Liar's Dice

I was looking for Babumoshai Bandookbaaz on YouTube. The video I clicked defaulted to Liar's Dice which actually I had never even heard of. Anyway seeing that it starred Nawazuddin Siddiqui I decided to watch. That the first part was set in heavenly Chitkul was another factor.

To start with, this film is very poorly shot as though by an amateur with a hand held camera. The storyline takes considerable effort to discern and even Nawazuddin's expectedly good acting as well as the stunning Chitkul scenery did not do much to enhance the movie.

The sets were quite realistic and all the characters looked like they were real life locals roped in for the film. Perhaps if the cinematography had been better, it would have helped. Though the plot needed better definition either way.

I do not know how awards are dished out. Liar's Dice didn't really deserve any.

I like Nawazuddin Siddique.

He reminds me of Stephen Graham (a fellow scouser).

An aura of someone you wouldn't straightforwardly think of delivering an acting masterclass but delivers every time.

I have seen Nawazuddin in a number of films. Never disappointed by him.

So, the reason I watched Liar's Dice was simply because he was the draw.

Glad I did.

I honestly had no idea of what to expect and with all the horrible situations that people find themselves in Big City type Indian based Independent films, you think, eeeek this could go sideways.

Put it this way, the film concentrates on the goal throughout. Where is the husband?

And that drives it all the way to the conclusion, providing closure (and you have to really pay attention to the last few minutes to then ascertain in your own mind) to the lives of the three road companions.

The ending is beautiful. It makes you think a little.

In terms of storytelling, this isn't that gangster led modern Indian film. This isn't a Bollywood musical. This is good storytelling and even though there aren't any dishoom dishoom (fighting) scenes, you think you would get from a film heading for the big city, it nevertheless never leaves the viewer bored or unengaged. You really want to know what happens next.

In fact, the characterisations are excellent. From the wife (excellent acting) who is (in her own way) determined to locate her husband, to the daughter who is a lovely touch, to the extra traveller who has his own agenda (or does he?).

I googled the explanation for the ending (I had an idea, I just needed someone to confirm my thoughts) and it was as beautiful as it was shown.

If you had Leonardo DiCaprio and say Emily Blunt as the leads, set it as a road trip to Hollywood and people seeking work....you'ld be looking at oscars.

It's really good. A lot better than the regurgitated recycled fantastical dross that some film companies churn out.

It's different and it's worth watching of a quiet Sunday (when you feel in a reflective mood).

Definitely one for Indie film lovers and modern Indian film lovers.

I saw this film at the Rotterdam film festival 2014 (IFFR), where it was part of the Bright Future section. The venue (687 seats) was almost fully booked for the European première. From the outside we saw a road movie through various landscapes in a series of provinces of India that we pass, eventually winding up in New Delhi. The route is in itself interesting to watch due to the variety in landscapes. All this happens on the lookout for a husband who went to New Delhi as a construction worker. Contact with him was lost 5 months ago. His wife and young daughter were left behind in an isolated small village near the Chinese border.

In the opening scenes we see the whole area covered with snow, and such a journey is far from easy. The things that they see underway, and particularly what happens in the cities they visit, is completely different from what I had imagined. This is actually the core of the story rather than the trip itself. Given reports in the last year we saw in newspapers about how risky it is for women to travel alone, this journey creates extra difficulties. The woman obviously has no clue that such dangers exist, and must be warned many times against going out alone (and of course, she violates the rule a few times when needing food). Apart from men bothering women underway, there are the extra dangers in the form of several borders they have to cross.

All along the journey she and her daughter are accompanied by a deserter (former border policeman), who they accidentally meet near the village soon after their departure. Initially unwilling to allow him to travel along with them, she gradually accepts his support though still reluctantly until the end. He proves to be very street wise, in addition to providing for "proper" male company. The three together look very much like a normal couple with child, preventing a lot of awkward questions and smoothing their passage through border crossings.

The child role is played by a girl who now is 4.5 years old. She has not acted before. They auditioned on many places, but all those girls had already some camera experience and that was showing. All three main characters (woman, man and child) are perfectly casted and perform very well in their respective roles. And don't forget the additional role of the several times changing environment that we see pass by along the trip.

All in all, the relationship between the man and the woman does not develop in the direction of the happy end one could expect superficially. The uncertainty how and where this trip will end, and what they will find in their assumed destination New Delhi, creates a certain tension that is maintained throughout the running time. The story line can scatter in any direction, and extra plot ingredients are amply present underway where many obstacles have to be surmounted. Anyway, festival visitors ranked this film at 57th place (out of 200), which can be deemed average (neither good nor bad). The finale was not totally clear to me, and certainly different from the "happily lived ever after" one could assume from the outset. That unclarity need not be deemed a defect, and it may even be better this way by leaving something to our imagination.

It is a movie with a simple plot and a confusing ending.

In a desperate search for her missing husband who has not been in contact for five months, Kamala decides to travel to Delhi where Harud, her husband, works as a construction worker. Kamala, her daughter Manya and their pet goat, meet the mysterious army deserter, Nawazuddin, along the way and they make their journey together in search for Harud.

The film explores serious issues such as the dangers faced by unaccompanied women in public, the absence of workplace safety practices, as well as the recruitment and exploitation of poor migrant workers, the myriad of nameless people who are regarded as a mere statistic to whom this film is dedicated to.

Despite the dark underlying themes, the highlight of the film is the beautiful cinematography as it takes us on a journey from a remote village in the mountains of Himachal Pradesh, which is on the border with Tibet, through to the colourful and chaotic streets of Delhi, a big city which preys on the urban poor, where not even a goat is safe.