Richa Chaddha, first person (Dolly from Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!)
iView Author: Richa Chaddha
On the 26th of November, the cast and crew of OLLO were in Goa for the film’s premiere at IFFI. When we emerged glowing from the houseful cheering hall, we heard.
Our premiere to be held the following day was cancelled. Obviously.
So for most of us, the film is the semi-delivered child. The head is popping out, but the limbs are still kicking in the womb. I couldn’t say a decent good bye to nearly a year worth of work. My first film was stuck in my throat, choking me.
I sank into depression…till Rajinder called.
He called to ask how Dibaker Banerjee had his number. He had received a call on his mobile that urged him to make the title track ‘Oye Lucky’ his caller tune. I explained to him that the call must have been from Airtel, not Dibaker.
Rajinder is our driver. He is from Gorakhpur, UP and currently stays in Trilokpuri in Delhi. His voice smiled with the complete satisfaction of watching a good film.
“Didi ji,actually meri biwi bhi mirchein sukhati hain, chatai pe. Sachai to yahi hai… hamare mohalle main jab ek bacche ki pitai hoti hai, saare chat pe aa ke dekhte hain. Ha ha ha… bilkul aisa laga jaise hum apne gharon main jhaank rahe hain.” (My wife too dries red chillies in the sun. In our colony, when one kid gets beaten up, all the others peer in from their roofs to watch. It was like peeping into our own houses).
Rajinder is a 29 year old father of three. He is a class 9 drop out. My mother bought tickets for his family so that he could go and watch the film in a multiplex.
OLLO had moved him. He sought to express why.
“Bachpan mein, hum private schoolon ke ladkon ko dekhtein the… wo ghar se garam garam lunch banva ke latein the… unke paas acche pen hotein the… ab ye Lucky mere jaisa hi hua na? Farak sirf ye tha, jab main ek pen churaya, to Ma ne ek chapat lagai…aur samajhaya ki chori se end mein haasil kuch nahin hota. Ab Lucky bechare ke ghar mein kalesh tha, aur Ma – Baap dhyaan kahaan de pate the? Mujhe meri Ma ne roka, use nahin. Ab chori ka chaska lag jaaye to phir Ram hee bachaye.” (As a child we would envy the boys from private schools who would get warm home-cooked food and carry good pens. Lucky is like me, the difference being when I first stole a pen, my mother slapped me and explained that thieves end up empty-handed. But his troubled family couldn’t pay any attention no? Once you enjoy the thrill of stealing, no one can stop you).
He seemed to understand what many “educated” cine-goers couldn’t. He asked me whether Paresh ji had been cast in a triple role due to lack of money.
“Pehle to mujhe laga Ram aur Shyam type ki fillum hai, phir main samajh gaya. Jaise Ravan ke das sar the, waise hee Paresh Rawal alag alag roop mein mano Lucky ka hee baap tha. Hamesa bechare ko dhokha deta gaya“. (At first I thought it’s a double-role type of comedy. But then I understood, like Ravan had ten heads, Paresh Rawal was essentially the same character. All three betray Lucky
Is picture main gaane kyon nahi hai? (Why were there no songs?) He quizzed me. “Because…” I started off and he interrupted me. “Matlab, jab Kasmir gaye to ek aadha gaana ga lete. (If you shot in Kashmir, why couldn’t you shoot a song) I told him we it was Manali where we shot. Realization dawned on him.
Actual mein, bhala kiya gaana nahi daala. Warna log heroine ke thumke dekhte. Ha ha. Picture mudde se hat jaati. (Actually, great that there were no songs. Otherwise, the point would have been lost. The heroine’s dance would have diverted everybodys attention.)
