Paa

R Balki directs 'Paa', a film I was very interested to watch. At first, the promos did not impress me and I expected to see a pretentious film at best, but the positive reviews and several recommendations made me finally catch this one. The film was a pleasant surprise: nice and simple, but somehow I still expected something else. R Balki did a very good job in terms of both writing and direction. The film's story is well-written and told, the execution is steady, and the dialogues are witty and light. But at some point I did feel that something was missing there. Don't know what. Maybe something in the portrayal of Auro's relationship with his mother could have been better done, though I liked how Balki portrayed his friendship with school kids, particularly a boy named Vishnu.

Bachchan's casting in the role of Auro, which created a lot of buzz and curiosity pre-release, was brave and bold, but frankly speaking, it would have been more interesting to see a child actor playing Auro. I say that while considering the many young talents in the industry who could have easily been suitable for the part. Bachchan is somewhat overly tall for the role and since all of us know Auro is played by the great Amitabh Bachchan, it reduces the level of credibility in the film's authenticity, and many may feel it was made to showcase his greatness and to evoke such reactions as "wow! He plays his son's son!"

But Bachchan does not disappoint. He manages to make Auro a likable character with his under-toned line delivery, expressive eyes and simplicity. A lesser actor of his age could have played the role in an overly childish manner with exaggerated mannerisms and noticeable attempts to overdo and emphasise the character's young age and disease symptoms. But not Bachchan. Hardly recognisable under this heavy mask of make-up, he naturally transforms into a little, intelligent kid of our times and is thoroughly convincing.

Abhishek Bachchan, playing his real-life father's father is strictly okay in a role that is not very deep or demanding but still contributes to the film significantly. Vidya Balan is excellent as Vidya, the caring and loving mother who is also an assertive and independent career woman. Balan acts with grace and restraint and she is natural and compelling throughout. And she is absolutely stunning in her traditional Indian looks. Arudhati Nag is fine and effective as Vidya's supportive mother. The child who plays Auro's best friend Vishnu is simply adorable. I particularly liked a scene in which Auro and Vishnu have a phone conversation, and Vishnu sharply criticises his father. That was hilarious!

Coming to the music, Ilayaraja composes a lovely, classical and joyful soundtrack for the film which gives it a very light and feel-good mood. The editing and the cinematography are well-done. Towards the end, 'Paa' is a bit emotional. It neither made me shiver nor tear, but it still was efficient and moving. I recommend you to watch 'Paa' with family or friends. Do not plan to either hate or love it. If you watch the film trying to ignore this wow factor, you will definitely enjoy it and will probably be able to appreciate Balki's efforts to make a lightly dramatic episode about one young boy and his relationships rather than a socially educative film on progeria. Just enjoy this witty, interesting and refreshing piece.

Amithabh Bachchan is flawless acting in Paa. But why make him look like extra terrestrial. There was a point in the movie where there were explaining the disease that his character is suffering - Progeria. In the movie itself, when the doctor is explaining, none of the images depicted them as abnormal heads. The children just looked old, why does fiction take undue advantage of medical science.

Sr. Bachchan who plays the character called Auro, I would not be surprised, if we have dolls being sold in Shoppers Stop, Big Bazaar, very soon. But one thing for sure, whenever Auro is in front of the screen, he just lightens up the moment.

This movie it seems like Bachchan Sr. is passing the baton to Bachchan Jr. It is high time, he does that. There is no competition amongst each other, but then there are a only a very few movies of AB Baby that are actually good. Naach, Guru, Sarkar, Sarkar Raaj and now this. Abhishek Bachchan is good political MP; no, this is not an oxymoron, it is the character. To that extent that you can actually see his voter's mark on his middle finger in the movie.

Simple Story. The 12/13/14 year old child suffers from Progeria and the disease brings the parent together. Three different occasions, when the age of Auro has been mentioned differently by different characters. One sincere request, stop comparing the movie to Benjamin Button, it is not! It was actually Robin Williams who was suffering the same disease in the movie Jack. It is not actually the original concept. The execution there are just too many cuts, that too very fast ones. The cuts becomes irritating towards the end. (Reference to Jack on IMDb) Songs are well intertwined and the lyrics bring an amazing soothing effect to the whole scene, last time this feeling seeped into the heart, mind, body and soul, during Taare Zameen Par. Hichki, Hichki and Mere Paa is simple and nice and my favourites.

The movie has its moments, but it just doesn't make you cry. The performance reminds you of Amitabh Bachchan in Black, but then that it was different, that was acting. In Black, when he was smiling, you were laughing, when he was upset, everyone in the theatre had tears in their eyes. Here, he just falls a little short of the getting the audience moved.

The other characters that needs mention is bum, grandmother to Auro played by Arundhati Nag (theatre personality, wife of Anant Nag). She was simply level headed, strong character. She was when faced with moral questions, she would be you take a stand, and you will have my support - that was brilliant. At the same time, the relationship between Paresh Rawal (Dad to Amol Atre) and Abhishek Bachchan does not come out that impactful. But individually there were sound.

Google being subtly being endorsed by Auro. (Tweet) Public Relations angle to the story, creative people need to stop treating like media as you can buy them. It isn't like this always, please do not under-estimate the media as your pawn. The movie does bring out the current affairs element in the movie through redevelopment issues and media being used to create a hype on this.

