely believes himself to be someone the entire world knows he isn’t is simply superb.
—————— (Spoiler ends)——
The concept is a wonderful one no doubt, but there was this nagging reminder in my mind of Kafka’s Trial – the protagonist is facing a trial – in fact, that’s all he has been told. Apart from this he has no idea as to why he’s on trial.
Something like Ranvir in Mithya. This guy knows something is definitely amiss, but he can’t point out the exact problem, until finally it is too late.
Mithya is definitely not a comedy. It is a tragedy and a very deep one. Imagine a man running for his life, but unable to comprehend why.
—- (Spoiler begins )——————
The scene where Ranvir, the actor has been successfully planted into the Don’s house, and he is at wits end as to how to get about the situation he has landed in, is awesome. Ranvir locks himself in the bathroom, and is cursing his luck for having got stuck in the situation, at the same time, responding in the Don’s serious voice every time his wife calls him from outside. The way Ranvir flits between the character of the small time actor cursing his fate, and the big-shot Don, is one bravura performance.
——– (spoiler ends )————
Saurabh Shukla and even Naseer do not have much of a role. The inimitable Vinay Pathak is also over-shadowed by the newcomer Brijendra Kala, who incidentally is simply mindblowing.
But the movie belongs to Ranvir. In every scene he’s picture perfect.
—— (Spoiler begins ) —–
Especially the scenes where he believes himself to be the Don after losing his memory. The way he handles his business, his occasional flights into Bollywoodish histrionics, Ranvir stands out. —— (Spoiler ends)—-
Mithya would be impossible without Ranvir.
The last shot is where Rajat is at his best.
—— (Spoiler begins) —– after Ranvir, the actor, is murdered in cold-blood by the Don’s brother, his body is used by the Don’s family to publicly mourn him, as well as to get the rival arrested. —-(Spoiler ends)—
What a touch!
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
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
Very well analyzed comments!
Actually, one tends to run out of superlatives with this movie!!!
Saw this film in a mostly empty hall. Words cannot express…
Ranvir Shorey’s character has left a permanent imprint on my mind. You actually *feel* for the guy. No other hindi film has had this kind of profound effect on me.
was reading
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So, I guess I am one of the very few people who thought the film was a bit mediocre.
Ranvir Shorey proves his class in this movie. The guy has range…! Wow!
How often do you see a character in a hindi film reciting from Hamlet in Hindi? Mindblowing…..
Neha Dhupia was disappointing, and I would have loved to see Naseer being used properly, he was actually looking pretty uninterested.
Who is this guy, Brajendra? Is this his debut? He was brilliant!
Overall, a very nice, matured film from bollywood. To quote the Coen brothers, Rajat, please continue to play in your corner of the sandbox!
Brijendra Kala did a cameo in Gafla(2006,a similar film to Guru based in Dalal Street around 1991-92)where he stole each scene he was in.
Mithya was a fantastic film,indeed.
@doremi
u got company .. tho for me its better than mediocre .. but not as great as ppl saying definitely
doremi@4
no mate, iam here to second your opinion.
infact Rajat Kapoor with each of his films, Raghu Romeo, Mixed Doubles and now Mithya has flattered to deceive (atleast to me). The pre-release buzz and off-beat cast always promise a fare that’s better than the ordinary but eventually iam always felt let down.
Mithya has been compared to everything from Kafka to Kieslowski to Kurosawa, perhaps its just me but i feel to see any such ‘intellect’ in Rajat Kapoor’s flick.
Neha Dhupia and Ranvir’s relationship just takes off, none of the supporting characters talk much about it, what is suggested as mere innuendo suddenly turns out to be a full fledged love affair. The whole relationship comes across as superficial and there in lies a big problem coz that strong relationship has to take the film forward.
Naseer and Saurabh Shukla’s exchanges are half the time unintentionally funny, Naseer infact, i thought, was sleepwalking through the role.