Police ki bhi bhadd thoki hai picture mein, yaani bhadda dikhaya hai. Jaisee hoti hai na, waisee hi. (The cops have been shown in their truest ugly form)
Rajinder’s ultimate analysis of this intelligent masterpiece stunned me. “Didi ji, chor ko izzat kahaan? Lucky ne jeevan bhar parivar khoja, nahin? Pyaar khoja … use mila kahaan? Yahaan tak ki, uski girlfriend, kameeni, buri cheez ki haath nahin lagaati par istemal to karti hai na? Bolti, “Paise fridge pe rakh do!” Matlab, pehle kahegi ki gaadi mein nahi baithungi phir Kasmir chali gayi?
Us ki saans bhi, pehle toaster maangti hai, par jab doosra ameer damaad aya to Lucky ko khaana tak nahi dalti. Aise hoga to koi bhi confuse ho jaega, samjhega paise se hee pyaar milta hai… par Didi ji aisa pyaar kis kaam ka.”
(All his life, Lucky looked to belong. A thief may have money, no dignity. His girlfriend won’t touch his money, but she uses it anyway. She won’t sit in his big car, but because he has one, she will go with him to Kashmir. His Mother-in-law asks him for a stolen toaster. But she won’t serve him food if the other richer son-in-law is around. This would confuse anybody, makes it seem like money CAN buy you love. Where is the truth in such love?)
OLLO touched Rajinder, as his review of it had touched me.
This is a successful film. It has reached out to the people that it is about.
Another beautiful feather in your cap, director ji.
Tags: Oye Lucky Lucky Oye
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
Thanks Richa for sharing this with us. You were good to watch in the few scenes you had. And by sharing Rajinder’s view, it shed’s the light on the movie industry’s false claims that “Aam Junta” does not want thoughtful movies without songs, because they cannot understand anything else.
Richa, thanks for writing @ this…
Thank You Machismo and Thank you Arthi.
touch ho gaya, by God…:)
Personally speaking, I wished the film stayed on at my local cinema for longer.
I would’ve loved to have gone back to see it a 4th time!
It didn’t hit me whilst viewing it the 1st time, that i’d be moved the way I eventually was.
The performances, cinematography, music, dialogues…
Everything was just right!
But sadly, many people are missing all the subtleties :-(
Chalo, I guess atleast the film has a ‘kadardaan’ in myself and others here :-)
U put in a BRILLIANT performance Miss Chadda!
Richa ji, mazaa aa gaya…thanx a ton for putting this up..!!
Richa, sahi hai! Khud aa ke likh liya! Bhelcome!
Rajinder sounds like a really smart man. Over the last couple of years I frequently wonder what goes through the minds of drivers, security guards, lift attendants, tea stall waiters, etc.
The White Tiger, and now OLLO have given me some answers
@Kenny..they know everything, they understand completely..it is not so dark for them..and why am I saying “them”..them was us just a few years back..Rajinder’s assessment about Paresh is bang on.
@Richa, thanks for putting these up.
And when I keep telling our honhaar writers that keep it simple, take from life, no need of complicating things with unreal stuff, they do not get it..why!
Hey Richa,
you have put up a good point of view. I think what happens is, in some movies 2 different ppl will like the same scene for completely different reasons. Just like on a beautiful full moon night, one person might be mesmerized just bythe sheer visual splendor of the moon. On the other hadn, a person might like the night, because it reminds him something of the past.
In the case u mentioned, i think the driver falls in the second category, while many of us, even if we cant relate to Delhi Life or the stealing part, still like the movie, because of the amazing story line, the plot and the charactreization.
Thanks 4 posting, understood a different point of view!
hi richa .i saw ollo what an amezing film i think now u can say that our cinema is realy changing .i think some people think its a comedy like one of my friend told me yaar film main haansi hi nahi ati ye to khosla ka gosla ke aas pass bhi nahi hai. now the film according to me is a tragic story of luckys . n because of khosla ka gosla some people r going with a mindset that it must be a comedy.n they come out from the film thikin kya tha yaar .well it happens .but 5 star to ollo n debaker n his team .thanks guys
oye welcome.. best review of the bestest film of the year
Dolly
I Love You…
ByGoad!
