Tehzeeb

The Bollywood fare is burning brighter with each film. When an actor the like Arjun Rampal(Salim) is thrown with the likes of Shabana Azmi(Rukshana Anwar)and Urmila Matondkar, some of the talent has to rub off on him and it does in this marvelous movie called "Tehzeeb"(Etiquette). Even though it is difficult to accept them in the role of a mother and daughter the acting prowess of Shabana Azmi takes a notch over Urmila and both come out as top notch talent at the end, where as the other two characters have a long road ahead. Except the song that Shabana sings for her daughter, the music of AR Rahman is a flop to think he may be an overworked composer. The standout is ace direction, Screenplay and Cinematography.There is not much dowdt that Urmilla Matondkar has immense talent that very few of her contemporaries can match. Suffice to say this a a beautifully enacted film that lingers long after the movie including the very short and impressive perf. by Rishi Kapoor.

Excellent Movie, this 'Tehzeeb'.It had Emotion, it had drama, it had grace, it had beauty,it had softness, it had performance and above all, it had a story with a good narration.It simply can't get better than this.What more would you ask out of a movie?...Shabana Azmi's performance or should I say 'Aura' is beyond my vocabulary.To put it simply, scintillating !. Urmila might have given her best performance, no pushing aside. The encounters between her and Shabana are a treat to watch. And that done in honey-dripping Urdu, O My God!, once again Iam in loss of words. Diya Mirza goes well as a lunatic girl and Arjun Rampal can really be proud of being in company of some finest actors in the business. Hats-Off to the Director, Yeh Dil Mange More!.

The legendary Shabana Azmi and the immensely talented Urmila Matondkar reunite after 20 years, again as mother and daughter, in Khalid Mohamed's tribute to Ingmar Bergman's 'Autumn Sonata'. 'Tehzeeb' seems to be either a movie one hates or one loves. I love it for its sincerity. There is no hidden agenda. It's about a Muslim family but unlike almost every recent Indian film this one does not attempt to bring out the conflict between Muslims and people of other religion. It's a story about relationships: the relationship between mother and daughter, between two sisters and between a husband and a wife, period.

However, 'Tehzeeb' isn't without its share of flaws. Khalid Mohamed's script could have done without a few unnecessary subplots. The whole Diana Hayden track should have been left out as it contributes nothing. Perhaps the director's intention was to show Salim's loyalty towards his wife (or to give Arjun Rampal a larger part) but the track was irrelevant. The Namrata Shirodkar track does offer some comic relief (although Satish Kaushik is irritating) and her sensational item number is beautifully executed. But, this too could have been left out as it does take away focus from the main story. I wish they had left the entire last song, 'Mujhpe Toofan Uthaye Logon Ney' of which we only see a couple of minutes before it breaks to closing credits. This one song marvelously summarizes Rukhsana Jamal's life.

'Tehzeeb' is a very well executed film. I did not like the director's directorial debut 'Fiza' but here he does a better job overall. Javed Siddiqui's dialogues are very poetic and playful and particularly the last dialogue delivered by Urmila to Shabana is very moving. Santosh Sivan's cinematography and Sharmishta Roy's art direction are superb. A.R. Rahman's music (songs and background score) are phenomenal. It is perhaps one of his most underrated scores. Javed Akhtar's beautiful lyrics deserve mention too.

In terms of acting, 'Tehzeeb' belongs to Shabana Azmi and Urmila Matondkar. It was great to see them work together as mother and daughter again. Both actresses are phenomenal in their roles and I hope they work again soon. Shabana Azmi looks very glamorous as singing sensation Rukhsana Jamal. She acts like a star but at the same time is very convincing as the helplessly loving mother. Urmila Matonkar easily pulls off the role of the loving but conflicted daughter, the unconditionally caring sister and the lovely wife.

Arjun Rampal is excellent as he holds more than his own opposite the two more accomplished ladies. He's the one who lightens the tense atmosphere between the mother and daughter and provides wonderful comic relief. Diya Mirza is convincing as the mentally underdeveloped Nazo and kudos to her for choosing such a risky role at an early stage of her career. All four actors share a warm chemistry and are believable as a family. They seem to have been very comfortable working with each other. Diana Hayden needs to work on her dialogue delivery.

'Tehzeeb' could have been a better film but I still think it's great and love it for its authentic portrayal of the family, the music, the performances and the message it brings across. It's emotionally engaging and moving, one that feels close to heart. It's a beautiful movie about acceptance, forgiveness, appreciation, sacrifice and love.

The film is a pathetic attempt to remake Ingmar Bergman's "Autumn Sonata"(1978) starring Ingrid Bergman,Liv Ullman and Erland Josephson.It did not take me more than 5 minutes to figure that out.

It is time Film journalists like Khalid Mohammad took out time to do some creative thinking. It makes me sad when potentially good film-makers waste their talents by making substandard remakes of Hollywood and European films.

You've got to give the film-maker something though. The film he picked for copying is one of Bergman's classics, and easily one of the finest instances of the portrayal of a strained human relationship in European cinema.

Tehzeeb, starring Urmila Matondkar, Arjun Rampal, Diya Mirza, Shabhana Azmi and Rishi Kapoor, is a well acted and produced film. The strongest charcters in the film were definitley Urmila and Shabhana Azmi, who play mother and daughter in the film.

The story revolves around Tehzeeb (Urmila) and her struggle to overcome her troubled past and to look after her husband and mentally disabled sister. Her mother is her serious grudge which is what the film is based on. The conflicts they have are the best part of the film.

It is a good film and worth watching.

7/10