As a director, Anurag Kashyap, the Hindi movie industry’s most experimental young film-maker, provokes extreme reactions. To some, he is a misunderstood genius, a modern master with a distinct visual and cinematic style, an anti-establishment icon who will not apologize or compromise on his creativity. To many others, his movies are monuments to narcissism where he often gets so carried away by his single-minded obsession with raising a “Beat that you punks” symbolic middle finger to imagined enemies, that he drops the ball with regards to the very basics of the filmmakers craft—of being understandable and of being able to sustain audience interest.
As to which side I was on I could not make up my mind. “Black Friday” was nothing short of sensational. And “No Smoking”, with its “I am an artist and you cannot tell me what to do” message hammered in continuously through a miasma of obfuscation and darkness, was nothing short of a monumental disappointment.
And now after sitting in a full-sized theater for three hours, totally empty save for me and my wife, I can now return with a verdict. Not perhaps on Anurag Kashyap’s cinematic genius for which I believe a fuller body of work is needed before a serious evaluation of him can be made.
What however I can say is that “Dev D”, Kashyap’s re-telling of the timeless Devdas fable, is wickedly brilliant.
Beyond doubt.
The characteristic Kashyap style and visual panache that his fans adore is very much there.
So are the Danny Boyle-inspired camera techniques and “trippy” lighting that will make the celluloid intellectuals get up in their seats and whistle.
There is humor.
There is bluntness. In a welcome change from conventional Bollywood, the cliched”safed chadar” of poetic romance is dispensed with. Couples separated by continents are not made to look at the clouds Meghadootam style and sing soulful “main yahaan woh wahaan aa rahi phir yahaan awaaz kiski magar” ballads for each other but are shown to behave like “real people” in the Internet Age, the ones that engage in phone whisperings of a salacious kind, chat uncleanly and send uncloaked pictures as attachments. [ In a charmingly unapologetic depiction of female sexuality, Paro drags a mattress to the field so that she can put the “jora jori” back into the “Jora jori chaane ke khet main” in a way that Sarat-babu possibly never could have thought of].
There are innovative uses of music as a instrument of narration.
And yes there are also strange dream-like “watchers” who flit in and out if only to remind us that this is still very much an Anurag Kashyap movie.
However these are not what make Dev D brilliant even though they make it highly enjoyable.
Dev D’s genius lies in its characterizations. Despite being a highly sexed-up and drugged-up version of Saratchandra Chattopadhyay’s famous novel, Anurag Kashyap’s Devdas accurately captures the essence of the original character , that of a weak, sniveling, self-destructive individual with a morbid fascination for emotional cruelty, who always realizes the worth of something after he has lost it.
But along with that, Kashyap adds something new to Dev —namely a belatedly-revealed capability for introspection that leads to a rather novel conclusion, which some may find unexpected and disappointing but which I personally quite enjoyed.
The rather innovative characterization of Devdas is brought to life by a bravura performance from Abhay Deol, fast establishing himself as the best actor of his generation, a performance that appears even more marvelous when one remembers the Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s interpretation which was naturally less of Devdas and more of Shahrukh Khan in his hammy “emotional atyachar” magnificence.
Chandramukhi as the MMS queen-turned-courtesan retains her “shock-absorber” and “emotional compass” role of the original while Paro’s character is given shades that make her much more multi-dimensional than she has been in any of her previous literary or celluloid incarnations.
This is why Dev D’s best moments are when Mahi Gill as Paro and Abhay Deol as Dev D share screen space and perhaps why the second half, when Paro moves out of the story, cannot maintain the scintillating levels of the first .
Overall an exceptionally original and clever creation.
A must-watch.
[Picture: Rediff]
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First hopefully…. Totally agree with you. Loved the movie and the review GB. But I like it better when you rip the movies up on this blog, more fun for the days run…
Good going GB…
Abhay Deol was also brilliant in Oye Lucky Lucky Oye.
Good Review.
ipod?