Mainak, teri biwi ne swere sweray apni juti naal tera sar mundwa dena hagai (Punglish: your wife morning morning shoe taking and making you bald)
@13, 14, 15, lolz
mast hai
Bada changa review hai ji :-) …..mujhe Khosla Ka Ghosla zyada achhi lagi ,par ye movie at least is saal ki best film hai ab tak.
Mere khayal se Rajinder jaise log khud ko is movie se zyada identify kar payenge bajay ki multiplex jaane wali crowd ke ,shayad isiliye mein is movie se connect nahi kar paya ,jitna ki main Rock On se connect kar paya .kyunki wo meri kahani thi.
problem ye hai ki movie chali nahi, america mein bhi nahi. i went to watch the show on the 1st friday it was showing in a dc suburb…it was my family and another family…a total of 10 people in the entire hall.
i mean, wtf? american zee tv par trailer bhi aye the, it was not like people didnt know about this movie. but they neglected it, because it was already a ‘hatke’ movie. koi us par time kyon waste karega, especially when dostana is playing in the next hall?
yahaan ke logon ki psyche abhi bhi movies ko ‘bachchan commercial’ aur ’smita patil artsy’ mein divide karti hai. foreign mein indians apne aap ko itna update nahi kar paate. their idea of india is when they left its shores. unki identity wohi 80s ya 90s vali indian hoti hai jab ek achchi film ka matlab ek paisa vasool aka commercial film tha. even though not much has changed in reality, but they don’t relate at all to the dibakars, the ranvirs, the rajat kapoors, the kashyaps, the srirams, basically the small-budget film renaissance in india, post 2000. this is the older crowd i’m taking about. the 2nd generation indian-american are obviously not that interested in watching hindi movies. it pisses me off. kuch karo yaar.
@ Papaji, kuch karne ka nahin yaar, flight book karo, vaapas India aa jao, LOL.
But i think u confirmed what i felt about most of the NRI crowd, they live in a time warp of 80’s, not just with regard to movies, but with regard to everything.
Other day some one was cribbing, that you had to bribe the telecom dept, to get a phone. I told her about BSNL or Airtel, gets u a connection immediately, and u need not pay anything to them.
Anyway i guess that is another topic of discussion.
Papaji – art aur hatke ki baat nahi hai…..what was Khosla Ka Ghosla then….art? Bachchan Dabbas, Boman Roshan, Anupam Zinta?
Timing, which was not right, not in hands and general stroke of bad luck.
People getting it or not getting the film is not the point according to me….people either like a film or not..neither it’s the art or the commercial aroma which pulls them to watch it.
Films like OLLO need a good word of mouth like Aamir, Welcome to Sajjanpur and A Wednesday to grow, which it got from the critics…maybe people in general are keeping away from cinema halls…and malls…post 26/11
Anyways more power to the great talent OLLO unearthed…..Mannu(Bangali) is missing in all this…..should get him on PFC soon…..
@ Vasanbala, agreed art is art and it can be in any form. i’m talking about how people perceive it. and when i made the distinction between artsy and commercial films, i was referring to the 70s and early 80s (i guess) when a shyam benegal film was distinctively different from a manmohan desai one. of course today, the lines are blurring (as you reinforced), but my point was that the NRI crowd does not see that. they still live, as Ratnakar said, in a time warp, and that is a major factor in failure of some of the better films coming out of india lately.
of course, 26/11 screwed OLLO’s chances in India and to some extent, overseas, but it would have failed in america anyways. and that’s what bothers me.
oh!!! then ollo is a box-office failure… I dont watch any hindi channels, websites which track the bo success of a movie.. i thought it was doing average business all over and its going to recover its costs.. bad luck..
It is not Box-office failure,.
@ dilipr — sorry for my mistake. OLLO seems to be doing ok in North India. i stand corrected. but my point about it’s business prospects in USA are still valid.
Welcome to PFC Richa! Thanks for posting this.. Only the other day me and wife were discussing these exact same points of OLLO… Totally agree with Rajinder.. I had written something similar in one of my comments on another article about OLLO
A nice read and a very nice performance as Dolly. Please accept my congratulations….
