Sunday, November 16, 2008

I Watched Dostana

... last night. I'm not going to waste much more time on that movie, but I wanted to put down a few thoughts.

The one word I'd choose to describe it would be 'horrible'. A heroine who tries to pimp out her "gay" roommates to her boss in the hope of getting a promotion, and then cries over her disappointment at not getting the job after all, after all the "hard work" she put in. The "best friends" who cheerfully stab each other (and anyone else) in the back in the hope of winning the girl. One of them goes farther than the other and conspires at having his friend molested. (Is assault any less funny when it happens to a male than to a female?)

There was just one scene I liked: when the extremely loud, overbearing, melodramatic mother (played by - who else? - Kirron Kher) has a change of heart and welcomes her son's "boyfriend" home like she would her daughter-in-law, asking him to step over a pot of rice and gifting him the gold bangles she had kept for her bahu (and no, she doesn't insist he wear them, she merely offers them as shagun).

What disappointed me more than the movie was the fact that the audience seemed to enjoy it. Such portrayal of sick humour and prejudice is extremely popular in India. The people around - mostly with their families, seemed to enjoy it, laughing loudly at every disgusting "joke". A few in the row ahead of ours laughed loudly at the mere non-mention of the word "fuck" (that is, when it was implied, not even said aloud). Imagine how much laughter they would get into their day if they lived with me.

6 comments:

Praveen VS said...

thanks for the review..i think u saved 500 bucks for me :)

D said...

Lol! But the movie makers seem to have their hand on the pulse of the Indian audience's sense of humour: they laughed all through the movie!

Unmana said...

Praveen: Oh, don't go by me. My views on movies rarely agree with anyone else's.

D: Indeed! AND they're being hailed for dragging gaydom out of the closet.

Unmana said...

Praveen: Oh, don't go by me. My views on movies rarely agree with anyone else's.

D: Indeed! AND they're being hailed for dragging gaydom out of the closet.

Amit said...

That such movies are made and sell says something about the state of Indian society. But then we are very much a developing country and the last stages of development involve change in attitudes. Just tells you that we have a very long way to go.

Unmana said...

Amit: Indeed. I just hope we get there sometime.