Give a round of applause to Shamitabh, a truly ‘Indian’ film. Whatever its flaw, and we will come to that, this is a celebration of cinema, one that transcends Bollywood and vernacular tags.
Shamitabh salutes the love of Indians for cinema, and gets behind not just the dreams of star-hopefuls but also delivers a powerful slap on the shenanigans of the mainstream industry. But more importantly, it is a film that raises a toast to sheer talent – be it acting or voice.
On a linear note, Shamitabh is the story of a mute actor-hopeful Daanish (Dhanush) who finds stardom and fame with the help of the voice of a drunkard Amitabh Sinha (Amitabh Bachchan). Together they form ‘Shamitabh’ and how ego nearly destroys the ‘voice’ and ‘talent’ is what the film is all about. The bridge between them is an assistant director (Akshara Haasan).
This one-liner is made into a film experience that is at times magical, sometimes bland, often engaging, sometimes detached, mostly free-wheeling, and sometimes indulgent by director R Balki.
What shines through is the inherent sincerity of the film, its director and a superbly talented cast. Every one of the actors drops guard to get into character; you do no watch Dhanush or Sr. Bachchan but only the fragile ego they have built around ‘Shamitabh.’ To put it mildly, together the two are dynamite.
Other than a flashback on Daanish, there are no manipulative back stories to the characters. They are also unapologetic about their actions; as Akshara observes about Daanish, he has the talent and the tantrums for a star. In that sense, Shamitabh does bring in tantrums of the two – the actor and the voice – galore.
Balki never lets the story veer of the crux – the ego-clash between the two – but he also takes liberal swipes at mainstream Bollywood– starting from its name (in a fantastic solo act by Amitabh, he mocks at deriving the industry’s name from Hollywood – made more real because of Sr. Bachchan intense dislike for the tag ‘Bollywood).
The film could be seen as a tad emotionally detached and the director being a little self-indulgent in taking the narrative forward. The climax too might not curry favour with all – it seems forced and predictable and as if Balki ran out of ideas on how to close the deal.
But the cast raises the film above its limitations. In one of his career-best roles Amitabh Bachchan marvels you with his totally uninhibited yet rightly egocentric role. Dhanush proves why he is one of India’s finest acting talent; the scenes of Dhanush performing to Amitabh’s voice – are mind-blowing.
Akshara Hassan steps up to the game and makes an inspiring debut. A special mention is reserved for the child artist who plays the young Daanish. The way he brings out emotions without words shows the making of a powerful actor (and of a fantastic director behind the scenes calling the shots).
Beautifully shot, intelligently edited with very little flab, the film, derives its soul from the background score by Ilaiyaraaja. To experience how acting, voice and music together make some compelling moments in cinema, here is Shamitabh for you.
Unpretentious, not made for the film festivals, and balancing intelligence with entertainment quotient, Shamitabh is a great weekend getaway.
Do not let script pitfalls in the second half and some contrived plot-points come in your way, and you will enjoy this memorable cinematic tribute – an ode to Bachchan’s baritone and Dhanush’s acting prowess.
Shamitabh
Directed by R Balki
Starring: Amitabh Bachchan, Dhanush and Akshara Haasan
Rating: 3.5/5
