GULAAL

Went to PVR-Forum to catch Gulaal yesterday evening and boy oh boy! Bollywood has arrived.

The story revolves around an ex Rajput scion's {Kay Kay Menon as Dukibana} dream of a "Rajput Rajasthan" or "Rajputana" and his attempts to control University youth and politics for the "greater cause": a book-wormish cowardly Rajput youth Dileep Singh, {Raj Singh Chaudhary} becomes his chief weapon in this quest.

Dileep's metamorphosis into the angry "smoking-barrels Rajput" is played with aplomb by the actor and handled magnificently by the director. KKM thou steals the show with his thunderous performances as the Rajput leader urging fellow men to rise in revolt. The scene where he exhorts all assembled Gulaal smeared Rajputs to rise up for their motherland is reminiscent of "V for Vendetta". Gulaal's terrific use of colours in the narration draws inspiration from Trois couleurs: Rouge: showcasing emotions and moods with astounding simplicity.

AK has mastered the art of storytelling weaving sub plots into the main one in a masterly fashion - Dileep's frustrated idealist, Cambridge returned "His Royal Highness" roommate {Abhimanyu Singh}, Dileep's "lady love"{Ayesha Mohan} who uses him to exact revenge for loosing the elections all do more than justice their meaty roles. Brilliant cinematography and unique song lyrics from Piyush Mishra woven with music by Indian Ocean typical to such a dark film leave you mesmerized and riveted to your seat.

The frenzied "shoot 'em up" climax is a tad clumsy but the rest of the film more then compensates for the glitch: even the first half does drag through a little bit in an effort to weave the complex web of intrigue expected in a political film.

This is Hindi cinema at its best - go get colored, go watch it!!