pearly gates

triumph

subtle

A rare film from the Bombay film industry: no cheating. No cop out. No contrived truths.Most new voices in Indian cinema are damned by vacuous praise the moment they dare to do something even superficially different. This makes sure they never do something different again for fear of losing that precious, paternal pat of approval as they enter theof the Establishment.A harsher fate awaits those films that are different at the very core. This is the fate of being ignored in deathly silence, hanging for years in pre release limbo, and then sinking to oblivion.Thanks to a tenacious director, an inspired producer and a forward thinking studio, Ship of Theseus will escape both these fates.It cannot be ignored and it cannot be given inane praise and forgotten. To those who want to experience a vision - that elusive thing every film claims to have but few exhibit – SOT will be water after a long walk in the desert.Anand Gandhi’s vision made me forget that I was watching a film. Through astounding technique and painstaking detailing, he managed to draw me into his vision of life without me being aware of it.Every frame, every sound, every bit of business or action seemed disarmingly candid and chancy – yet somehow at the end of the film I was aware of the immense crafting and design that had gone into making me believe in this ‘life like” experience.Three stories entwined around a central premise, no matter how novel and rewarding as in this case, is not a format one can call new. Yet SOT is fresh and delightfully surprising from start to finish because it doesn’t resort to any tricks or showy gimmicks within the format. It just fearlessly takes you deeper and deeper into its stated premise till you do something a film rarely makes you do these days – discover humanity stirring within you.A photographer trying to rediscover her vision, a monk fighting a court case, a stock market speculator trying to do something he has never done before - trying to help - these are people I could know. But do I know them deeply? What is this thing called “knowing?” SOT makes you know them in a devastatingly bare, naked manner. The lawyer you saw in High Court. The girl in harem pants who walked past you in Khar without a glance at you. The man who shoved you at Malad station. The labourer who polished your front door. SOT brings you very close to them, without the slightest bit of self-consciousness or pretentiousness. This, in an English film meant for the urban audience, is in itself astounding. But its in the portrayals and performances of those characters that the finalof the film lies. They could have been “cinematic” - displaying a mix of spunk, humour, a bit of love, sex, rousing dialogues, posturing - we all know the staple of “cinema”. Yet, Anand takes the hard way and portrays them in, realistic hues as they go through their quest in the most seemingly ordinary way.This could have resulted in documentary. But it does not; because the portrayal of everyday ordinariness is just a technique that Gandhi uses to bring us into close proximity with his characters –so close that we trust them. When has a film last done this to you? And after we trust them, and unknown to us, have started traveling with them in their quest, we are given the surprise, the reward, the satisfied sigh – just the way we want in a film that we have come to trust deeply. There is no cheating. No cop out. No contrived twists. It was just the way it was meant to end. And lo and behold - it’s a happy ending!!! I have never seen a film that ends on an upper note feel this natural, disarming and unassuming at its climax while drenching you in deep emotions.The way most of the cast of SOT acts it reinvents the term. The techniques of workshops, rehearsals and improvisations used here will set the rulebook for other directors. Neeraj Kabi , Sohum Shah and a host of other (non)actors discovered here show us the way to dramatic truth with an honesty rarely seen in Indian cinema. The cut from Mumbai to Stockholm in one story will be in the list of all time cinematic classics, yet it is not self conscious. Reams will be written about the cinematography. But I’m sure it was not intended to advertise its presence. Just like the performances and the direction, the images mesmerize you by the fearless pursuit of truth in the frame. They don’t give up in their relentlessness, and that’s why again reach a zone where you’re not seeing the film, you’re in it.I will see Ship of Theseus many times in my life. To most, I would advise to watch at least twice. Once, to enjoy it. Then once more to cherish it.