Gandu

The film took me by total surprise. Never expected something like this from Indian cinema. At least not so soon. Cinema is an art and this is a beauty. I was always a fan of Bengali cinema for it's art and bold approach. It has given us some beautiful cinematic masterpieces. This film adds another diamond to it. Unfortunately our country isn't bold enough. Films like this get banned. Doesn't matters how good it is. They just won't let us watch it in cinema halls. Disappointing, Isn't it? Because, it is amazingly awesome approach. A good compilation of boldness into art. Something shocking for India. It sure leaves an impact on you. Way to go Q.

There are a couple of things that make this movie a stand out... Sweat is left on faces, camera movements aren't passive-aggressive, characters are genuine, kung-fu isn't perfection, arguments and story are real, and everyone cares about their future...

The sex/masturbation scenes are absolute genius. Makes basically any other movie look shy and pretentious - even genuine softcore porn. There is no ultra zoomed-in body scanning or hiding, just everything shot as it would be seen by the people there. Zero regard for the viewers pretentions.

Half-way between a nature documentary and a story of someone's life... but also could be better in some ways.

I could never imagine for the life of me how a pornographic movie like this could ever be made and shown in India and above all conservative Bengal. I mean the Mamata Banerjee and her cronies will of course blame it on the previous government but why did they not ban it when they came to power. The story is OK but the language and sexual depiction is least to say deplorable.

This movie is obviously meant for the pseudo intellects and those in the lower stratus of society who have a life similar to Gandu portrays in the film. There is no message or a moral where in the end one should either say no to drugs or denounce it completely. What it does do on the contrary is to glorify it.

By all this Im not saying that the story line was bad or the characters didn't do their part well. They did. The music was great and Im impressed with the band that played the songs but the lyrics are worse than you hear on underground tapes made by Snoop Doggy Dog and other like him. The sound was bad and the background noise makes you think that its a home movie shot on a 8 MM camera of the old era.

Someone commented about the the flat that Gandu and his mother lived in grand but was sparsely furnished. This was because the flat was provided by Gandu's mother's lover.

In conclusion I would like to ask that though I have left Bengal 15 years ago has the mind of the people changed so much that you now show porn movies in cinema halls? This is probably the boldest Indian movie I have seen in my 66 years.

Q wanted to be noticed with his first independent venture and this film accomplishes it, especially the nothing-but-shock-value sex.

Q has an uncanny ear for local dialogue and some of the exchanges are wry, ironic and sometimes hilarious. He's sketch of the flirty cybercafe Bengali girl is possibly one of the truest sketches I have seen. Also the street talk of lowlifes is bang on.

But then - what? Where does this all lead to? Gandu builds up great expectations, then does not deliver. I felt as frustrated as the main character - empty and wasted.

As is typical of many those who are attracted to film via the superficials - pithy dialogue or "the look" or sensationalism, that only works on the underlying framework of a solidly good story. You cannot erect a memorable film without a solid foundation of plot, character arc or a satisfying ending.

I feel sad that this potentially great talent will only swim on the surface and end up being forgotten unless he goes deeper to see what makes good stories work.

Bengali cinema desperately needs a new voice, a new testament and my fear is that unless Q respects STORY and CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT, it will be all downhill for him from here.

Why is that the ancient spiritual Indian culture only produces talent incapable of true introspection? Who destroyed our image of ourselves? Why must everything we do be a copy of a copy of a copy?

Yea yea, purposeless life, meaningless existence, emptiness engulfing him. Life for this guy - Gandu sucks real bad. But the movie does not need to suffer from emptiness also. period.

The movie has a weird sorta nihilism all the way. A movie like Salo by Pasolini with probably the same intentions as Q's Gandu turned out so much better than this.

Sex used to add shock value, weird characters, Irritating lyrics, dirty bleak world of Gandu, close and jerky camera shots, no story, whore mommy with no explanation of her intentions, weird Bruce lee sorta friend/ rickshaw puller- makes for a good headache in the end.