“But along with that, Kashyap adds something new to Dev —namely a belatedly-revealed capability for introspection that leads to a rather novel conclusion, which some may find unexpected and disappointing but which I personally quite enjoyed.”
Cant agree more…I really appreciated the ending…it was so real and humane
btw u forgot to compare the 2 chunni’s BAWNDHOO!!!
in case u dont know the new chunni is played by a bong
Can anybody tell me whether Anurag Kashyap is a South Indian ?
Spot on GB – I was blown away with the movie and rushed to see it again in 2 days for a more objective assessment. Btw, Sudhir Mishra (director of ‘Hazar Khwaishein aisi’) was planning a take on Devdas in a movie titled “Aur Devdas” – he has shelved his project after seeing Dev.D as his project would have been inferior to Dev.D
But the empty hall surprises me – I thought the movie was doing well…may be its not doing well abroad where the only Indian movies the janta wants to watch are the Yash Raj variety or the ‘Slumdog’ variety.
Try watching “luck by Chance” also – its a nice movie too..
tc and keep writing
Simply one of the greatest movies of recent times…and the proverbial middle finger of Kashyap stands resolute, strong and proud! 🙂 …but expected fireworks (in the league of all your super awesome B and C grade movie reviews :D) from your side GB!
I mean there were so many moments in the film where you were instantly transported back to worlds of Boyle (as you rightly mentioned) but also Aronofsky and even Tarantino (the ‘Devdas’ references and the sections with headings written in that amazingly funky font!:))
“Abhay Deol, fast establishing himself as the best actor of his generation” – So very true. There is no way SrK would have ever dared to portray such a depraved character (which actually is the case in the original novel) and there is no way any other director could have handled a depressing story like the way it is supposed to be. Blunt and with no mercy for the Karan Johar – Adi Chopra pink frosty candy movie loving majority of the audience!
The editing in the movie sure faltered in the second half, but then enfant terrible will remain himself! 😀 But, for me the greatest gem of the entire movie (apart from Kashyap, obviously) was Amit Trivedi! O LORD, Where was this guy hiding all along?
It PERFECTLY complemented every single moment of this exceptional film! From the trippy ones like Aankh Micholi, Duniya, Nayan Tarse and Saali Khushi to the beautiful whistle based Themes to the wicked and insanely catchy ’emotional atyaachar’…it was a thorough riot!
Absolutely loved it…Waiting for ‘Bombay Velvet’ and ‘Gulaal’ to surpass this landmark!
was waiting for your review and yay!! you are spot on with what i think. I sent it around to a bunch of my friends too. I had the same experience of watching a hindi movie in new york with just one other person and know what that experience of sitting alone in a big movie hall is like :)) altough unfortunately the other person wasnt my husband and the movie was mangal pandey (yikes!)
keep writing – love to read your blogs.
Darn darn, was expecting a much more detailed review , unravelling the myriad threads in the carpet kinds.
Ek todu review chahiye tha for the todu movie 🙂
GB i agree to every word!
AK take a bow 🙂
PS:waiting for Gulaal on march 13th
@Metal
He also composed the tunes for Aamir.. (although that movie had a gaping plot-hole, I loved the soundtrack).
Dev D rocks! The references to the previous works of Devdas (you can see Shahrukh’s poster next to the bar, Lenny watching the movie and calling herself Chanda etc.). The finger!!! and finally the ending…
Awesome movie. Great Review.
Hi, so you liked Dev D. I loved Dev. D not only for this new interpretation, specially the way certain ‘unforgetable events’ like the MMS and the Nanda-BMW case has been incorporated, there was much more to it. Little details say, like say the Paharganj hotel neon lights spellings ‘–HIV–‘, the brilliant use of grafitti (did you notice the one on Dev’s hotel room which had George Bush’s head superimoposed on Kali)…. brilliant small details. I think that it will be very difficult for the directors to surpass this film, for this year, though, this film getting the Filmfare award for best film is still not possible as always Shahrukh has fits the bill with his horrible Billu-hair stylist.
