Stanley ka Dabba as the title suggests is a film that attempts to explore the life of the child Stanley through the absence of his dabba. This absence is made conspicuous by the presence of a teacher, Mr. Verma, popularly known as’Khadoos’, who loves to eat others’ dabbas. The absence of the dabba puts Stanley in a tight spot with this teacher which in turn causes him to stop attending school.
The movie then progresses to Stanley participating in a concert and then reveals that he is an orphan-child labourer. One must agree that the film hits emotional notes in a few scenes; when Stanley lies about his mother making warm food for him, when Stanley lights candles in front of his parents’ photos and when his friends feed him. The kids in the film are well-cast and are a pleasure to watch.
The film could have been better though if it had managed to string a single theme in its script. The first half of the movie is far sensitive as compared to the second half which feels really rushed. The reason for this is that the first half hits the same emotional note in most of the scenes. There seems to be no trajectory for the story. The second half then makes Stanley participate in a concert and reveals his "house" and Stanley starts getting his dabba. Then the film ends on a note that asks the audience to stop child labour.
So one asks what is the movie about: is it about stopping child labour? or is it about orphans? or is it about the innocence of children that sees no differences - which is mainly the first half? Although the intention of the film is appreciated, considering the craft, the film seems to be traveling to a lot of themes at the same time. The teachers other than Mr. Verma serve as caricatures of various teachers found in schools.
The cinematography and editing are as inconsistent as the script; and they are so because the script is inconsistent. The cinematography in the first half has a very documentary-candid style, and in the second half it loses that flavour and seems to have lost its track. The editing again has sudden cuts in the first half and in the second, wavers in its pattern. The film could have been more effective as a short film of 25-30 mins, with a single theme of course. But I guess in today’s times it is amazing that films like this also have space, which they should, and one must watch it for the sheer love of kids, because they are just so wonderfully portrayed!