Having watched "Happy Days" & "Godavari" I was very keen to watch Shekhar Kammula's first outing "Anand". Indeed he shows a lot of promise stamping "a director to watch out for".
Technically the product is quite superior and no ways to that. The writing, screenplay, background score, music and lyrics are top-notch. The fluidity that is maintained from one frame to another deserves a special mention.
Keeping in mind the new generation of audience, loads of crumbs are thrown in which I am sure they will instantly connect and relish. "Anand" has immense fresh appeal.
Kamalinee Mukherjee gets a platform of her lifetime. The director effectively manages to capture variety of emotions that you can't help but simply fall in love with the girl-next-door.
Raja (as Anand) was slightly below par. I was anticipating Siddharth kind of performance and was slightly disappointed there.
Anuj Gurwara (as Rahul) was good.
Satya Krishnan (as Anita) deserves a special mention. Her character was etched quite well and it was nicely complimented by her performance.
The second half could have been trimmed but not a worrying factor. Or maybe because I watched the "Directors Cut" I perceived it longer than usual.
Definitely recommended.
PS: I particularly liked incorporating the scene from Rajesh Khanna's "Anand" as Mr. Kammula's ode to the original classic.
