Title : The Indian feel
Review : From the director of the oscar nominated film, Lagaan, Ashutosh Gouwariker comes another masterpiece- Swades. it would be wrong to compare swades with lagaan, as the both the films belong to completely different themes. while on one hand Laggan is about patriotism, Swades is more about a nationalism. Most people don’t know the difference, nor did i, but after seeing the movie I realised the difference. Patriotism is what you feel for your country in comparison to an another nation and what you can do to protect your nation from the threats of the other country, whereas nationalism is about what you as a citizen of your country feel for it without any reference to any other country.
Now coming to the movie, I think it is one of the most beautifully made film which tackles with social problems that are still very prominent in our indian society and simultaneously does not try to be arty or preachy. the script of the film is very bound and it comes across the narration of the story. Ashutosh, is one such the director who has a eye for detail. he puts across the message of the story with such a ease that a viewer unconsciously becomes a part of the story. the desperation that the hero goes through is equally felt by the viewer. the locations of the movie are fantastic and it reminds us of our grandparents homes in the villages. the Nasa locations are well shot.
After the script the biggest strength of the film is its star cast, stars who look like any normal people. the characterisation is at its best as if the cast is made for the roles. Now coming to the star cast in detail, this is one such film that no SRK can afford to miss. it is film that you get to see the more serious and mature SRK elude emotions with perfect ease and charm. it is one such film where the character of SRK, Mohan gets much bigger than the star. The newcomer Gayatri Joshi does justice to her role as a school teacher. even being her first film and with SRK as the co-star she manages to make her presence felt in the movie. Kishori Bhallal as Kaveri amma is too good, actually I am sure she might definitely remind you of your nani. the rest of the star cast was impressive.
the songs of the movie are very good. ’’Yuhi Chalan’’ has great foot tapping rhythms and the lyrics of ’’Yeh Tara’’ is very apt.
it is difficult to pinpoint which was the best scene in the movie but Mohan’s meeting with a poor farmer and his family to collect rent of the house , is heart wrenching. the subtle scene of mohan taking water from the Khullar boy( he only drinks Mineral water) shows how the character gets connected back to his roots. That’s when to feel that we all have forgotten the real India AND IT IS TIME TO CONNECT BACK TO OUR ROOTS.- My India- Swades.