Hi Richa,
Like Sarang – my husband – we were discussing the same things you’ve written about OLLO. Bahut mazaa aaya yeh movie dekhkar. And I don’t know why so many ‘reviewers’ wrote that they couldn’t understand why Paresh Rawal was cast in three roles! I think Mr.Rawal’s casting was a masterstroke.
I really loved the way you played out your role. Wish you all the very best!
Hi Richa
first up what a brilliant performance by you !!! I read in some review/article somewhere that, like me, you went to SPV so permit me to show my appreciation in that strange hand gesture that you’re no doubt familliar with.
Moving on to the movie itself…quite apart from the social commentary and subtext, which speaks for one and so speaks TO one, I could have a three hour conversation about the cool details that are built into scenes behind or off the main characters plus all the referential things from one scene to another…seemingly random references or visuals tie up to other scenes in another act. I like the clever innuendo of folk songs that overlap the underscored emphasis of the scenes..the random old filmi songs playing behind dialogue or, as in lucky’s first car theft at the jat wedding, hummed in a semi whisper by characters adding detail to the mood of the scene…being a no good lout from Delhi there was a lot characters I recognised from the peripheral,and not so peripheral, orbits of my existence…it just rang true as a depiction of delhi especially the west delhi/south delhi divide – although there are elements both have of each other…the faded dust covered splashes of once bright colour that cover west delhi…the various trees and terrain of delhi, the convincingly captured atmosphere plus the brilliant acting overall was a delight…the only thing that it missed from delhi was the birds – delhi doesn’t subliminally feel like delhi without the crows, mynas, sparrows and especially pigeons…small gripe because it is such a well rendered and accurately simulated depiction…
The rendition of a lower middle class love affair just takes the cake, it is the most real and hence moving man woman relationship I’ve seen in hindi cinema….I love the way the relationship’s time in the movie is bookended by two scenes in the blue tint of a cold delhi winter morning and the musical motifs used…the first being the scene when the sonal brings down a cup of tea and asks lucky to drive off in his stolen mercedes…nice interplay and the jubilant bhangra beat that plays when lucky reverses the merc with a flourish after making his first ever wisecrack to her really captures the first thrill of attraction but the last scene of them together really hit home for me…it’s where lucky and sonal are standing across a morquito net door typical to DDA flats. She speaks first saying “ghodi pe aaoge? tum?”…the trinkling metallic tune that used to play in those music boxes that had the figurines of a waltzing couple plays behind their words…it felt so true to the two characters, was so congruent to every other act they’d performed in the movie…….I felt a sharp stab easing into my chest from the distance between my heart and the notions of romantic love I had in more innocent eons…the most intimate love scene I’ve seen come out of hindi cinema
Anyway…I suppose you’ve gathered I really liked it
…but what I wanted to emphasise is that by creating such a convincing simulation of reality, individuals and relationships “directorji” and all of you empowered the subtext to become an experience in our lives and not just a willing suspension of disbelief in exchange for entertainment. Many thanks to you all for your dedication, thoughtfulness and commitment to your craft.
Oh and before I forget the taunting sneer with which dolly mimics the words of others back to them ( “dolly bhi jayegi” and “valuation” etc.) was a masterstroke of a mannerism to include !
Richa ji
Wonderful performance as Dolly in OLLO. Hope to see you more frequently in future on the big screen.
And a wonderful write up to begin your chapter at PFC. Hope we will hear more from you!
Cheers
Brilliant summary.
If we relate to it .. It has to be good. I relate to many a instances in the movie.
…. My only second comment on PFC (First one was on AK’s NO Smoking)
It has to be OLLO that made me think as much as I’ve ever though after watching a movie ..
btw .. your act as Dolly stands out … your character might not be an integral part of the story in hindsight .. however, as per me ,, the movie will loose much of it’s charm but for Dolly. Looking forward to watching you on-screen in future.