In short, it is a complete worth it paisa wasool movie for Amithabh Bachchan. I would like to highlight, even though Auro is cute it is not for the kid viewing at the same time.

For once, I was entering a Hall with the assurance that the movie I was about to watch was something ORIGINAL, something not copied from the West. And so, OBVIOUSLY, my expectations were low. You never know what you can expect from an original Bachchan movie! The credits began, and Jaya Bachchan could be heard individually pronouncing each name (the cast, the team behind the movie), and slowly, by the time she reached "Writer and Director", you wished her to stop. And then, in a magical tone, she says "Paa!", laughing along, and a soothing tone fills your ear and heart... and you know, yes, this is going to be a good show.

Paa has its moments that touch you, that move you, that make you laugh, that make you feel warm, that make you happy... etc etc. There are moments that are supposed to make you cry... but they don't. I guess that's where Paa fails. Amitabh Bachchan in the lead role delivers a sweet performance, and Abhishek is seen trying very hard to fit in. Vidya sort of stumbles out of her "Vidya" character. The music of the movie is simple. The end credits song sung by Amitabh Bachchan was one amazing track. Even "Hitchki" was nice. The direction and flow was simple, though the cuts between Auro's waiting and Amol's political moves were rather jerky. The cinematography was simple and fulfilling, though the editing required spicing up.

In the end, definitely go watch Paa. I was disappointed to find only 15 had come for the first day first show... me being one. It's films like these that should be more prevalent. In contrast, if Kambakkht Ishq was a HIT, then in that case this should be a BLOCKBUSTER. Sadly, I know that will not be the case.

7/10.

Imagine this. R Balki arrives with his second film after Cheeni Kum (2007), starring Abhishek Bachchan, Vidya Balan, Paresh Rawal and introducing a twelve-year old child actor. We do not know this kid, although it is possible that he impresses us all after we see him perform. But does this essentially guarantee a bumper opening for the movie? Can we safely assume that the audience will come into the theatres? Now, take this. The entire cast and crew remains the same. And although it is indeed possible to find an immensely talented child artist and create the desired character using prosthetic make-up and voice modulation, the director decides to cast Amitabh Bachchan as the child. And he calls the film Paa. The result is for us to see, in the form of one of the most smartly promoted films of our time. This is what we call star power. This is what I admire about the phenomenon of a superstar. And this is what this film uses in the best possible way.

The film also uses the personality, and not the acting, of Abhishek Bachchan to create a gen-next politician, and we connect. It uses Vidya Balan to portray a strong, independent, modern Indian woman, and most importantly – a mother; and we connect. And it utilizes the human curiosity for the weird, our tendency to look at 'freaks' with wide eyes and held breaths, and converts that 'freak' into a warm, lovable and memorable character called Auro, and takes us into his world. It uses songs, melodrama and the Bollywood cliché to tell a story. It relies on the time-tested formula of emotional manipulation and succeeds in making the audience cry. It has decent production values, is marketed smartly and sold at cheap rates. The result is not a great, timeless, flawless piece of art. The result is a film that knows how to use the illusion of the medium. The result is a movie that moves.

The best thing about Paa is that it knows what it is doing. It does not claim to be 'socially relevant', and does not ask us to leave our brains home before coming to the theatres. Instead it asks us to bring our brains, our hearts, our entire selves, not excluding the 'curiosity for the weird' that we all have but fail to accept. It treats itself as a film for everyone, and successfully creates an entertaining cinema experience. In its attempt, it often gets inconsistent, but it never seems uncertain. It is an innovation, and yes, that it is, which is sure of itself, including how to sell itself. It is an innovation that does not go wasted, and that is indeed an achievement in the Hindi film scenario of today.

It has been a few decades now and Hindi cinema is desperately in the need for revival. For that to happen, if it ever happens, we need socially relevant cinema, we need cinema as works of art, we even need cinema with an international appeal, and with the guts to experiment . But what we need most is innovative ideas, true to Hindi cinema sensibility and tradition, not necessarily great in the absolute cinema-sense, but films which make people come, watch and connect. We need more films like Paa. I have no idea about how it is going to fare at the box-office. If it is a commercial success, my point would be proved beyond doubt. If it fails, well, I will try my best not to lose hope.

Paa...a great movie...

I have seen it yesterday....loved it...story is simple and subtle, the characters are really very good...

Big B...he has shown his one more form of acting, no one could compete him on this.... He enacted the role of a 13 year old boy with so sincerity , that in Auro you will never be able to see that its him who is enacting this character.... Auro is a gem....

Vidya Balan as a unwed mother is good to see...she has proved her mettle once again after very long, thats after Parineeta.... she looked beautiful in sari's....

Abhishek Bachan has enacted the role of a Young Indian Politicain sincerely...if all India Politicians, become like him, we wont have any more corruption in India...

Paresh Rawal is good in a brief role and Bum is exceptional...

Technically, the movie is very well directed and the dialouges are very good... R Balki is a very good director and Paa is another feather in his Cap after Cheeni Kum....

Music by the maestro Ilaiyaraja is very good and soft on ears, Paa Theme is the best...

Go for it with your Family... This is for all ages from 6 to 60...

My Ratings..

Perfomrances... 10/10 Story and Direction ... 9/10 Music ... 10/10 Overall... 9/10