To me, more than the film, the bigger comforting fact is the thought that someday, in between Karan Johars, Shahrukh Khan (even Emraan Hashmi, you never know)and et all, we will get to see Anurag Kashyap and Abhay Deol recieving Dada Saheb Phalke and for all you know the best foreign film at the Oscars.
BTW, does anybody out here think that, Anurag Kashyap is sort of the desi David Lynch? during ‘No Smoking’ ?
BTW Tarun Adarsh the great “dong” rubbished this as trash…compared it to innovative “rab ne bana di jodi”…..thankfully a lot of us treat his reveiews as the benchmark for viewing . Ie if he says trash it is brilliant and vice versa. Lol
One more thing tyo gush about, the music track is equally brilliant.. so perfect. Well, as you can all see, this film is worth gushing about and to be watched with tickets and not downloaded through torrent.
So that, people like these get the encouragement to watch it again. (Bangalore is better, we watched it full house).
@ Optician
Glad you pointed the ‘bong connection’. That guy certainly makes you forget the sort of Chunni Lal that we have seen till now. And I loved his suits with the bright ties, and those HUGE shades.
@ Kishor
Kalki Koechlin is an Auroville French, speaks ‘fisherman’ Tamil. Hope that gives you, your simply-south connection. This you must have noticed during her phone-sex-Tamil-terima scene.
loved the movie!
nice review, GB…
finally someone puts the devdas character into perspective.
Its amazing how Kashyap portrays thata woman too can be sexual and not just objectified. I love Paro’s characterization, and whr u hav appreciated the characterization of Devdas as some one who only realises someone’s worth after he has lost them, I couldn’t agree more with you. Wht’s best abt ur post is, until one reads teh whole thing, one really cant gague whtr u r going to rip it or praise it! 😀
i disagree with GB…i thought Kalki(Chanda) was superb in the movie she completely oveshadowed Mahi(Paro)…. Infact totally forgot that Paro was a part of the movie when i was watching the 2nd half….The chemistry between kalki and deol was excellent…you really felt for the character of Chanda when Dev tells her that he still loved Paro!!!
I was ready to read another DevD bashing review but surprisingly you liked it. I will catch the movie this weekend if it’s still showing in any decent cinema halls 🙂
Abhay Deol is superhuman – he has beaten nature and nurture so well
[ Cut & Paste from Passion For Cinema, query posed by a reader ‘sharpshooter’ ]
sharpshooter on February 15th, 2009 9:57 pm :
Anurag Dev.D is a killer film and makes it to my personal Top 10 favourites!
But tell me why this copy cat stuff?
The poster of Dev.D seems to be lifted from this
The famous bus scene of Abhay from da Oscar winning 10min short film BLACK RIDER –
Wud appreciate ur reply on this one!
[ Below is the reply from the MAN himself ]
anurag Kashyap on February 15th, 2009 11:01 pm :
sharpshooter.. i saw black rider only when KK send me a link after the first preview and did not take it off because i saw no similarity.. what is there in the film is a common occurence in DTC buses.. there are lot of DTC jokes floating around and this was also one of them.. point of black rider was different, i don’t know when it was made, but that’s a scene i tried to put in each of my film since Paanch.. you can see an alternate version of it in paanch made back in 2000.. i just wanted to do it..posters are not my call.. if it is a copy, i wasn’t aware of it.. big lips definitely were inspired from luis bunuels poster and that was deliberate.. even gulaal poster was pointed out to me to be from “the shield”.. but when you don’t know in time before it is out , you can’t do much about it.. apologies for that
I agree, it’s a fabulous movie !
As for your ‘fuller body of work’ research on Anurag Kashyap, these links might come in handy 🙂
His Bio:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anurag_Kashyap_(director)
His Blog:
http://passionforcinema.com/author/anurag/
that was a good comment ritika
“Abhay Deol is superhuman – he has beaten nature and nurture so well”
Totally agree with your review…BTW I also liked No Smoking…while abstract & obscure….such films exist in other parts of the world & have their own audience…but Indian critics & audience totally ripped it apart…although not a wholesome entertainer, No Smoking deserved better response from people…
And I was disappointed to see that you din’t mention your dearest Taran Adarsh this time around…As you would know…he has called it No Smoking Part II & given one star….
