Being Cyrus

I have always seen Saif Ali Khan as one of the most talented stars of Indian cinema. He is one of the actors who underwent enormous transformation in his career, and is today one of the rare entities in Bollywood who have style with even more substance.

Being Cyrus is not his best performance till date. And yet, it will probably always be remembered as one of his memorable roles because of the dark shades to his character.

The movie boasts of an incredible line of greats from Indian cinema, and a pretty good storyline. I will refrain from making any reference to the storyline since it is bound to give away something about the movie.

Overall, an enjoyable movie and something that you will probably want to watch more than once!

Homi Adajania misses the century by few runs, but no worries even Dravid missed one on his debut. Yes, its a brilliant start for him as a story teller. I remember seeing sixth sense, it wasn't too great a movie(every one will agree me on that) till I saw the climax, that's where the brilliance lies. Its the package of the film that's makes directors GREAT. Well, Homi can pat himself for his honest original attempt and not trying to remake any of classic English thrillers in Hindi.

I thought the first half was little too long in describing things which weren't related to the title. I felt a lot of attention should have been given to Cyrus which i think lacked except the dream scene. Unfortunately you actually cant really draw the outline for Cyrus, which you do with other character. The cinematographer and editor make you eyes busy with colors and cuts. I thought Salim-Sulaiman still has a hangover of Booth, cause the music in the first half was little loud for the way the movie opens and proceeds till interval, but they did make up in the second half with the sound. All characters where apt in their roles, but i still think the director ran out of wine when feeding Saif and Shah.

If not the best movie i ever saw, its a brilliant and a honest movie from AN India for which i can be proud of. For me the hero is Homi Adajania, HATS OFF.

This recent Bollywood film had been lurking around the shops and I'd hear people refer to it as a 'different' 'offbeat' or 'art' film, not the usual 'masala' entertainment at all. Even though I fully realize that the hey-day of the Indian parallel cinema is over, I do keep on the lookout for the odd experiment or mixing of genres that filmmakers attempt every so often. Well, this turned out to be a hugely underrated little gem. It's off-beat alright, and doesn't have any silly musical numbers that plague the more mainstream Indian films. But what most reviewers and critics have failed to point out about it, is that it is really a good old-fashioned 'film noir', (albeit minus the moody lighting, and with a generous dose of humor) given a bit of post-modern sheen. It's a little too soft-edged (read: wholesome) and could have been a bit more atmospheric, but I suppose that for a first-time attempt, this is pretty good. The script is not as twisty or clever as it may seem at first (certainly won't fool any experienced film-noir buff), and I even guessed the 'big reveal' at the end, long before it came. But these minor quibbles do not get in the way of a thoroughly enjoyable tale, with many finely etched, memorable scenes (including a bizarre dream sequence). The performances vary, and the director seems unsure of the tone he wants his actors to take, but overall they are all good. Honey Chayya is particularly outstanding as the semi-senile old man Sethna. Naseeruddin Shah is wasted as the pot-head pottery maestro, but he plays the role well enough. Dimple Kapadia is a perfect portrait of a shrill, conniving, slutty middle-aged housewife. But Simone Singh is a little too pure and straight-laced (even when she's being shown 'rebelling' behind her hubby's back). Saif Ali Khan is just fine as the protagonist. All in all, a great little comedy/drama/thriller that doesn't outstay it's welcome, and at 83 minutes, is paced quite efficiently. No surprises for noir fans, but a pleasant enough ride through somewhat familiar territories, and an unexpected gem from the outskirts of Bollywood.

As you saunter into the movie hall and look on as the lights go off and the show begins, you begin to wonder if "Being Cyrus" is like those numerous clichéd bollywood style Hindi-English films a la Bollywood Hollywood, Bollywood Calling etc. Also who in this world is Homi Adjanaia? and how did he manage to pull off an ensemble cast with the likes of Naseeruddin Shah and Boman Irani not to mention the uber cool Saif Ali Khan for his debut film. The answer is all for us to see--"Being Cyrus" is a smashingly well crafted original film (So rare in India these days) that it leaves you wondering if Homi Adjania is really a first time director? The story moves back and forth between Panchgani and Mumbai essentially revolving around the lives and times of the not so normal, upper middle class Sethna Family and what happens when Cyrus Mistry (Saif Ali Khan) comes into it. Dinshaw Sethna (Naseeruddin Shah) is a pot head sculptor, perennially high on grass running a pottery school in Panchgani. He lives with his bollywood obsessed, chatterbox wife Katy (Dimple Kapadia). Cyrus joins as an apprentice to Dinshaw and becomes embroiled in a maze of complex relationships that involve Dineshaw's father Fardonjee Sethna(Honey Chayya), brother Farokh(Boman Irani) and sister in law Tina(Simone Singh).

