Watching a lot of world cinema can often make us reach a state of 'I have seen it all', but movies like 'Eeb Allay Ooo' proves you wrong and thereby giving a breath of fresh air. The trick always lies in placing the same story in a different setup and explore the possibilities. It's easy to get excited by a unique idea, but how do you continue to dream when the core of your story involves the shooting of scenes which are not in your control? 'Eeb Allay Ooo' is not only an original film to have come out of India in a very very long time, but what makes it really unique is because it is almost impossible to translate this original idea into a film given the practical challenges of shooting many of scenes. Just think of shooting a scene of the protagonist trying to shoo away a wild monkey and it scares you back and you got to get it pitch-perfect? If I were the producer of the film, I would take 2 steps forward because I am excited about the original content, but will definitely take 4 steps backward considering the production challenges and that's exactly why this film is special.
India is a very unique place because we knowingly allow religious beliefs to impact our lives so much that sometimes it's problems trouble us on a daily basis and yet none comes forward to solve the resultant issues given our belief in the system of Karma. Unless you are an atheist, why would you want to commit 'paap' and make a direct path to hell? It doesn't make sense! Just like how cows are considered sacred in Hinduism, another animal that shares a special place in Hinduism is monkey as it is considered a representative of God Hanuman. Thanks to this belief, else this special movie would have never taken birth.
As per the unofficial census, monkeys are lakhs in numbers in Delhi urban space and a reason for many problems. They even have the power to bring down governments as they are often found in huge numbers in and around parliament and other important places of power. There have been reports of monkeys barging into govt offices and happily eating important files. Yet, nobody wants to do anything about it because it's a paap to kill monkeys. On the contrary, most people feed monkeys and that's probably why their numbers increased tremendously over time. Despite the number of people killed by monkey bites, the challenges they pose on a daily basis, they haven't become poll issues for politicians like women safety issues, lack of jobs and pollution etc. Well, which politician wants to take on God unless you never want to contest elections again?!!!
This is the story of Anjani, a poor 11th class out who migrates to Delhi from a remote village. His brother-in-law sets him up for a govt contract job and his job involves shooing away monkeys from important & high profile places like Rajpath, Nirman Bhavan, Udyog Bhavan and Vignan Bhavan etc. The problem is he doesn't how to shoo away monkeys without being bitten and that's where his mentor Mahinder teaches him the art of shooing away monkeys without causing any harm either to oneself or to the monkey. The tricks largely lies in not hurting the monkey, but it's okay if you are hurt. Poverty connects people and eventually they become best friends, but no matter how hard Anjani tries to learn the sounds of monkeys, he cannot perfect the art like his friend and that's exactly what puts him in trouble with his tough boss who is good at replacing the skill-less workers with more skilled at the first sight of trouble. Like many migrants coming to cities in the hope of a better life, neither he has skills to do something else nor can he go back to his village. The satire of the film is in the background of almost every scene without sounding repetitive, how this powerless and poor guy tries to shoo away monkeys from powerful places as nobody wants to disturb Hanuman ji's representative, let alone shooing them away. Caught between his inability to learn the right skills and the prospects of losing his only job, he tries innovative methods to do his job, including trying preventive methods. One of the satirical and poignant scenes of the movie is at the beginning of the early days of his job. Upon seeing a well-educated and tilak-wearing man feeding monkeys, he tries to warn him 'Sir, yahan pe e sab karna mana hain'. When the man replies back in English 'Who are you? What is your name?' and when he tries to call his boss, that's when he realizes that he is messing with the wrong guy. He quietly learns his place in this big city. Often we are all caught in this world just like him - we know what is the right thing to do and yet we cannot do it or we aren't allowed, but we are shown the exit door for being ineffective. The drama gets multi-dimensional when he sees his pregnant sister and brother-in-law trying every way to support him despite their meager means. To find out if he will see the other side of the world or will the city tear him apart is something you need to find out by watching this brilliantly shot film.
In the times of witnessing greatest migrant crisis in India, this film lets you experience the suffering of migrants on screen for 1 and 1/2 hour non-stop. It left me drained.
This film is yet again a testimony to great talent nurtured by FTII Pune for generations together. Brilliantly written, acted, shot, and edited, it rarely makes you take off your eyes. The eerie music elevates the film to another level. Hope this wins the best of awards out there!