BTW if anybody hasn’t seen…catch the Gulaal trailer in youtube…its amazing…best trailer ever!
You haven’t said a word about the brilliance of Emotional (Emosional) atyaachar!!
@jitaditya…well if no smoking was made by some firang…same india critics wud have appreciated it…
GB, you are bang on with your assessment. As a society, we revelled in our coyness and Dev D has single handedly demolished that attitude. Being blunt shall be in, and unapologetic too.
My old friend Tapasda, after riding a Jodhpur Park mini once said, “Kolkatar theke kono din jaabona mama, ekhankaar boudira, chokhe naake kotha bole, kobe je baaki desher meyera erokom bold hote paarbey!!”
We all wanted our women bold. Kashyap had to make Dev D to tell us that.
Really one of the landmark movies of our generation..
Anurag is like Howard Roark of ‘Fountainhead’ constantly battling against set standards and charting a path of his own..and in doing that many may loathe him…he wud never care because all he wants to do is perfect art
for once all the comments on this blog agree that the movie is superb….
but yes bong I ALSO expected it to be a more DETAILED review… u have not mentioned bout the music much and also the bashing of other critics like taran adrash n rajeev masand who have given bad ratings to this one…
Absolutely brilliant movie! And completely agree with Abhay Deol fast becoming the best actor (not “hero”, but actor) of his generation.
By the way , did you watch Luck By Chance? Not a bad movie…but i think what you will enjoy the most is watching Anurag Kashyap in a cameo as a spripwriter, constantly trying to fit “good cinema” elements into a pot-boiler masala movie, and getting ticked off by the producer who once bursts out ” I am making this movie to get some money, not awards!!” I could almost imagine Kashyap and Zoya Akhtar giggling and exchanging hi-5s while planning for these scenes
Taran Adarsh is probably kept all the eulogies under the wraps, to be brought out, dusted and ceremoniously plant them on SRK aqnd Billo (Barber/Bekaar??)
GB, sorry to have cluttered up this space, but couldnot share the sense of amazement at my own soothsaying skills- check out Taran Adarsh ding what he does best, kissing the posterior of The Greatest Hero of our times- http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movies/review/13891/index.html
Trailer of his upcomin gulaal
Paanch releasing in 3 months time
For me the most appealing part was the changing sexual morality. I for one really liked Chanda’s character. It was an amazing movie. I absolutely loved it.
Nice review GB.
OTOH – nothing about pink chaddis? 😮
An amazing accomplishment. Naz 8 at Fremont was 1/3rd full on Valentine’s night, so left coast is definitely the right coast.
namely a belatedly-revealed capability for introspection that leads to a rather novel conclusion, which some may find unexpected and disappointing
It’s not the conclusion or its novelty that’s problematic, it’s how we get there. The car crash with voiceover is a weak transition.
why the second half, when Paro moves out of the story, cannot maintain the scintillating levels of the first
I will have to disagree. There were at least a couple of sequences with Dev and Chanda which I wanted to linger on, forever, and which hinted at what Anurag might be capable of once he decides to be a little more Ray/Rohmer and a little less Lynch/Wai.
@ Siddharth
Thanks for reminding those Anurag Kashyap scenes in ‘Luck By Chnace’, cannot agree with you more about ‘I could almost imagine Kashyap and Zoya Akhtar giggling and exchanging hi-5s while planning for these scenes’. I must add the scene where Anurag interprets the ending of the Hrithik movie with Mr. Rommy Rolly screaming “Oye, Film institute..” .
Fully agree with you gb! amazing. i loved the movie. contrarily i watched the movie in a packed bangalore multiplex on a monday afternoon.
