Movie: Maqbool

Actors: Tabu, Naseerudin Shah, Om Puri, Pankaj Kapur
Director: Vishal Bharadwaj and Gulzar, Producer:

It has been years since I read 'Macbeth', so other than the blood-blood on the walls and hands bit, which was always the best part as far as school level theatre was concerned, I really don`t remember much. Besides, frankly, most of the people I knew in those days were into theatre to try their best to cuddle up with other people, preferably of the opposite gender. So enough with the Shakespeare bit, and if you do get to see the movie, then try to bone up on your bard, because the movie states right in the beginning that it owes a lot to the play.

Which is also why this is a very short but hopefully pesuasive review on the new Indian movie 'Maqbool', which we saw on a Saturday night late show in Delhi, Chanakya theatre if you must know, where romances in the `70s were born over Woodstock and Jawani Diwani, tickets available with 'House Full' kind of crowd outside trying to sell spare tickets, we are like that only, you know? This Saturday night at Chanakya was 'House Not Full' because Bryan Adams was singing at Lodi Road/JN Stadium nearby, Summer of 69 and all that stuff.

The movie itself weaves a fairly well documented path through a very realistic present-day mosaic, relating itself quite factually to much of the Indian Muslim dominated Bombay and Bhopal underworld, with the attendant very secular political and police truths. Tabu as the highly sensuous eternal mistress cum schemer 'Nimmi', Naseerudin Shah and Om Puri playing a Tin-Tin derived Thompson/Thomson Inspector role with Sunday afternoon beer and loose joints kind of joy, Pankaj Kapur as a Marlon Brando-ish kind of Godfather aka 'Abbaji', the don with priapism, and a clutch of television and theatre actors who emote without excess. Tight, with not a single 'faltoo' filler role anywhere. Except maybe the new love entering Abbaji`s life, and she can be forgiven, because we do need voluptuous females in backless and sleeveless (halter neck?) blouses even in movies like 'Maqbool'.

Since this is chowk, and since the level as well as value of interaction at the chowk moves on some reasonably predicatable patterns, I will suggest that if you will go to see the movie, then try to follow from the start the interplay between Irrfan as 'Maqbool' and Piyush Mishra as his friend and partner, 'Kakaji'. Also please, for those who are on the chowk and know about these things, please try to comment on the Urdu used at places where it takes leave from the Bombay patios, as warrantied by a knowledgeable friend who also commented on how the religious aspects of Muslim ceremonies were done with obvious great research. The inside view on why things happen the way they do, especially in and around Bombay, is brought out by the knowledge the writer, Abbas Tyrewalla, is said to possess, and any queries on that can be put to your faithful correspondent.

I would suggest that readers at chowk see this movie, because I can not seem to do justice to a review. See it preferably on a big screen if you can, not at a multiplex. I would also suggest that you not miss the qawwali sequence that comes on towards the beginning. In my opinion, while the rest of the movie belongs to the actors and scriptwriter, this important part belongs to musician turned director, Vishal Bharadwaj and Gulzar.

Of course, nothing beats Chanakya on a winter late night show. The stalls outside still sell momos, kababs and tandoori well past midnight, the whores still solicit from behind the retaining wall separating Yashwant Place from the theatre, the pushers still do what they have to do if you know where to spot them and best of all, now that we as adults can afford the main balcony, the young lovers cuddling up in the side-balcony still provide nostalgia.

Great movie, 'Maqbool'. In fact, good enough to say, please try to watch it with somebody who knows the real Bombay.