Flower Without Fragrance. Review on Gulmohar

I guess the cast attracted me to the movie, especially, the duo Manoj Bajpayee and Sharmila Tagore. For the latter, it was a comeback after twelve years on silver screen and that too on OTT platform. Undoubtedly, I was curious.

The narrative opens with a celebration - the last night at Gulmohar Villa, the ancestral property of Batra family, which has been sold off by the matriarch, Mrs. Batra(Sharmila Tagore). Why? Is it because she wants to go stay in Puducherry?

The son, Arun(Manoj Bajpayee) is not happy with his mother's decision. He does not want the family to disintegrate. His own son does not want to stay with him any longer. His daughter is unhappily continuing in a relationship being in love with someone else. The house helps also lament that they will not be able to stay together under the same roof any longer. They have their side stories - heart warmers and heart breaks - signifying nothing to the body of the screenplay.

Mrs. Batra's brother-in-law, Sudhakar(Amol Palekar) has his own axe to grind and wants the House Deed which he knows is in his name. So, the entire sale transaction is illegal, isn't it? Yet the property has changed hands. How?

Gradually it comes to light that Arun is Mrs. Batra's adopted son. It appears that Mrs. Batra has not been able to reveal this fact to him out of fear of losing him. But Arun has already found his birth father(whom he sees everyday from afar but cannot muster enough courage to go meet and reveal his identity). Why and how?

Arun's foster father, Mr. Batra, has willed Gulmohar Villa to his brother Sudhakar and his son. But Sudhakar's son is too indebted to his cousin Arun and does not want the property. Unusual isn't it?

The entire cinematic narrative of Gulmohar is based on the philosophy that in life whatever happens is preordained and meant to be. It tries to showcase many other timeless values like relationships are founded on care, compassion and compromise and need not necessarily be bonded by blood. But then Gulmohar Villa, which nurtures a home full of loving memories, is sold off just because there is pressure from the Builders! Contradictory, isn't it?

Gulmohar pictures the Indian joint family well where everyone has something against every other one but still continues to stay under the same roof, cribbing and complaining away to glory. Arun's wife has differences of opinion with her mother-in-law but still acquiesces to all her sundry eccentricities. How nice!

Arun's son wants to prove himself before his father but does not want to bow down to his wishes or ask for his support to further his dreams till his wife tells him to do so. Problem solved!

Arun's daughter takes after her granny. She is a song writer and in love with another girl who appears on every occasion like a Jack(or Joan, is it?) in a box. It has become quite fashionable to show that every Indian family has one member having unusual attachment which may or may not be statistically correct.

My review has many spoilers, I agree, but what I intend to point out is that Gulmohar has many loopholes and loose ends in its script. Its story line is weak and faulty though much is being written about a la Tagore's comeback and Rahul V Chittella's direction. Since Chittella is Meera Nair's protégé, parallels are also being drawn with Nair's Monsoon Wedding. But the latter addressed the dysfunctionalities of modern joint family - its weaknesses and floundering premises. What does Gulmohar want to show? That you can still maintain your family ties even after getting disintegrated into nuclear households? Palatable. But I am still confused.

Then what holds the fragments of Gulmohar in a not so tight one knot? Of course, its Manoj Bajpayee, through and through and Simran as his wife who scoffs at her mother-in-law behind her back yet worries about how she is going to live alone so far in Puducherry. But will Mrs. Batra be alone in Puducherry?

I am sorry to say I do not find the connect which touches a chord in my heart while watching this movie almost first day first show(if at all that can happen on OTT)!

Though I have been a fan of Ms. Tagore since her debut in Ray's "Opur Sansar" and all those off beat movies where she has performed so well, I find her wooden and expressionless in Gulmohar. Age shows on her visage - the Boutox, most probably, and the chinky eyes and bloated cheeks restrict facial movement. Nonetheless she is graceful and dignified as always.

The memorable scene of reading out Mr. Batra's last will is totally stolen by Mr. Bajpayee. His failed attempt to disguise his disappointment and that sudden development of nervous twitching! He seems to be the only one who is deeply attached not only to the house but also to all the house members, though as per his callous, adopted father, he is not part of the family.

Mrs. Batra's lame excuse that she signed the will as witness because she always followed her husband's say destroys the foundation on which the film shakily stands. Amol Palekar, as the cantankerous and conservative, Sudhakar, with shades of selfish grey, is still the ace actor who can emote viciousness convincingly. He is the only character, apart from that of Arun, who seems to be realistic and relatable. The other one, of course, is Arun whose deep attachment to the family stems from the fact that he was abandoned in his infancy. He clings to every relation because deep down he still suffers from lack of belongingness. But then where is the belongingness in Batra family? Does drinking Brandy with children and grand children really forge any additional bondage of love and empathy with your family members? If that is my middle class psyche spilling out so be it. Rest I have not found any real orbit shifting relationship building lesson in Gulmohar!

Prior to the release, there were many online interviews and articles on Ms. Tagore's "lonely life" in an "empty nest" as her children moved out and away and her grandchildren did not need her so much. One of the reasons why she opted for this come back! Now if that is not a PR gimmick to boost a story which does not key on any such premise! The Producer could have thought better lines to promote the film.

The movie ends with another joyous celebration of Holi, as per Mrs. Batra's wish, wherein the entire family gets together before parting ways taking with them bits and pieces of their united pasts. The idea could have been promising but the ideation is not so much.

I am sorry I am not impressed. There seems to be too many stories stitched together unevenly, without any dramatic contribution to the narrative as a whole and emotional quotient of the viewers.