Haider
Year: 2014
Director: Vishal Bhardwaj
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Tabu, Kay Kay Menon
 

To say or not to say- that’s the question.

I grapple with the Hamlet-esque thoughts in my mind. All I have to do is to answer a question from my movie-buff friend.

Actually the question is simple. “You finally watched Haider. How was it?”

To hell with it, I decide to say it loud and clear. “I hated Haider! I was waiting impatiently for the film to end.” Phew! I have done it. I have said it! I have finally got that off my chest.

The friend just looks at me incredulously. “Do you really mean to say that you hated Haider? Are you nuts? How could you even say such a thing? Don’t you know it has got a five star rating from every respected critic?

“Yes- I do know that and it is really driving me crazy. How could I not see what they all loved in the movie?” I say with a forlorn look.

The friend tries to interrogate suspiciously and I go on answering him truthfully. Here is how our conversation progresses.

“Perhaps you don’t like Vishal Bhardwaj?”

“Are you kidding? I am one of his biggest admirers.”

“Then you must be one of those Masala Movie-lovers who cannot appreciate off-beat dark movies.”

“Who says so? I don’t deny that I have a special fondness for Masala entertainers but I have also enjoyed and appreciated quite a few dark movies. But this film simply did not make the cut.”

 “Isn’t the film based on Shakespeare’s all-time classic Hamlet?”

“Well, the film adapts the Shakespearean plot about a son devastated by his father’s loss and contemplating revenge on his mother and his uncle, who are in an illicit relationship and sets the story in Kashmir in the year1995. The militancy is at its peak. A separate free state is the militants’ demand. The Kashmiri common man is often bearing the brunt of Indian army’s use of force against the separatists. Apparently thousands of people are detained, tortured and ‘made to disappear’ through a draconian Armed Force Special Powers Act (AFSPA). On this backdrop, a youngster (Shahid Kapoor) arrives in his home-town to find his ‘detained and disappeared’ father but instead he sees his mother (Tabu) sharing unacceptable warm vibes with his uncle (Kay Kay Menon). Driven by rage and jealousy, he decides to kill his treacherous uncle, who has been reaping political benefits by snitching on separatists. Even though the youngster’s girlfriend (Shraddha Kapoor) tries to dissuade him from this extreme step, the only person who could actually make him see reason is his mother, with whom he shares a love-hate relationship!”

“So isn’t the adaptation good enough?”

“To make an impact, first the narrative has to touch the soul and I couldn’t feel a thing about any character!”

“Weren’t the actors any good?”

“Oh, no. In fact, Shahid, Tabu and Kay Kay all delivered fine performances. Shahid gave his all to his tortured tormented central character. Kay Kay was his usual efficient self and Tabu gave her character all the complexity and vulnerability.”

“Then the technical part must be sub-par.”

“No. In fact, audio-visually Haider would rank amongst the most beautifully cinematographed movies.”

“Then my friend what is your problem with it?”

“I felt the story was too disjointed and progressed laboriously. The whole movie seemed to me more like a fiercely anti-Indian propaganda exercise, than an artistically stimulating Hamlet adaptation. To tell you in plain words, the film did not connect!”

“What are you saying? How can you go against the overwhelming intellectual verdict? Are you one of those ultranationalist fundamentalists by any chance?”

At this point, I decide to stop responding. I have always considered myself a global citizen with a balanced viewpoint. Respecting diverse cultures and viewpoints comes naturally to me and I don’t need to answer that question.

The look on my friend’s face clearly tells me that he thinks I should get my head examined! By this time, he has lost confidence in my intellect. Still he decides to ask me a final question. “So what is your rating for Haider?”

I show him two fingers!