The critics finally seem to have got
their kind of movie. The type that they
can embellish with the choicest adjectives,
and baptize as a classic. In short they
are loving it and expect the common
man to do so though it is only in very
rare cases that critics and the common
man concur in their opinions of what
is classic and what is trash.
But
the springing up of multiplexes like mushrooms in
any place that is qualified to be called a city
has created a so called ‘niche’ audience
who tend to agree with critics and this might give
“Gandhi- my father” a chance to make
money along with lots of news, accolades, awards
and an Oscar nomination.
The movie is just a day old in theaters and there
is no contesting the verdict of the critic. The
mandate is clear and equivocal; Gandhi- my father
is a classic. The movie has been so well made that
acclaimed critics have gone on to say that highlighting
any particular scene of the movie would be gross
injustice to the other scenes. This should give
you a fairly good idea about the standards and their
consistency throughout the movie. The portrayal
of Gandhi and his sour relationship with his son
without focusing on the freedom struggle that could
have been an unwelcome distraction to the main plot
has caught everyone’s eye as it takes a lot
of courage to show the Mahatma and not show anything
about the freedom struggle which is what Gandhiji
was all about.
Even technically the movie has come in for a lot
of praise for its perfect settings, recreating the
pre-independence era with originality. Everyone
who saw the movie so far has been impressed enough
to already state with confidence that “Gandhi-
My Father” has got to be the Indian nomination
to the Oscars this year. Well, that is still a few
months away. Till then we have the box office fate
of the movie to look forward to.
