Sankat City- drives away the blues caused by Bhramaram
We keep using the phrase ‘as different as chalk & cheese’ in our daily life so often that sometimes it takes one by surprise when you actually experience it in a very interesting way. The weekend that went by was another filmy weekend for me, but one that was rather very special. Just like enjoying a biriyani and a pizza equally or freaking out on ghazals and rock music with the same zeal, I happened to watch 2 movies this weekend which were completely unlike each other. The movies concerned were Bhramaram and Sankat City ( SC from hereon ) and there was hardly anything in common between them. For starters Bhramaram is a Malayalam movie made by Blessy (his 5th film) and stars Superstar- Mohanlal. SC on the other hand is a Hindi movie made by Pankaj Advani ( his 1st official release ) and has no superstar in it but a very talented cast comprising of Kay Kay, Anupam Kher,Rimi Sen,Chunky Pandey, Rahul Dev,Yashpal Sharma,Dilip Prabhavalkar etc.
While Bhramaram is more of a road movie with the undertone of a thriller, SC is a mad caper and is a fun ride all the way. Bhramaram is more or less a one man show (Mohanlal) while SC belongs to a whole host of characters and it is difficult to just single out just one or two characters. Well I can go on & on but then I guess the message is loud and clear by now. But what is important to know is that I had a good time watching both these movies. In their own ways both Bhramaram and SC have the capacity to engage the viewer and there in lies the one common thread between the two.
Saturday evening saw me taking off early from office to be in time to watch Bhramaram. The initial scenes are quite ordinary and it takes a while to slowly get hooked to the narrative. Suresh Menon (whom we’ve seen for ages on T.V & in Bollywood films) is Unni, a stock broker who lives with his wife (Lakshmi Gopalswamy) and daughter in Coimbatore. One fine day a very shabby looking Jose (Mohanlal) lands up at Unni’s place and introduces himself as his old classmate from school. Unni is unable to recollect Jose but since Jose is able to describe a lot of events from the school days, he is forced to believe him. Jose who claims to be a jeep driver in the high ranges of Kerala does not initially reveal the reason for his visit.
Once the reason is revealed the movie really gets going and you see traces of vintage Mohanlal slowly unraveling. After Unni and Jose embark on their journey it then goes on to become a taut game of emotions. Blessy manages to keep the narrative interesting enough by interspersing humor in certain places which helps in maintaining a balance. The cinematography of Ajayan Vincent certainly impresses especially in the night shots captured in the hills. Music by Mohan Sithara is decent. Suresh Menon certainly impresses and hopefully this performance should help him fetch more such roles. Muralikrishnan as Alex, friend of Unni is also quite effective. Lakshmi Gopalswamy and Bhoomika (Mohanlal’s wife) have nothing much to do. On the whole the movie is certainly a far cry from the recent Mohanlal movies like Red Chillies, Sagar Alias Jackie (Reloaded), Bhagawan etc and gives you glimpses of the brilliant actor that he is. Blessy again redeems himself to some extent with Bhramaram (after Calcutta News) and hopefully should do even better the next time around. Definitely not great cinema, but certainly one of the better films in recent times.
While I kept thinking of what could have made Bhramaram even better, I couldn’t escape the fact that the movie had disturbed me. Later that night Lalettan’s Shivankutty/ Jose continued to haunt me and I realized that the character was not just lingering in my mind, it was also making me feel low (those who’ve watched the movie would understand). So on Sunday morning when I woke up slightly earlier than usual, I was unsure of how to get back into groove and that’s when I realized I didn’t even have to try hard- I was lucky to end up watching a 10.30 A.M show of SC.
By now most of us know the plot and characters of SC so I wouldn’t really get into that. But yes to give a quick insight I can say that it’s all about money and how a host of characters get interwoven into a tale that has money as the fulcrum. Right from the first frame till the end I kept smiling and at times couldn’t really control myself from laughing hard- I guess it was true for everyone else among the audience too. For the sake of people who are yet to watch the movie I wish to point out a few things about the movie-
What SC definitely has-
1.Characters who are loud and even over the top and thankfully do not pretend that they are anything else
2.A sparkling cast of some superbly talented actors and some of them would even surprise you with their portrayals.
3.Uniform pace of the movie- there’s hardly any dull moment and you do not have to keep looking at your watch.
4.Enough and more entertaining moments to keep you glued to the screen till the end, the very end.
5.Some wonderful locations in & around Mumbai that have been captured brilliantly ( like for example the garbage dump )
6.The budget seems to have been completely well utilized or rather most efficiently utilized ( check out the scene in the bus when the bags get switched )
What SC definitely doesn’t have-
1.Superstars and A – list heroines
2.A routine structured story ( it’s a mad caper after all )
3.Emotion, tragedy, drama ( well yes it does have it, but certainly not like what you think )
4.Item numbers by Rakhi Sawant etc ( well there’s a small bit where Anupam Kher and dynamite are dancing though 
)
5.Songs shot abroad
6.Gyan-baazi ( oh! There’s nothing preachy here )
7.While actors like Kay Kay , Anupam Kher etc have done some serious, meaningful cinema- this is certainly not a serious off beat movie.