Deleted scenes !!!!!
keep ears open for the dialog in scene #2 🙂
Don’t agree to most of what you write on being ” experimental” and ” visual and cinematic style” since wonder what you really mean by it? Read the best review of the film review here:
http://www.indianauteur.com/feb_1_review_dev.php
@Ravi
I thought the review by Anuj was really biased….looks like he has some personal issues with Kashyap & the extra long review is rather a critique of the director & his previous work than the movie itself…
Thanks Vivek4mJH ! Why the hell did they delete the 2nd and the 4th scene?
One of the better movies, I must say.
“that of a weak, sniveling, self-destructive individual with a morbid fascination for emotional cruelty, who always realizes the worth of something after he has lost it”.
Woww..what an accurate way to describe Devdas’s character.
Got to see it now! Have heard very divided reviews till date. I guess not for everyone.
@GB – you’re welcome. Deleted probably because of the language.
And talking of language, check this out ….
it’s the X rated version of Emotional Atyachar, released by the film’s producers themselves. Needless to say, it’s definitely NSFW.
For once I think you didn’t do justice to the film, in spite of a positive review. There were so many moments and aspects which someone like you should have written about- like for instance in your Rang de Basanti and Dil Chahta Hai reviews (both negative I may add). Were you trying to bit a less umm… provocative in your assessment? I loved the film.
Some time back, in order to to avoid starvation I took up freelance writing assignments. During that period a certain wannabe and self-styled marketing consultant from the US asked me to write book reviews marketing and sales bestsellers for him. For this he used to give me book summaries to go through and write reviews. This was something that I never could do – not the writing though, but reading tonnes of boring gutter literature that has no meaning in real life or business. However, I had no choice but to write. Therefore, I just Googled the title of the book with the keyword “review”. Needless to say, there were many. I fleetingly read some of them, took points from those who agreed/praised and disagreed/agreed and produced my unique content with my ‘personal punch’ in the end.
I have read a few reviews of Dev D after having seen the movie. Reading this review gives me the feeling that you wrote the review first using the same or similar methods I used to write the reviews of the books I mentioned. Despite the fact that no one can argue that you have not rehashed content because your review is ‘original’, it is definitely ‘inspired’ by other reviews. I won’t point out the similarities line by line because they are few and far in between (if they exist), and I know you are of a much higher class than Kaavya Vishwanathan.
@Beaupeep: I had not read a single review of DevD anywhere before I wrote this. Not even Taran Adarsh’s. Leaving that aside, when you make an accusation against someone it would be contingent upon you to try to make an attempt to prove it. Though the tendency to reflect your own ethics and your own behavior on others is a tempting one, kindly do realize that not everyone is you.
Well,
I absolutely loved the film. And I agree. The best thing about the film is that Dev finally gets his deliverance after all these years.
The man is still a looser – but, he finally gets his chance at redemption.
What would be interesting would be to see how Chanda and Dev’s journey turns out if they eventually get married.
Cool writing though Great Bong…
Blog.gore
This is a great modern take on Saratbabu’s classic.
And your review too is pretty to the point, just cant disagree with you.
HI Beaupeep,
I have a small doubt. If an actor/actress gives a good performance in a movie and if majaority of the reviewers praised that, would that mean they copied each other’s review ?
i wonder how come yurfan is silent? or may be he has already set sailing to do….
@beaupeep
People like you who do what you did (even if it was for a while, and we do not know what you do now) are generally considered to be on the lowest order of the food chain. In terms of literary ethics such writers are thought to eat sh*t and produce sh*t. It is rare for scavengers of your class to display honesty, but that doesn’t make your allegation worth twopence.
Anyway if you haven’t had the brain to notice, most readers out here keep coming back BECAUSE of GB’s splendid originality. Just because you lacked integrity, don’t project it on him.
@GB: is that a new one in terms of accusations?
