Thod Shekar Thod … . Review on Parineeta

That’s the chanting “Break Shekar Break !!!” and didn’t the protagonist almost break the beautiful walls of cinema that surrounded Parineeta. Lets get down with the nitty gritties and bring out the negative traits of the movie at the forefront … it’s the climax !!! , which could have been less clichéd and if not for that, would have ended up Parineeta having a Kohinoor in the crown.

At the helm of the affairs sits Pradeep Sarkar with the fledging experience of music videos and advertisements behind him. A welcome change is that this movie is based on the classic book of the same name by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhya and oozes originality unlike recent movies which are more of a mixed salad dressing, with ubiquitous ingredients added in generously from movies spanning all genres and continents. The movie has been co written by the director Pradeep Sarkar and producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra.

The overall look of the movie is superlative, the 1962 feel being well woven into the proceedings as well as all the departments like cinematography, sound, music with the exception of editing, which could have been a tad better as the movie tends to walk around, like a 10 kilo stone tied to its legs at times.

The Story line seems similar to Devdas and begins with Shekar (Saif) who is friendly with an orphaned neighbor Lolita (Vidya) since childhood and needless to say the feelings end up in …… good old LOVE!!! Shekar’s scheming father Naveen Rai (Sabyasachi Chakraborty) wants to grab Lolita’s uncle’s Haveli. Enter Girish (Sunjay Dutt) … your friendly neighborhood benefactor and … there follows some twists and turns. Diya Mirza and Raima Sen add color to the proceedings.

Performances are exceptional and leading the way is …newcomer Vidya Balan, whose eyes speak a million dialogues and she matches veterans Saif and Sunjay at every step. Chhote Nawab is at his best and finally seems to have shed his carefree “DCH” tag. Sunjay entertains in a brief role, especially his introduction. Sabyasachi Chakraborty is exceptional .. the kind of negative character whom one feels like whipping ..!!! Diya Mirza oozes sensuality in the couple of scenes she is given and Raima Sen flows gently through the proceedings.

Verdict is that its very much watch able and I would like to add, more than once … it’s a feel good movie and I was in for a pleasant surprise in the movie hall which is teeming with people of all ages. Unless we have any other exceptional performance, the Filmfare New Face of the year is already booked !!!