All I can say is that SC is one movie that not only entertains it also makes you think- as to why we don’t have more of such movies coming out of Bollywood these days. While watching the movie I also realized that Pankaj Advani & his team must have certainly had a blast while shooting the movie, it clearly shows on screen as everybody seems to be enjoying what they are portraying on screen. That to me is a very big achievement indeed and I heartily salute Pankaj and the entire cast and crew for giving us SC- a film that we can certainly enjoy time and again.
It’s my fond hope that somebody concerned would do something to enable a much better presence in theatres for the movie by increasing the shows and also by enabling prime time shows wherever possible. A sincere movie like this which has also been getting good reviews needs a much better reach than what it has presently. Till then it’s a sincere request to all those who are passionate about cinema to go on & watch SC- you won’t be disappointed for sure.
Tags: Ajayan Vincent, Anupam Kher, Blessy, kay kay, Mohan Sithara, Mohanlal, Pankaj Advani, Rimi Sen, Suresh Menon
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
where did u see SC sethu?
Saw it @ Sathyam Cinemas- Chennai.
SC has only released in Chennai,Hyd,B’lore in Mysore also I guess in South.But the number of shows the timings are pathetic.
oye filmi! filmi oye! glad u had a super filmi weekend. me a mohanlal fan since company! ye jo sab ho raha hai, tere dhande ki jaat hai. cool post. i also join in your It’s my fond hope that somebody concerned would do something to enable a much better presence in theatres for the movie by increasing the shows and also by enabling prime time shows wherever possible. :-)
Inshallah Magik, hope our wishes get fulfilled.
There was a time when you had malayalam churning out Sankat type of movies every friday. Those days seem to me like memories of distant childhood to me.
Jai yes there were many such simple harmless comedy capers coming out from Malayalam cinema those days.Nowadays the comedy movies getting made in Malayalam are certainly no patch on those movies.Hope those glorious days return soon.
‘it clearly shows on screen as everybody seems to be enjoying what they are portraying on screen. ‘
You are very right Sethu. I observed that too. The involvement was visible.
The ‘definitely have’ can include
- certain surrealism amidst the madcap
- A song and dance at the end in typical bollywood style
‘Definitely doesn’t have’ can include
- Skin show and toilet humour
- loopholes in script.
It’s sad that the distribution of this movie sucks everywhere, hope it reaches a greater audience this weekend.
Cheers!
@ uh- you are right on the extra points mentioned under have & doesnt have.Considering that this friday ( 17th ) does not see a big Bollywood release ( Jashn is the only reasonable competition ) it would be great if the distributors take advantage and manage to get additional shows.
nice one !!! i was too planning sunday morning show @ satyam cinemas but missed due to illness!!! donno whether SC is going to come back to chennai…nahin toh Moser Baer zindabad !!!
well Prashant it would be good if Sathyam Cinemas would feature it again the coming weekend atleast.In case if it suits you maybe you can catch it in Mayajaal- 6.30 P.M show.Moser Baer to hai hi, lekin bade parde ka mazaa kuch aur hi hai
Nice post Sethu. I wonder if anyone noticed the pun in the comment ‘Jhaanse ki rani’ which KK uses for Rimi!!!
Thanks Ashu.I did notice it.In fact quite a few such moments in the film
Good to see Sankat city relieved you from all the Sankat caused by Bhramaram….Seldom does one get to see two enjoyable, if not great, and complementing movie experiences back to back.. :-) You seem to be spending almost all weekends in Sathyam nowadays.. :-0
Yes Ram you are right- nowadays its become rare to see 2 enjoyable movies back to back.Sathyam Cinemas is like my 2nd home in Chennai- so based upon the movie I decide whether its a single screen or Sathyam Cinemas.Not fond of other multiplexes here.
Somehow bhramaram faied to move me at all.. felt mohanlal and the rest of the cast went a bit over the top towards the end, Suresh menon was too wooden-faced at times, the climax, as to wat happened to Bhumika, was way too predictable(i noticed many people in the theatre murmuring, guessing the climax rightly).. Lalettan was brilliant in parts, but somehow, I feel the ending scenes cud hav been better if shot with the subtlety of a ‘Pavithram’ or a ‘Pakshe’..
I redeemed myself, watching Advaitham and Thaniyavarthanam on VCD the next day :D, As sankat city wasnt an option for me,as it wasnt released…
Am coming to Chennai on 28th for an interview..it is at 2:30.. and I am leaving by the 8 PM train. will SC be running in any theatres near egmore, in that time period? if so I ll give it a watch, I guess..
