Ekk Deewana Tha
Release date: | February 17, 2012 |
Director: | Gautham Vasudev Menon |
Cast: | Prateik Babbar, Amy Jackson, Manu Rishi |
Ekk Deewana Tha was not on my list of reviews because I'm so busy with book deadlines. The writer/director Gautham Vasudev Menon created a lot of stupid myths in this movie about Malayali Christians. I've read so many Twitter discussions that are half-informed in the past 24 hours, I couldn't help myself.
Ekk Deewana Tha, despite its certiorari, is the perfect example of how to ruin a popular film. It's literally a copy of Menon’s 2010 Tamil hit film Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa. You can't just copy the story and move it into a different environment without making any adjustments.
VTV Chennai is a love story between a Tamil Hindu and Malayali Christian boy, their unrequited feeling, confusion, indecision, especially when faced with her family's resistance, and her decision in an angry/irritated fit that changed both of their lives. The film was very moving and sweet. It told the story of two real people who were in love with each other. Their longing left me feeling a pang. Karthik's burning desire for Jessie is evident in his hands touching her legs as they secretly talk on the train. He tells Jessie that they have an undeniable chemistry, and you can see him embracing her passionately in his head as the two of them argue at a dining table. Jessie wasn't a girl that I liked, or even respected. But there are certainly complex and indecisive females out there. VTV featured great performances from Silambarasan, Trisha Krishnan and Gautham menon. The technical team was also excellent, and the soundtrack by A.R. Rahman is one of his best. Rahman... I enjoyed every minute of it!
Ek Deewana Tha is a Hindi remake that has some good points, but it also contains so many contradictions and inconsistent notes, you can't fully get into the story. Casting is the first problem. Amy Jackson, the British actress, plays Jessie in Ek Deewana Thá, Jessie is a Malayali Christian living in Mumbai. Jackson does not look Indian to me. Does anyone else agree? Black hair doesn't reflect Desi beauty! She has a very European facial expression, and this makes her unrelatable. It's debatable whether or not the girl was given the worst make-up you have ever seen on any Bollywood heroine. Her face appears orange in certain parts, while her chin and cheeks appear dark. In close-ups, it looks like there was no attempt to conceal the dark circles under her eyes. The entire film's technical crew (makeup, lighting and camera) conspired to make her look oily! Prateikbabbar stars in Ekk Deewana Tha as Sachin. He is a Marathi Hindu engineer without a job who wants to be a film director. Babbar, who plays the hopelessly romantic Jessie-loving man in Ekk Deewana Tha, makes up for two of his poorest performances from last year in Aarakshan (a Marathi Hindu film) and My Friend Pinto. He has a certain spark, and he shouldn't be dismissed just yet. VTV fans will agree that Rahman’s beautiful music has not been used as well as it was in the original. The writing is Ekk Deewana's biggest flaw. Menon has been credited as the writer of the screenplay and story, while Manu RIshi is responsible for the dialogue. The portrayal of Jessie and her family is a clear indication that both seem disconnected from the film's settings. The heroine of VTV's Chennai-based, Alappuzha-rooted family appears more real. Malayali Christians, who are conservative Christians, frown on love marriages, so it makes sense that the family she comes from would be against them. Why only Malayali Christians? These views are also shared by a large number of Hindus and Muslims. In Hindi Ek Deewana Tha however, Rishi and Mr. Menon have an odd way to show the conservatism in Jessie’s family. Jessie tells Sachin that she was raised and born in Mumbai when they first meet. As she's 23, can I safely assume her family has lived in Mumbai at least for 23 years, since Jessie is only 23? Jessie’s father, according to an old phone conversation, doesn’t even know Amitabh! Sachin asked Jessie if she knew about Malayalam superstar Mohanlal. She hadn't heard of the man. She does not say "in our family", but "amongst us". It implies that Malayali Christians view movie watching as a sinful activity! Huh? It's a lie! How stupid is it that this family has been living in Mumbai for 20 years (in Juhu, Bachchan's neighborhood) and yet knows nothing about Big B?! How poor her general knowledge is that she does not know of Mohanlal despite being Malayali?!! Gautham would like to have us believe, too, that Malayali Christians, including employees at software firms like Jessie, do not read newspapers or watch television, ignore hoardings and don't interact with their neighbors. They also live in the isolated villages envisioned by Manoj Night Shyamalan's The Village. Menon is South Indian, and some Hindi audiences will believe that his story is true because of this. Even sadder, South Indians and Christians (also known as "Madrasis") are considered foreigners in many parts of the country's north. This nonsense will also become folklore. As @joseph tweeted to me, "At the very least I'm glad that Bollywood knows (because of Ek Deewana Tha), there are Christians living in Kerala." The Christians were believed to be indigenous in Goa. In Ek Deewana Tha Kerala is seen as it was through M.S. Prabhu looks beautiful. The film has some funny and heartwarming scenes, despite its many flaws. Sachin's scene in the church, where he is predicting the next moves of the bride based on movies he has watched, was my favorite. Jessie’s talking uncle in Alappuzha may be a stereotypical character, but I liked the little bald man’s love of Hindi and “lenj” (lunch). Sometimes caricatures are funny. Focus our attention on the ignorance, stereotypes that are insidious and poor filmmaking..... Read More