Dada, we need a second opinion on Slum-kutta. Is the cumulative intelligence level of the world tending to negative? Rags to riches romantic chic flicks that are based on exploiting brazen stereotypes and the need to romance everything have taken the world by storm. The movie, as you rightly point out, is too fantastic and unbelievable. In addition, the fantasies are not plain-vanilla, like the wish to become a ‘princess’ and possess heart shaped diaries that open with a secret heart shaped key that contains the picture of one’s deceased mom and dad who loved each other so much that….. No Sir, These are real fantasies. Aspirations. Which is cool, except for the fact that they are based on naught, or very little.
“Let’s say I made a movie about the US where an African-American boy born in the hood, has his mother sell him to a pedophile pop icon, after which he gets molested by a priest from his church, following which he gets tied up to the back of a truck and dragged on the road by KKK clansmen. Then he is arrested and sodomized by a policeman with a rod, after which he is attacked by a gang of illegal immigrants, and then uses these life experiences to win “Beauty and The Geek”.”
Why then should bolly households-Johars, Chopras, and KKKKK-Ekta’s-be ostracized? Even they cater to the masses, give in to stereotypical ideas on how the Indian woman and the hypothetical man should behave, and tie up loose ends. People are born and reborn, marry and remarry, and cry inconsolably, sometimes for the larger part of 3 hours or 30 episodes. All for love. And kanjivaram sarees and makeup.
The greatest risk that this movie puts us naysayers is the risk of being surrounded by a group of Slum enthusiasts that are too quick to judge us. Even as I write this, I am surrounded by the “either-you-dont-get-it-or-you-are-too-insensitive” look.
Which brings us to the softer effects of recession. Too much enthusiasm and positive thinking about too few meaningful things.
btw….SD clean sweeped oscars…..and I am still trying to guage what is so special in that movie? like any typical bollywood masala movie…aint it?
@ GB: I didn’t accuse you Arnav, I just told you what I felt. I have even made it clear. Also, when you say ‘not everyone’, it implies ‘though some’.
I am not trying to defend myself Arnav, but I really couldn’t help myself keeping back from expressing what I genuinely felt.
Arnav, the fact that I visit your blog at least once a day and having mentioned by name and links in many of my earlier blogposts that you are my far the best blogger of Indian origin (when I used to blog pretty regularly) is testimony to the fact that I am indeed a fan of your writing. There should be no ambiguity about it. Over the years, I have been sending links of your posts to many colleagues and friends world over and had on many occasions laughed and admired you together.
Your reply to my comment had a touch of bellicosity. It could have been a little otherwise. Don’t you think so?
Yo GB, Slumdog got 8 oscars.
– BG.
@ labore Yeah you like GB like most us and that doesn’t give you liberty to start behaving like Dr. Raj Kumar or Rajni’s fan creating havoc and destroying public property in real life or calling names on an internet forum. Can we be lil civil for a change?
i loved the film.. loved the music..
it would sound very funny if one said, that the film was just another ’emosanal attyachar’ like the Devdas movies, but it wouldn’t be true..
Hi GB
great as usual…Loved the movie. you have told what I was going to write in my blog in a far superior manner. So i will not write that post annymore…rther would put up your link there!! 😀
Beaupee or whatever,
wats ur problem dude? you accuse someone of plagiarism, and then come crying like a sissy that you should have been decent in ur reply?? get a life!!
I really wish that Sanjay Leela Bhansali watched Dev.V a few times to learn how to think differently. And I have a feeling Anurah Kashyap knows the contrast between Dev.D and Bhansali’s film really well, inserting clips/posters from Bhansali’s bloated melodrama frequently to show up the contrast. Anurag really has done a fabulous job in this film, especially in the characterizations.
Dev.D’s Paro is a character perhaps without precedence in Hindi cinema. A woman who is in love, compassionate, and kind, yet fiery and passionate – a women who knows her mind, knows when to use the polite put down, and also when to take charge and unleash the beast within. The devastating words, albeit spoken kindly – “Tumhe apni aukat dikha rahi hoon” – resulting in the audience’s and Dev’s shock, perhaps exemplified her character. Simply brilliant!