@ Rahul- you are right about the climax- I guessed it fairly easily too.Not at all a great movie but certainly much better than most of the recent one’s.Ah!Advaitham & Thaniyavarthanam- good choices.I also think DD-4 is playing some good movies of the 80’s & early 90’s during the weekends now.On 28th- its tough to say if it will be running or not.Do mail me@ sethumadhavan.n@gmail.com a day in advance & I’ll let you know if the movie is on.
I saw this one last night and loved every bit of it!! And somehow I didn’t sit with any expectations in spite of the pfc marketing (sorry about that! :P…but so many movies get made on raunchy and crass humour these days that bollywood humour doesn’t excite me any more). And I’m so glad that I watched this movie!!
The cast is superb and fits the movie to a T. The characters are nicely developed, consistent, and integral. The movies holds up beautifully till the end and I was laughing like anything after a hard day’s work!!
Three cheers to Pankaj Advani and his team and I wish hard that the movie gets its money!
@ idle-labour- glad you liked it.yes humour in Bollywood movies has been going downhill of late.But I hope movies like SC help in bucking the trend.
Nice post,
Waiting for Bhramaram, to release in Mumbai.
As for Sankat City, i think i will have to wait for My cablewallah, to screen it.
For 17th , i think Harry Potter will take maximum screens, so Sankat City will not have any better timings or screens.
Well Cinemausher you are right about Potter mania taking over the screens.The movie actually releases today – I went for the premiere last night.Its getting a fabulous release.Also Transformers-2 is doing well too.So I dont know if people @ Moser Baer & 7 entertainment are going to do anything for the 2nd week.Even Jashn is struggling to get a decent release.
i came back to India on Sunday late night, went to office on Moday and went straight to Mangala theatre for 5:30pm show after office to catch Sankat City, came home, and crashed to bed, jet lag n all that…
why i hv given all these details? coz i didnt mind putting myself to such great pains to catch this gem…
i think Yashpal Sharma has done the best job among the comedians coz he is not perceived / expected to do that sort of a comedy…”arre kukreja saab, sunaa thaa makkai pet ke liye accha hota hai, yahan toh haalat kharaab hai..”
Well Jha by now I’m not surprised at knowing the details- tere andar ka filmy keeda bada bhayankar hai
yes Yashpal Sharma was wonderful in SC.if you’ve noticed he more or less has a painful expression throughout the film but still evokes laughter- superb.
I think Bhramaram qualifies more as a thriller while Advaitham is a different kind.I saw Bhramaram twice.The second time,i followed Sivankuttys character and found that everything he says reflected his state of mind(empathizing with unni remembering his own family,and being concerned about unni’s daughter and even getting into their kitchen and cooking)I guess sivankutty was trying to get bac his family life.And I certainly feel that Bhramaram is a great movie which dwelled on the microcosm of a man’s mind and the unpredictable ways in which man could behave if he ends up in a situation like that.But i agree that the movie heavily depended on Mohanlal’s skill.
Hey!Arun I have clearly stated that Bhramaram is “more of a road movie with the undertone of a thriller” in the post.And yes its not in the same wavelength of Advaitham.Though I wont call the movie great I certainly feel it was a good one- something that showcased Mohanlal’s acting reasonably well.And you are right about it dwelling on the microcosm of a man’s mind & the unpredictable ways in which a man can behave if he ends up in a situation like that- thats what made me disturbed well after the movie was over.
For that I do feel Blessy has done a reasonably good job.
SC has been taken off from screens in Chennai,B’lore & Hyd.after all the good reviews if this is what is happening, I dont know what the producers/distributors are doing.
well not surprising considering Harry Potter is releasing this week.
@Sethu,
You know what happens when Multiplex owners are focussed on selling tub of popcorn,rather than the content.
Well cinemausher I do agree with what you are saying.Of course HP has taken up most of the screens and even Transfomers-2 is holding on.But if the people concerned cannot even ensure 2 weeks run for a good movie even in metro cities, phir to ho gaya kalyan.I guess most people have to now wait for DVD, DTH & Satellite TV to catch it.Sad when the movie has been so well reviewed.
@Sethu,
the sad thing is many people who wanted to see the movie are now watching the movie in Pirated dvds.
In this case I wont blame people for doing so.if you dont release the movie in the right way, obviously this is bound to happen.
@Setumadhavan – you’re right, we all had a blast while filming, collaborative filmmaking at its best. the cast went all out, we improvised a lot and the crew, they were superb. nice post, looking forward to watching bhramaram.
Hey!Pankaj bhai glad to see your response & also good to know that I was right about the fact that all of you had a blast while filming SC.I liked the new promo of SC with David Dhawan,Anurag,Anupam kher etc endorsing it.Bhramaram should be reaching Mumbai soon.
Mohanlal in Bhramaram shows that given the right role, stars can do wonders on the big screens…..but some of them keep undermining their ability by choosing bad scripts..
Jibin you are quite right.when you see films like Bhramaram you seriously wonder why everyone else also cannot spend more time on their scripts.