Shuvrajit Das Biswas
5. Love Aaj Kal
Directed by Imtiaz Ali, this tale of eternal love is the kind of wishful thinking that big movies are made of. The film follows parallel narratives – the lives of Jai and Meera and the tale of Veer Singh and Harleen. Veer’s tale is a flashback about how he married the girl of his dreams by going after her and is a great believer in the power of true love. Jai and Meera are on the other hand cynics and they don’t believe in tying each other down so when career choices beckon, they break up. However, despite having other partners, they find comfort and familiarity in each other’s company and ultimately realize the true power that love holds over them both as the film ends in a happy and satisfactory reunion. Imtiaz Ali’s style is effortless and holds a certain flair that illuminates a good story to a better film.
4. Gulaal
Kashyap second film on the list. Gulaal is a tale of deceit, ambition for power, lust, and desire all set against the backdrop of student politics. Set in a fictional town in Rajasthan, the film critiques secessionist movements and Rajputana arrogance to some extent. However, the critiques aside, the movie itself is made in a fantastic style that is unique to Kashyap’s brand of filmmaking. Gulaal goes on to become one of the better films in Kashyap’s oeuvre and definitely one of the finest in 2009.
4. Dev. D
Anurag Kashyap interprets Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s Devdas in a way most directors would not have. It is a modern day black comedy with the storyline split into three character narratives – Paro the middle-class girl who falls in love with Dev, Dev the entitled and rich kid who is a chauvinist and loses Paro’s love ultimately and Chanda a prostitute who ultimately helps Dev get his life back together. A tale of broken hearts and irreconcilable situations, the story is one of alienation for Dev and his refuge in drugs and liquor and cheap sex. Kashyap spins a tale that wows us in its boldness and modernity while preserving the structure of the original story. Kashyap, however, offers no reconciliation, merely teases the hope of one and the film has gone on to become loved by viewers and critics alike.
2. Paa
A touching tale directed by R. Balakrishnan, the film is noteworthy for the plot, the acting but most importantly the casting. Amitabh and Abhishek Bachchan the father-son duo in real life are cast as Auro and Amol – son and father respectively in the film. Auro has a rare disease which makes his body much older than he actually is. He dies at the age of thirteen but not before reuniting his father Amol and mother Vidya (played by Vidya Balan). The touching tale of a person’s journey and a child’s innocence is set against issues like discovering one’s roots, fragmented identities in absence of parent figures. The acting is stellar and the movie went on to be a success.
1. 3 Idiots
Directed by Rajkumar Hirani and loosely based on 3 Mistakes of my Life(the Chetan Bhagat novel), this film stars Amir Khan, R Madhavan, and Sharman Joshi. They get into an institute that is like the famed IIT. The tale is told in a flashback manner as the friends take a road trip looking for their old college friend Rancho. The tale is one of humor and emotion and friendship. The three friends are inseparable but the two of them have some trouble struggling with the academics but Rancho tops the class. This irks Chatur a studious boy who sets out to make life difficult for all three of them. The headmaster ‘Virus’ is rather against the students as well as they are undisciplined and Rancho has a habit of questioning authorities. However, the story is not just about this, Rancho also falls in love with the headmaster’s daughter Pia. Things come to a boil when the headmaster promises to fail the two friends out of spite so they would be without a job and Rancho steals the question paper. However, he is caught and almost expelled. The situation takes a bad turn when the headmaster’s eldest daughter who is pregnant breaks water. The Mumbai rains leave them stranded as Rancho performs a miraculous delivery earning Virus’ love.
The film ends with the friends all reunited and Rancho getting his old love Piya back as well. A tale that will leave you with smiles at the end due to the well pulled off reconciliation, this movie was the highest awarded movie in 2009 and justifiably so, since no other movie could capture the essence of Bollywood filmmaking as finely as this film has done.
Read More: 2008 Hindi Movies