The restaurant scene (I am only vegetable) and the (lucky + dolly – bata na .. mai tere ho hout nahi lagti.) . .are the best scenes .. I’ve seen in a while…
Good Job .. to entire team.
@ak – I agree .. bestest film of the year.
-saurshaz
Avdhesh, all that you’ve written about…beautifully worded…
Papaji, I completely see ur point, but no way would I say that it’s restricted to the Rajat Kapoors, Kashyaps or even small budgets.
A huge star like SRK got the same treatment for ‘Swades’, ditto Aamir for ‘Rang De Basanti’.
I don’t want to debate whether those films are considered good cinema or not, but my point is, even the biggest names suffer due to, what people believe, lack of entertainment etc….
…Ofcourse, this is untrue, but seeming as so many films are available on ‘Pirate-dvd-zindabad’, most ppl don’t bother to go to the cinemas.
However, I still maintain that NRI’s or even foriegners of any other nationality abroad, DO love alternative cinema, and try and give the films the respect they deserve.
Word of mouth is a must!
I’ve convinced alot of ppl in my time on this planet!
Have to say, i’ve converted quite a few ‘We only watch masala’ types of audiences.
Well, excluding my mother!
;-)
Ratnakar, yeah we are stuck in a time warp here, and any change takes time, but I look around and see a slight change.
Chalo, say 25% change, if that, but it’s still better than no change at all.
Alot of ppl here feel that by accepting change will make them less of an Indian!
Anyways, that’s another topic altogether.
Back to the film, i’m quite sure that many will watch it on dvd.
Well, everyone in ‘my’ life will!
I’ll make sure of that :-)
Dont know if anybody would agree with me, but I somehow feel if only OLLO’s release had been pushed atleast by a week or two it would have ensured atleast a couple of things-
1. More people going on to catch the movies in multiplexes/theatres
2. And in a rub off effect with more patronage the theatrical run also would have got extended
I think currently the movie continues in only some of the multiplexes in the metro’s and a few smaller cities.This is a truly deserving movie.Can we maybe see a re-release sometime soon?
I think the re-release with the right WOM might actually help the film in a big way.
There are a whole lot more of people who deserve to watch the movie that too in the big screen.
Hi Richa,
I can understand how you would have felt after the conversation with Rajinder.
It’s people like him – who are not trying to fit a creative analysis into a learned perspective – are the true judges.
Sethu, I most definitely agree!
Let’s face it, no one was in the frame of mind for films etc that week.
Even I didn’t fully get into ‘Oye Lucky’ on 1st viewing as my heart just sank after what had happened.
But I also knew that I had only 6days to catch it, as it was going to come off my local, and I didn’t want to see it on a pirate dvd!
Yes, Re-release would be a very good idea.
U should be in film distribution!
Steve I take it as a compliment
But going back to OLLO I hope people @ UTV would be reading this & do something in this direction!!!
First,thank you Anurag, BalaVasan, kenny, Mainak, debasri, Sarang, steve, Tanvi, Shreyansh, dazed and Avdhesh I am furiously doing the SPV wave for you.
Second, the film is doing well.Despite the idiot terrorists and small-film blah blah! It has run for two weekend at near/housefulls in several places in Delhi.Thw highest collections are not from the north though, they are from Indore! My spies in Jaipur and Chnadigarh too have given a favourable report. Also, we are aided by the fact that no other release in the past few weeks has had any luck. and yes, I wish UTV would put OLLO up at more singlescreens. My mom paid for Rajinder to catch it at a multiplex. Or else, we would ve missed his delightful insight.
And by the way, Bala oye… mere surname main ‘H ‘tune numerology ke liye add kiya hai?
richa, hats off.
not just for the goosepimple-evoking review from your driver– the kind of read that makes us all realise and glory in the power of cinema — but in the fact that you were awesome in the film, as someone who conveyed varied shades — and instant transformations thereof — with magical alacrity.
