Historias de Satyajit Ray

I have many critical complains for the 4 parts series. But the plot is itself so loose, I wouldn't be able to go past that in a regular sized review.

Ali Fazal looked like he's playing an entrepreneur in a college play. Having an entourage walk while you give instructions and then enter with style is done a gazillion times with exact same camera angles and punching dialogues to show he's a star entrepreneur when that's far away from real world. I wouldn't pick up nitty gritty details until when people call it a masterpiece. The going back his "past" scene is full of Old Boy when the protagonist goes to his school and chases his younger self through the multiple floors. That scene is picked up blatantly from the dark gory classic. Though the twist is fun, until then nothing is.

KKs story has so many loose ends. It builds up to give you expectations towards a horror thriller while it deviates directions midway to make a baba it's main character out of the blue and that leaves us wondering what was the purpose of spending so much build up on others. They could have brushed those plots much quicker. You are made to care for other characters like his land owner, boss and his crush, only to be made unimportant in the final 3/4th of the story. That leaves me with, "really?"

Manojs story is well directed, they cleverly use a theater as an exposition machine to the backdrop. But you can see the twist from a mile coming. When the twist starts looking predictable, I believe the director should rush to the ending than make us wait to offer the same. It's a terrible drag.

The final one has Harshvardhan Kapoor. Enough said. Just to add a little more, it's another terrible drag.

The short stories have been given more details to enlarge them into a full fledged 1 hour independent films, which led to the demise of what could have been an engaging interesting set of short films.

1. Hungama Hain Kyun Barpa

Why aren't more movies set in a train? Director Abhishek Chaubey has done a brilliant job yet again, I just hope people do notice and appreciate his effort this time. Although Manoj Bajpayee has been around for a very long time, I feel like he has been rediscovered through OTT platforms. What a performance that was, absolutely spellbinding! Audience never really cared about actors like Manoj Bajpayee or Kay Kay or Pankaj Tripathi, despite the fact that these guys are trained actors and have worked in theatre. But with the explosion of digital platforms, which sends content directly to the viewers, allowing the audience to watch it at a time of their own convenience and from their own comfort zone, the hidden gems of Indian Cinema are finally receiving the recognition and appreciation that they always deserved. In 'Hungama Hai Kyun Barpa', the wide range of emotions displayed by Manoj are so real, you feel like the character of Musafir Ali has come to life. It doesn't remain a fictional story after a while, you end up becoming a fellow passenger in the train witnessing the proceedings as they happen. But Manoj Bajpayee is not alone in this wonderful film, his fellow passenger is yet another genius actor discovered very late by the Indian filmmakers. Gajraj Rao playing Aslam Baig has done a phenomenal job. Every single time, it's such a joy to watch this actor, I find it quite shocking that it took everyone so long to realize the potential of this brilliant actor. 'Hungama Hai Kyun Barpa' is without a doubt the best film of this anthology and a must watch for everyone.

2. Spotlight

Spotlight is the story of a one note actor, a man who wants to become a serious actor but doesn't even know how to act. Interestingly, the director chose Harshvardhan Kapoor to play this role, because Harsh wasn't required to act in this film, he just had to be himself! The entire film has been presented like a satire, talking about all the sensitive issues of our country with an added dose of humour. Chandan Roy Sanyal lends a powerful support to not just Vikram (Harshvardhan) but also to the film and is an absolute delight to watch. Radhika Madan once again gives an effortless performance, she enters the story quite late but makes a pretty good impact. A key problem with these movies is that they have taken inspiration from some very short stories, so there is always a scope for boredom to set in if you stretch that story into an hour long film. The movie feels long, but it does have its moments.

3. Forget Me Not

The first thing that I noticed in this film is what a fine young actor this Ali Fazal is. He has polished himself so well in the last few years, he should be talked about like other actors of his age, but unfortunately that is not the case. His popularity is nowhere close to actors like Ranbir, Ranveer or even non-actors like Kartik Aryan and Varun Dhawan. The movie starts of in a very stylized manner and moves along at a pretty good pace, but then it slows down and becomes confused as to where to go next, and how to proceed further, just like the lead character of the film. After a while you start wondering as to why is this story taking so long to reach its conclusion. The actual story by Satyajit Ray is quite short and simple, this film on the other hand added quite a few layers to the original story. I just feel the director waited way too long to unravel the story. Great acting by Ali Fazal, he is very convincing displaying every single state of mind Ipsit Nair goes through. Other actors have done a fine job, but the story doesn't offer them a lot to do. 'Forget Me Not' is strictly average.

