Morning Raga

I must admit that my liking for pure classical music is limited - however I was awestruck by the music of this film. Songs such as Thaye Yashoda, Maate Malayadhwaja and Mahaganapatim are so good that I remember the lyrics - although I understand very few words of these.

Acting wise, I found only Shabana Azmi and Nasser to be up to the mark. I am sure singing (actually posing as so) such classical marvel is not very easy - esp. when the ragas are so complex. Still the lady has performed in an excellent way. Similarly, Nasser has played the role of a father who might be a father-next-door, concerned and worried.

However, others, esp. Prakash Rao, have to learn a lot. Sometimes, I felt they were reading their dialogs. I think making this film in English and successfully displaying the emotions in the Indian way, might be difficult.

Overall, a nice film to watch, and we have to be generous enough to ignore the acting shortcomings and enjoy the classical-modern music fusion.

I am at a loss of words when I see Shabana act. One wonders how she is able to enact each minute expression, gesture, and thought of her character. She fully immerses into the role she is playing leaving no stone unturned. Her acting in this movie really makes it very easy for the audience to completely empathize with her tormenting guilt, agonizing frustrations, and haunting fears. To add icing on the cake of art cinema are Perizaad and Lillette. Both did a good job. However, Perizaad did a much better job in Jogger's Park. This film does a good job of emphasizing its theme: Follow your heart. The bridge separating the city from the village acts as an interesting symbol in many ways. For example, it symoblizes the long road of trials and tribulations one must travel and conquer to fulfill his/her desire. The final fusion song is excellent.

The movie is just awesome. Ordinary storyline handled very well by every one. Aren't all story lines ordinary? Great music and good fusion... Carnatic music is so beautiful... So are Perizaad and Shabana...

The storyline isn't far from reality ever...

Javed Akhtar once said that the imagination of a story writer is like the string tied to a stone being swirled. The stone being the story. The longer the string the more you have to work to keep it going, but if it is too long, it falls down or if the stone comes free it lands far away from reality which is the force that is swinging the stone...

The story is a perfect example...

Produced by the well-known Tollywood director Raghavendra Rao, this movie is a refined version of a typical Tollywood movie. He appears to have selected the locale but otherwise seems to have left the direction department well alone.

Shabana stands out with her performance. The roles of Prakash Rao and Perizaad could have been better thought out; the well-known & talented Tollywood comedian Dharmavarapu is wasted in a silly role that is supposed to be funny but hardly brings a smile. Lillette Dubey is very good, but why does the director make her ride a buffalo at the end? I was gratified to note the movie was shot in the beautiful Konaseema. The photography and editing are top class. Shabana should have spoken at least some Telugu - she did in Shyam Benegal's movies. This would have brought greater authenticity to the role.

The Carnatic music pieces are of course beautiful, thankfully unspoilt by the attempt at fusion - I particularly like the renditions of "Mahaganapatim" and "Thaye Yasoda".

Overall worth seeing once.

I sat down to watch Morning Raga expecting to get up in half an hour and go for a walk. But I didn't. Shabana Azmi is mesmerizing, and I stayed to the end. I agree with other reviewers that the plot is simplistic, and the other actors are bland by comparison, but the music and Azmi make it all worth while.

I know basically nothing about Karnatic music, so I cannot speak from any knowledge, but the passion and virtuosity of the traditional songs were incredibly moving. The plot, outlined by others, could have been better had the three stories been interwoven with more finesse. But the story is only a vehicle for the music, so let's forgive its naivety.