Right from the first frame, this dark thriller engrosses the viewer in its many complex layers which are difficult to fathom at times. The entire film being in English has a lot of the lines cocooned in black humor may be over head transmission, but nevertheless are in line with the story and have a hammer strong impact if actually dissected and understood. The movie juxtaposes the protagonist (Cyrus)'s own story with the story of the Sethnas and this is where the movie hits a complete high. The editing is razor sharp and the bravura cinematography captures the Parsi household perfectly, whether it is the old building that Fardonjee owns in Bombay or the Panchgani house of Dinshaw. Adjania shows a careful eye for detail while reflecting the times of a typical Parsi family living in Mumbai. Boman Irani's white on white dress, his impeccably maintained vintage car, the wedding shot lend a feel of authenticity to the Parsi setup.Manoj Pahwa brings the house down with his high on testosterone, high on fat brash Inspector Maninder Lovely.

Naseeruddin Shah is apt for the role of the grass smoking lost in life artist. Dimple, sometimes over the top, nevertheless comes up with an effective portrayal of her Katy. Saif Ali Khan is subtly nuanced and gets under the skin of Cyrus quite intensely. Honey Chayya and Simone Singh are effective in their parts as Fardonjee and Tina Sethna. The scene stealer however is Boman Irani's Farokh Sethna. Boman brings out the cocky wickedness of Farokh quite magnificently that you hate him instantly. Be it the fight with the neighbor over a dog , or the appointment with the physiotherapist or his interactions with Fardonjee, Boman is a treat. Watch the film setting aside all mindsets, its a brilliant film.

When I heard about this movie for the first time, what I had in mind was a lighthearted made-in-India English comedy. We have had quite a number of those in the last few years, English, August, Jhankaar Beats and the Hyderabad Blues couple to name a few. And I was even surer about it when I heard about the cast. What would you expect out of a movie which is called Being Cyrus and has actors like Saif Ali Khan, Boman Irani and Naseeruddin Shah? Well I was partly correct. It was a comedy alright! But it wasn't half as much 'lighthearted' as I had expected it to be. Being Cyrus turned out to be a dark, psychological drama concerning the lives of an individual named Cyrus Mistry(that's Saif) and a not-so-common Parsi family.

The acting by all the characters was, for most of the movie, quite superb. Naseeruddin Shah played his relatively brief role of a doped, absent-minded artist to near perfection. And so did Boman Irani in his of a loveless husband who is frustrated with almost everything life has to offer him. Simone Singh also does well in the portrayal of a coy, frightened wife, brave enough to indulge in her personal desires only in the absence of her strict, boring husband. But the surprise package in terms of acting is Honey Chhaya who plays the role of a forgetful old man harassed to the limit by his younger son. My personal favourite was the scene in which he, having chocolates and remembering his earlier years, looks up at the ceiling dreamily and says – "Those were the good old days". Manoj Pahwa, as Inspector Lovely, also manages to sneak in some hilarious comic moments. Dimple Kapadia is perhaps the only disappointment, overacting severely in many of her sequences.

The direction by debutant Homi Adajania is very fresh and promising and he couldn't have made a better start to his career. The storyline is not amazing but strong enough to take the viewer by surprise in the end. Yes, the movie doesn't have any songs to offer but music and sound play a somewhat major role all throughout the film, adding to its suspense and drama. Only the screenplay could have been a trifle better. At some points, it wasn't clear as to what the director was trying to say. And I don't believe that could have been intentional. Or maybe, it was.

I have saved the man in the lead for the end. Saif Ali Khan, in his first English film, has shown that he is capable of a lot more than playing the 'chocolate-boy' that he has traditionally done. He was perhaps not the obvious choice for the role of a distressed, orphaned individual but all would agree that he did ample justice to the task assigned.

All in all, Being Cyrus is a very entertaining first-time watch, if only for the difference it has to present. Seen independently, it would get a 6/10 from me. But as it happens to be one of the first of its kind, it deserves a nice 7.