However the second half is rather less consistent, and perhaps a bit too long. I could have done with one less drug-fueled night. There were times when I wanted to go on with the story already. But the that have been reflecting everyone’s opinion of Dev.D by that time – it might have been the reaction the director wanted – who knows?
The ending would disappoint some, and I get the feeling Anurag did that just to be contrarian. It was his “f**k you” to genre conventions. He might have been thinking – Ok he’s a cad, druggie, and a total loser – but you know what? I am not writing a morality play. I’ll still give him salvation. So there!” 🙂
For all fascinated by Slumdog’s Oscars. Viewership has declined for the awards ceremony for several years now – this year was an exception:
http://www.jsonline.com/entertainment/tvradio/40200487.html
Welcome to the art of ‘Market Expansion’.
100% disagreement. Can’t believe that I sat through the whole movie, probably in expectation of the paisa vasooli thing. I would place Dev D in the same category as Kaizad Gustad’s Boom. Nearly puked after watching that as well.
just one important point people just missed about the remixed devdas.
He moves on.
and what better way ,than going back to chanda, if not anything his liver transplant is bound to be taken care of by chanda!!!!
so todays Dev D is as much aware of his debilitation as his medical insurance!!!
Thank God for art being so, so subjective! 🙂
Its not a movie which should get 5 star….
Its an awesome movie….. 🙂
I wont say that Anurag Kashyap has done anything bad he is doing something which is much better than rest of the directors. But my only concern remains about the many references and inspirations that he has incorporated, doesn’t suite an artist who is establishing himself. Its like a well established and matured poet like T.S. Eliot’s and references he made in Wasteland which can be fully understood by a person who has read Bible or other references (like Hesse). It helps when there is something to say and then you leave it to the reference to explain rest. Scenes like Paro vehemently pumping the Hand Pump referring to Orgasm is not Aesthetics in itself.
The characterization of Dev in DevD probably should be credited to Abhay Deol, as he is the guy who conceptualized the ‘modernized storyline’ and narrated the same while watching a boring football match in some five star hotel. Anurag later converted it to a musical because of Amit Trivedi. The links are given in Sashishar’s comment above. Do read Abhay’s blog on Facebook too.
The typical AK twisted humour is noticeable- ” usne mera ticket kha liya” (repeat) !
On of the milestone movies of our time, for sure. Good to know you liked it and recommend it.
Wonder what Sharatchandra had to say if he had seen the movie 🙂
Cheers!
~uh~
ps: Is there any way we can attach hyperlinks to words/ phrases in comments ? It looks crude to paste links.
Could be old news. Check this out…
Like the original novel, DevD will effect the generations. I always felt that ban on black friday was totally justified. Its not that am in favor of suppressing the freedom of expressions, but am against the concept of digging the horrible miss happenings of past. Black Friday has refreshed all those dark moments in our minds. Why the hell we dont let those memories bury with time….
But this time even censor board failed to realize the after effects of brilliant creation og Anurag Kashyap.. Trust me, DevD will leave teh scars behind, forever…
Am I talking sense???? Seems like am high… Lol
Anyways music and choreography was fabulous.
O pardesi…………
Dev D is truly most correct representation of Devdas … Shri Sarat Chandra Chatterjee wrote in his epic novel that Devdas was a man full of self pity who died pining for a woman whom he never really loved and giving sorrow to another who actually loved him. All movie adoptation of Devdas before DevD showed how love-struck Dev was or how bad Paro’s hubby was. However, DevD truly showed how Paro found true love in her husband and ‘step’ kids which again is as per the novel. Its ironic that the story is so relevant in today’s world 🙂
Aah, nice review. As usual I missed this post too. Absolutely LOVED the movie. I liked how Anurag Kashyap shows women taking the initiative for sex through various scenes like the one where she carried the bed to khet :)) And as you rightly said I love the various shades he adds to Paro making her a tougher woman and also more coveted. I loved Chanda too. One of my fav dialogues is where she says, “sex worker haan? Randi abhi uncool ho gaya.”
Music and choreography are class apart. What a film! Bhansali should go drown in chullu bhar paani.