I regret that I wasn’t aware of your name when writing my gushfest (link below), but I flipped over your performance. god bless and give us a lot more to watch out for.
http://www.rediff.com/movies/2008/dec/09watch-the-years-finest-film.htm
@ Raja Sen
I had read your gushfest earlier in the day & was pleasantly surprised at the almost fanboy kind of adulation for the movie that emerged from it.I must admit I really liked it & my liking for the movie has shot up even more
Ye le Richa, Mr Raja Sen ne khud tere tareef ki. He’s the hardest-to-please critic perhaps
so be extra happy about it.
If, Raja Sen is the ‘hardest-to-please’ then so are the commenters at the Rediff message boards..!!lol
LOl, Tanul, dont tell me u take those guys commenting at Rediff Message board seriously. Most of em need to be sent to rehab, immediately.
No way man! But I have a fucking good time reading it. It is a trip Rstnakar. Browse through them after a depressing day at office or something..
Yaar had many trips in Rediff MB, its just that off late my brain has been strongly protesting that it can take no more, and is threatening to shut down, if i make further trips, LOL.
kya karu Richa Oye! Damini dekhne ke baad ek hi Chadda”h” yaad reh gaya….
From now on it will be the one sans H
Anyways another Dolly I know says you were awesome in the film.
Loved the dialogue ” Main tujhe hoat nahin lagti” & “Touch ho gaya, bu goad ” . Can’t get more sexually rustic or rustically sexy.
~fe~
I just saw this movie yesterday, and was amazed by its brilliance. It was an amazing movies, infact one of the best movies i ever saw(I do see plenty of movies).
Kudos to Dibakar for bringing a character like ‘Lucky’s friend’, man i have seen such suckers in life. The friend character was so well written and so well performed. The friend was so spineless, gullible and so real. Although paresh’s characters were colorful and loud, still it was played so well, so differently, loud still restrained and so subdued. Mocking lucky of not giving enough respect by bowing it to him, God that scene was jaw dropping. Look at Lucky’s face and the vulnerabilities in that scene.
Abhay rocked, so did Paresh, and Lucky’s friend and the girlfriend. Very well enacted, very well made, very well edited, i can go on and on. Highly recommended for everyone. I am going to ask everyone possible to watch this movie.
Hey Richa…some more movies please..good work:)
Hi Richa,
Fabulous performance. The movie is so good and so are all the characters in the movie. I wish you all the best for your future projects.
And yes, create your wikipedia page. Actually I tried to search you on google and surprisingly no wikipedia page dedicated to you. Create yourself or ask some friends of yours to do it for you.
Keep rocking………
@ Richa
I saw the movie 2 more times & my respect for the movie has just increased all the more.I liked the movie mainly for the detailing that Dibakar has undertaken.All the characters (even the small ones) are well etched.Of course the performances are just first rate.Richa urf Dolly
you were amazing in the movie.I wish to see more of you in the coming days.all the very best!!!
You know what? I was not really planning to go out of my way to watch OLLO, but the moment I found out that you’re also there in the film, I quickly booked tickets for my whole family. and yes it was worthed, both for the film and your performance. I keep promoting it, forcing people to watch it, wherever I go, whoever i meet.
I think OLLO is a cult of sorts.
Good work.
hope to see more from you.
from a small docudrama in delhi to this… not bad!
lol
main tumhe hot nahi lagti?
:D
i loe this:
gentry me count hogi woh!
first you learn english, then you speak me!
Can you beat this I watched this movie early in the morning , 1st show at Spice- Noida on 25th Dec & that too all alone…Jst loved it. Richa you were very real & upfront in your role, liked you and so is your write up…very moving.
One of my friend working in Mumbai suggested me OLLO saying ‘it’s so Delhi!
Typical west Delhi background, teenage love, those archies cards, roaming in scooter around the girl’s house….it’s so Delhi Anshu! I feel so nostalgic (as my frnd is frm Delhi only).
I had the same conversation again and again with my other collegues frm Mumbai office. And everybody felt nostalgic abt d city and evrybdy related 2 smthng or d other. :-)
Hello richa
gr8 work.