What the heck were Neha Dhupia and Ranvir doing driving around Mumbai outskirts, dining at roadside dhaba, sleeping in some orchard when they were running for their lives? The direction sometimes is so amateurish.. the scene when Neha and Ranvir come out of the Dhaba and Ranvir puts his head out of the car and feels the breeze on his face (trust me my amateurish writing sounds better than the actual scene!!)… my brother who’s making shorts to get into film schools, his shots to convey relief are more or less exactly like that!
It is better than the regular Bollywood fare, but that isn’t saying much is it?
Ranvir has done brilliantly, but why do i feel that the role itself was so brilliant that all he had to do was follow it to the script?
Vinay, who everyone feels is overshadowed, is i think the best actor in this flick. Check out his outfits, including the slippers.. everything about him is so convincing and apt for the character.
I don’t understand what Irawati did to garner such appreciation…
finally, i feel since it came from a (supposedly) intelligent filmmaker and a trustworthy cast, everyone’s looking at meanings and derivations which are largely non-existent.
Hi to the editors/moderators. Please put an end to this ’spoiler begins’ and ’spoiler ends’ business. Any film review is bound to have spoilers. You can’t talk about the weather in a film review, you have to talk about the film. Reading this disclaimer after every few lines is crazy. It takes away from the pleasure of reading. And is very unfair to the writers too.
What you can do, if you must, is to put a note at the beginning saying the review contains spoilers. That’s it.
The clubbing together of reviews, whatever their length, is tad unfair too. People have written a review that you have chosen to publish. Let them have decent, individual spaces. There is no ek-ke-saath-ek-free thing happening here.
The headline too is slightly muddled, seems both the reviews were clubbed together only to justify the headline!
This is from a well-wisher, I hope you think about it.
jayzee
‘Ranvir has done brilliantly, but why do i feel that the role itself was so brilliant that all he had to do was follow it to the script?
Vinay, who everyone feels is overshadowed, is i think the best actor in this flick. Check out his outfits, including the slippers.. everything about him is so convincing and apt for the character.
I don
agreed filmibhai.. the role was brilliant like Kabir Khan in Chak de india. Actor just have to follow the script.
a firm recommendation for watching the film must say… coming from an authentic critic ;)
= Brijendra Kala,
was he not in Manorama Six feet under? Neighbour of Abhay Deol, who asks about Motor cycle whether its taken on installments or by down payment.
Yes RK sahib.. he was there in manorama as the over intrested neighbour.
He was also the newspaper office manager/worker who offers AB Jr the post of guard in Yuva, and whom AB Jr so casually dismisses.
Brijendra Kala also did a great job as the phone booth guy in ‘Ahista Ahista’
Mithya is not Brijindra Kala’s debute
Ranvir did a strictly Okay job in Mithya. Ranvir was far better in Traffice Signal or even in Pyar Ke SideEffects.
Mithya is ‘inspired’ from Didi – Der Doppelg
Brijendra Kala also played the role of a taxi driver in Jab We Met…
Brijendra Kala also played in Tigmanshu Dhulia’s “Haasil” as the newspaper man.
Brajendra Kala playin a newspaper boy in one film, a taxi driver in another, a small time manager in yet another, a phone booth guy in some place else – well do any of this justify as a debut? These were just what one would term ‘extra roles’. In Mithya he is finally able to get a full fledged role to his name, and I still maaintain, he was the best of the bad guys here.
Sorry for late comment.
Just saw it today… couldn’t see it earlier as no one was willing to accompany.
In a world of people who prefer OSO over Johnny Gaddaar i finally succeeded in seeing this movie. hehe.
The character got same treatment as ‘Kafka’s Outsider’. i have read that novel and know the feeling you have at the end for the Protagonist.
One of the best movies i saw this year.
And i don’t expect more good movies..
Why? Because Bollywood is not Cinema. Bollywood is entertainment. And the majority has a weird definition of Entertainment.
But I do hope to see more of this kind if cinema.
Once again, sorry for late comment as I didnt get a chance to see it earlier.
- nocturnal.Tushar