Delhi-6

A misunderstood film...it shows the culture, harmony, religion, beliefs of the society. A NRI who returns with his grandma to delhi-6 in densely populated area of chandni chowk delhi. A beautifully written story with heart touching music.

I remember the time the song "Masakkali" hit our TV screens. I felt a good vibe about this movie, later found out that it was from the same director who did RDB, one of my favourites. Being a regular IMDb user, the ratings below 7 barely encouraged me to watch it though. Obviously, the movie never achieved the popularity status anywhere near to that of RDB.

But for some reason, almost 4 years later, I decided to give it a try and I have to apologise Mr. Mehra for underestimating him. It is nigh impossible to emulate RDB but Delhi 6 shouldn't have done his prospects any harm. If there was anything like an Indian Oscar, Delhi 6 would have been a strong contender, considering the paucity of quality movies that get made in the biggest film industry in the world. As someone who is relatively familiar to the ways of Indian society and mentality, it was a stark depiction of the intricacies that form the gullies and chowks. The colours and noise and the varieties of personalities just illuminates the first half or so. The latter half shows the dark side, naivety, greed, ignorance, pettiness which can quite easily ruin a society.

Nothing compelled me to write something here other than the fact that moviegoers have decided to rate it 6, which is a pity. No wonder, movies like Dabangg seem to reap financial rewards and recognition and the ones like Delhi-6 are left to stray into oblivion. I loathe bollywood in general, not so bollywood music, but Delhi-6 gives me hope.

Thankfully I wasn't sucked into all the hype of this film and just watched it months after its release, after the dust had settled down with the immense flak it was receiving. But to put it succinctly, the only thing wrong about Delhi 6 is that Rakesh Mehra made it after RDB. Period. Nothing more, nothing less.

Had Rakesh opted to depart from the norm and do a completely different genre of a film- yes, then maybe, he would have pulled it off well, but a film like Delhi 6, which had the shades of RDB in it, certainly is not the wisest of choices for a follow up. Delhi 6 is like a toned-down RDB, less impacting, much more mellow, and just like anything- its expectations that would hinder one from enjoying it. From the way it had been criticized, I was expecting a heavily metaphorical film with abstract narration all over- I wasn't expecting much, and thats exactly why I give it a 9, because it exceeded my low expectations.

I couldn't help but to think that the film is receiving this flak because of the strong anti-Abhishek sentiment, with many feeling that Abhi hadn't been aggressive enough in the film. But, thats the whole point of the film. That precisely is the USP of the film. Roshan is not a participant, the entire film is a journey through Roshan's eyes as to how he transformed from a mere observer of the society and later on became an active participant. He may not be your regular society-changing hero, but that is exactly Rakesh's intentions in this film. To just show to the audiences what he himself had seen through his eyes.

The film's theme is also very self-reflective. The only major metaphor of the film is about self-reflection. It is a direct satire commentary- sending a clear message that we fail to look in the mirrors to see the evil and good inside us, and instead we believe that God will do the good, and that your neighbor or the person across the street is the evil element. It may had made some feel uncomfortable watching this film as well, as it prompts you to take a look in the mirror. One need not take a long, hard look to understand the so-called 'too metaphorical' way in which this film has been done. Yes, there is a metaphor, but its a well done metaphor, not one that is difficult to comprehend or one which is too abstract.

Admittedly, the film does have its flaws, editing could have been slicker to say the least, there are parts which simply drag the length beyond much necessity- but here I have to credit Binod Pradhan for capturing the essence of Delhi. The last time I was transported to a location in which a film is based on was in the 2006 Tamil film Paruthi Veeran, which took me to the dry, dusty, vast open village in Madurai, and Delhi 6 follows suit. I was at Chandi Chowk, or to put it simply, I felt like I was transported to Delhi 6 myself with Binod's camera-work capturing everything about the city.

