First things first - Delhi 6 is no Rang De Basanti.
The only similarity between the two films is the geographical setting - Delhi. Even then they are different. Where RDB was based in Delhi as a whole, Delhi 6 is set in the Old Delhi - especially the walled part of Chandni Chowk.
Over the last 3 days I have read quite a lot of reviews of Delhi 6 and most of them scream through the rooftops that this movie has no story to speak of..
It’s scattered... It’s all over the place... These accusations are absolutely perfect! But this by no means conveys that the film is a piece of trash as some sections of the media would want us to believe...
Let’s try and look at Delhi 6 as a film... The very fact that the movie is titled Delhi 6 signifies that this is a movie about the place. Second thing - the movie in all its promos highlighted that it’s an ensemble piece. Now an ensemble piece is supposed to have multiple characters who take the intended vision of the director forward.
When we say Delhi 6 is essentially about the place, let’s dissect this statement even further... It’s about the place (Chandni Chowk) and the people inhabiting those bylanes... It’s about the essence of the mini-society of Delhi 110006, the people, the culture, the prejudices, the trials, the myths, the lifestyle, and also their significance in the context of urban Indian societal fabric.
It’s just that all these things are unveiled to us through the eyes of Roshan Mehra. So to that extent, Roshan Mehra is an embodiment of a film camera through whom Rakeysh Mehra captures the above-mentioned traits and fills the screen with metaphorical and symbolical parable of Delhi 6.
In trying to understand Rakeysh Mehra’s vision it is very important for us to understand a few concepts - Delhi 6 is often referred to as the Old Walled City (chaar diwaaron se ghira hua shehar!) that means that the city is closed and not open to any kind of development (psychological).
To that effect Delhi 6 becomes a metaphor for Urban Indian societies which though looks liberalized and open (FDI and stuff like that!) is still closed (dated social conditioning!). Then there are people belonging to various economic, social and religious strata who again are an internalized stand-in for a secular India.
By using the above-mentioned stand-ins, Mehra has created a powerful yet so subtle commentary on the social fabric of India. Other than these, Rakeysh has used various other symbols and metaphors and juxtapositions to talk about various social evils/cultural, mythical and religious takeaways that act as a hindrance to the psychological progress of the collective Indian consciousness.
Check out the Ram Leela and note the lighting in a few crucial shots of Ram Leela (especially towards the climax) where the camera has captured only the shadows and not the faces, and also note the usage of Ram Leela at certain junctures to convey important points.
The fact that two brothers are separated by a wall and yet are extremely interested in each others’ families’ day-to-day chores takes a subtle dig at the India’s relations with the neighboring country.
Then of course the "Kaala Bandar" metaphor which is so brilliantly used in the film to say that it’s just the selfishness and the internal paranoia, jealousy and insecurity within each human being that drives an individual to the brink of destruction or maybe even self-destruction.
The film is loaded with such subtle and brilliantly used metaphors and symbols. The usage of soundtrack is equally stunning.
Rakeysh Mehra proves that his music is only his music and he designs his film with immense care and passion. At the end of all this, I had just two problems with the film - one - it gets to explain the metaphors at a few junctures which was not needed.
The director could’ve avoided words in those scenes and just have led the visuals do the talking. Second - I would’ve loved Abhishek’s character dying... The reasons - he plays a half-Hindu and half-Muslim... and the fact that he gets killed in the mob would’ve driven a point home that during any communal carnage people only end up destroying a part of themselves under the mistake of killing the other person.
Now - coming to performances - in an ensemble piece like this - what can you expect but top drawer performances from all? And that’s exactly what you get in Delhi 6. Everyone is extraordinary. Sonam is dazzling and restrained at the same time. Abhishek underplays beautifully and becomes the director’s voice. Kudos to him.
Technically, the film scores on all fronts. Binod Pradhan’s camera loves Delhi 6 and it captures every part and every conceivable component of that street. Editing of the film is sharp and yet poetic. It has a rhythmic flow to it. Dialogues by Prasoon Joshi are flawless and the accents are pitch-perfect! Screenplay designed by Rakeysh Mehra, Prasoon Joshi and Kamlesh Pandey is absolutely brilliant, theatrical, poetic, metaphorical, calculated and extremely angry, yet completely passionate.
Music and background score by Rahman fits the mood and conveys the right notes at the right time without making you scream "Oh, what composition!" because it pushes the narrative forward.
All in all -a great and landmark movie. But then that’s a personal opinion. Every piece of art has its audience and I guess I am Delhi 6’s audience.
My favorite shot in the film - Rishi and Abhishek moving in an open top Impala in front of the Red Fort at night. The lighting was extremely enticing and Red Fort looks like a beautiful and virgin girl who entices and seduces you...