Filmistaan

Hindi (U) ¬¬¬¬

Director: Nitin Kakkar

Cast: Sharib Hashmi, Inamulhaq, Kumud Kumar Mishra



It's probably the fate of a lot of good films. Anurag Kashyap had to wait several years to see his path-breaking “Black Friday” get a theatre release.



And then there's “Filmistaan”, a film about making and loving films, which may have won the 2012 National Award for the Best Feature Film in Hindi, but is getting a release only now.



But like the film's dialogues point out or imply more than once, true talent never remains hidden.



Such is the case with director Nitin Kakkar, also the man behind the story and the screenplay.



He clearly knows how to tell a story about a struggling actor who wins hearts with his mimicry and passion for films, even when in captivity and death looming over him.



And Sharib Hashmi seems to know exactly how to portray the character, Sunny Arora, on screen: He not only plays the lead but also is responsible for the dialogues that use some of Hindi cinema's most clichéd lines very intelligently.



Adding to the cinematic cheese is film pirate Aftaab (Inamulhaq), whose bromance with Sunny adds a slightly different layer to the film.



The other actors seem quite at ease in their roles, with nearly nowhere a misstep in sight. The music is seamlessly woven into the story, and thankfully, no one breaks into a choreographed song-and-dance routine.



That's why “Filmistaan” never lets the audience's attention waver, with people even found wishing that the intermission was shorter!



After all, who would not want to laugh around during a scene where a captive bosses around his captors while directing his own ransom video? Or when one of those captors is forced to take him to see a film because he has been mouthing “Maine Pyar Kiya” dialogues word for word, peeving off his other captor (Kumud Kumar Mishra) no end?



However, it's not laughter all the way.

“Filmistaan” explains what truly unites the masses of India and Pakistan.



No, it's not cricket, because there are different sides to cheer.

It's the performing arts.



More specifically, films. Yes, cinema truly has the potential to unite Hindustan and Pakistan into “Filmistaan”, to make films that let people escape life's ugly realities.



Interestingly, that's what Sunny and Aftaab try to do — escape from extremists who would do anything to get power, and pass off their actions as God's will. That's their ugly reality.



How they do it, if at all, is definitely worth a watch.