4. Bahrupiya

Bahrupiya is the story of a man who feels rejected by the society and is of the firm belief that God has no interest in providing any kind of help to people, in fact all the God's enjoy watching human's go through all the hardships of life. 'God Vs Evil', and 'with great power comes great responsibility' are the themes integrated into the story. Kay Kay Menon, the man at the centre of all the action is as always amazing. The concept of telling stories in the form of an anthology initiated by Netflix, deserves to be praised not just for the unique stories that they offer but also for exposing the current generation to some of the finest acting talents of our country. Dibyendu as the Baba has done a pretty good job, he comes across as mysterious as well as scary. The scenes between Kay Kay Menon and Dibyendu Bhattacharya are really good. I wish they had not kept so many sex scenes in the film, I just didn't see the point of having them in the story. Watching 'Bahrupiya' with your family won't be easy because of all those scenes.

For 'Cineasts', Satyajit Ray is a widely publicized figure. A Legend, A Maestro, and above all, a Nation's pride. Celebrated worldwide by and large because of The 'Apu Trilogy'; but little do they know he was also an Author, Composer, Script Writer, Calligrapher, and so many more. The number of masteries this man had was unparalleled in his time. Following Ray's 100th birthday, the long-awaited announcement came through in the shape of 'Ray'; an anthology produced by Netflix; accomplished using short stories written by Satyajit Ray himself. Four in particular.

Now let me review them one at a time...

Forget Me Not (Original:- Bipin Chowdhury's Smritibhrom) Cast - Ali Faizal, Anindita Bose, Shweta Basu Prasad Director - Srijit Mukherji Rating - 4.5/5

Under Srijit Mukherji's opportune administration; we get a gripping narrative that adumbrates a prodigy's gradual descent towards lunacy. A bright intellect's descending declension resulting in inevitable misery & desolation! By dint of an Esthetic set-up and likewise composition; the feel of uneasiness slowly intensifies! Elevated through terrific acts coming from the gifted ensemble. Notably, from Ali Faizal; who deserves some plaudits.

Bahrupiya (Original:- Bahurupi) Cast - Kay Kay Menon, Bidita Bag, Rajesh Sharma Director - Srijit Mukherji Rating - 3.5/5

An otherwise lousy script only uplifted through Kay Kay Menon's competent performance, this one has more to do with Morals that are incorporated deep within such contemporaneous narration! An eloquent portrayal of Insatiability, Infatuation, and Unswerving Desire for Vindictiveness. As well as the eventual decadence that awaits down the road for our main protagonist! In spite of the fact that there's a dearth of pensive depth in the Writing; Mr. Mukherji's able stewardship sort of makes up for it!

Hungama Hain Kyon Barpa (Original:- Barin Bhowmick-er Byaram) Cast - Manoj Bajpai, Gajraj Rao Director - Abhishek Chaubey Rating - 4/5

Simplistic storytelling with an undertone of Dry Humour, that's how I would like to recapitulate my all-inclusive impression. I couldn't help but laud Abhishek Chaubey's prowess as the director here; especially for all those seamless transitions & articulative framings. He made his presence known, that's for sure! Yet, the focal point undoubtedly was on the enticing duo Manoj Bajpai and Gajraj Rao. Mildly speaking, the palpable dynamic between these two guys was off the charts!

Spotlight (Original:- Spotlight) Cast - Harshvardhan Kapoor, Radhika Madan, Chandan Roy Sanyal Director - Vasan Bala Rating - 3/5

With countless citations based off of Satyajit Ray's several other works; Vasan Bala happens to be the most devout fanboy in here! Be it in the visuals, locations or simply referring to Ray's popular directorials such as 'Mahapurush', 'Kapurush', 'Jai Baba Felunath' etc. Vasan made up his mind to pay homage to Ray, by utlising his very own rendition; which abounds in surrealism, satire, and straight out inanity! 'Kafkaesque Nightmare' as cinephiles would tell. Not everyone's cup of tea though! Harshvardhan Kapoor & Radhika Madan are two of the most underrated actors and I'm just glad they seized this opportunity to truly demonstrate the inherent abilities they possess.

In conclusion, we got little bit of everything. Thriller, Drama, Humour, Satire! However, I do feel this 'Collectanea' couldn't reach the designated point of contentment for the orthodox fans. As these are all adaptations, not word for word transcription; every single story has been largely altered and modified. So just keep in mind that these are not the purest forms of the source materials! And I am perfectly aware of the dissatisfaction among Ray's loyal followers due to the same reason. The way I see it, all the creations of Satyajit Ray are so multifaceted in nature that they can be interpreted in all kinds of ways! And that's quite the core 'Essence' what made people fall in love with his artistry in the first place.

"There is always room for improvisation "- Satyajit Ray(showed before the last episode starting) But that doesn't mean you can change the soul of a story. You people are naming the series as RAY, creating completely different stories without even thinking what was the morality of the original ones, then you shouldn't 'promote' it using Satyajit Ray's name. Only the part 3 of the series is good because it has preserved the point of view of the original one. But rest of the three are completely new stories with just a little bit of resemblance with the original stories. I'm not saying that the stories are bad. They are somewhat good. But the anthology should not be called as "Ray".

Kudos to all the amazing actors in this series. This contemporary adoption of the master's work is mesmerizing. Loved and enjoyed it thouroughly. ❤👏