Music is certainly great as usual by AR Rahman, but again, Delhi 6 required more silence than noise, thus the entire film was made in a similar way, passive characters- passive, slow music, there's something about the city that is always larger than the people, thats what Rakesh had showed in this film. 'Dil Gira Gaaftan' however, came somewhat needlessly, while 'Kaala Bandar' and 'Gehnda Pool' were shot without much fuss and just relied on Abhi's body language to be pictured, which he certainly did well. Being a Hindu, 'Arziyan' was such a serene listening experience that it became one of my favorite all-time songs, and I was glad the song came repeatedly in the whole film and was an essential backbone to the picture.

Some characters could have been developed in more depth, but the assortment of characters, especially those of Boman Irani, Atul Kulkarni, and Om Puri were all interesting to watch and definitely went well with me. Unlike many other viewers, I wasn't expecting typical Bolly romance build up between Abhi and Sonam thus I wasn't disappointed there as well. Sonam is just another assortment along with many other characters, and Roshan happens to fall in love with her- period.And i think she did well enough for the screen time she was given. And the film essentially lacked in showing the 'good people' inside the characters essentially. When Abhi says 'Indian works, the people make it work'- the second part of that phrase is eluded and underdeveloped throughout this film, and this is why I'm taking a star off my rating.

8.68/10 I would readily buy a Delhi 6 DVD when it comes out and keep it in my collection. It might be one of the very few films that is heavily criticized by the so-called pros but loved by me. But, heck, I enjoyed it, and I don't mind watching it again and again and again.

Yeh Delhi He Mere Yaar, Bas Ishq Mohabbat Pyaar.

I normally very strongly dislike Hindi films. Most people who like intelligent, artful, deep films usually hate films from "Bollywood", and with good reason. There's a reason why Hindi films aren't seriously considered when there is a discussion of great films. Slumdog Millionaire doesn't count for obvious reasons.

Delhi 6 is a film which finally made me believe that there IS potential in India, and a desire to make a film which isn't just meant to be spoonfed to the audience.

For people who have spent their entire lives, watching films which are only what they are at first glance and nothing more, this film will be undoubtedly annoy and bore them. That probably means most of the Indian audience, unfortunately. And that unfortunately means, this film will not do well financially, and will discourage producers from making a wonderful film like this.

Delhi 6 will not make sense to people who take EVERY SINGLE THING in a film literally and don't dig deeper to try and understand the implicit meanings. This film is wonderfully directed, acted, and very evidently produced with heart and love.

I would definitely submit this film as the selection from India for the Oscar foreign film section. It's *that* good.

Don't watch this if you're looking for a "masala" movie. If you're looking for a film which will make you believe in India's ability to make excellent movies, this is it.

What a delight! The streets of Delhi haven't ever looked as affable as through the camera of Binod Pradhan in Delhi-6. To be honest, when I had heard the music release, a few songs seemed out-of-place/non-inspiring, but every note played in the movie seems to blend seamlessly with the plot.

It's not a perfect movie - the plot seems to be unconvincing in the last 20 minutes, but that doesn't even manage to scrape the lingering happy feeling that you're left with from the previous couple of hours of the movie.

I found three remarkable things about the movie. I've already mentioned the cinematography - it makes you wish you were there. Then there is a bunch of the most heartwarming, hilarious scenes written and enacted brilliantly. Yet, the performance by the actors is what remains with you when you step out of the theater. Divya Dutta, Deepak Dobriyal, and Vijay Raaz stand out and have such impact through their few appearances that you end up believing they were on screen for almost the entire movie. Waheeda Rahman and Rishi Kapoor remind us that Old is Gold. In fact, the entire cast is full of life, and has carried the story on its shoulders through every scene. Abhishek Bachhan has done justice to his talent.

If you're a fan of the old run-on-the-mill Indian movie, better stay at home. If you wish to see a delightful approach to cinema, go catch the movie.

I rate it at 7/10.