I must admit I am writing a review after a very long time, and it is to Paa’s credit that I felt like waking up from my self-imposed slumber and penning down something.
To start off with, the opening scene from Paa is brilliant. I won’t break the suspense, so go see it. It is a magnificent way to introduce the main character, his thoughts, and the disease that inflicts him. Amitabh as Paa once again proves without a doubt that if there is meat in the role, then he can add that particular zing to the character which is uniquely his.
To make a long story short, Auro is a little kid aged 2 affected with a disease called Progeria (apologies if I got the name wrong) due to which he has a body aged 80. His zest for life, however, remains like that of a little kid. His very unique feature here, which I really liked, is that instinctive spontaneous quirky sense of humour which is neither degrading nor hilarious, but brings the right smile to your lips. You want to smile not because it is funny, but because you wish you had said that.
Imagine the scene where his friend Vishnu asks him "why do we have sums like x=equation1 and y= equation2, then they ask us what x+y is? Why don’t they just ask what equation 1 + equation 2 is, why use x and y? And Auro says. Think about this: Why am I not one head, 4 eyes, 2 ears, one lip, 2 hands , 2 legs, one brain and why are you not one head, 4 eyes, 2 ears, one lip, 2 hands , 2 legs, zero brain? Why do we have to be Auro and Vishnu?"
One of the best scenes is where he figures out that Abhishek is his dad who doesn’t know he exists (because his mom Vidya Balan just left when Abhishek suggested an abortion since the child was out of wedlock, born out of yuppie love) and then asks his friend Vishnu for the similarity between Vishnu and his dad. It is really a humorous reply by Vishnu.
Abhishek and Vidya Balan are good in their roles, understated and not over the top. Paresh Rawal as Abhishek’s dad is a waste. Thankfully the really emotional scenes (such as Auro’s death scene) are not too long winded and even the nice scenes are just for the right length of time. I only wish they had given more time for Auro’s relationships with his mom, long lost dad and grandma (whom he calls "Bum" because she has a big bum).
I would definitely recommend this movie for everyone. There is something in it for everyone. Go for it! Amitabh rocks!!