Joined: Mon Dec 03, 2001 5:53 pm
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Ab DEKHO TARAN ki LEELAH! gives it 2 stars!! (so generous)
Leela
By Taran Adarsh
Lemon Tree Films' LEELA, written-directed by Somnath Sen, tells the story of two strangers who walk together for a while.
As a visiting professor in America, Leela (Dimple Kapadia) touches many lives, including that of Kris (Amol Mhatre), a young Indian-American who is uncomfortable in his own skin.
Upon learning of dark secrets that his mother Chaitali (Deepti Naval) has kept from him, Kris finds comfort in his friendship with Leela, as he is mesmerized by her quiet dignity.
Leela opens Kris to a world beyond black and white and in turn, Kris becomes the catalyst in making Leela scrutinize afresh her crumbling marriage to world-renowned poet Nashaad (Vinod Khanna).
Nashaad's philandering ways have slowly worn down Leela's unconditional, unquestioning love for him. Things come to a head when Nashaad, realising Leela's growing disenchantment, tries to reconnect with her.
The story idea of LEELA – that a young guy getting attracted to a woman older than him – bears a striking semblance to the Hollywood flick SUMMER OF '42 and has been witnessed on the Indian screen as well – in MERA NAAM JOKER (Simi Grewal-Rishi Kapoor), DOOSRA AADMI (Raakhee-Rishi Kapoor) and more recently, in DIL CHAHTA HAI (Dimple Kapadia-Akshaye Khanna) and EK CHHOTISI LOVE STORY (Manisha Koirala-Aditya Seal).
Of course, LEELA doesn't have titillating scenes to lure the audience, but the focus is on presenting a situation that's realistic and life-like.
LEELA depicts the story of a woman wanting her space far more effectively than those that lace a sensitive story with sex in order to woo the box-office. In that respect, LEELA comes across as a sincere attempt.
But the film has its share of downers –
* One, it caters to a niche audience. An Indian theme with Indian stars mouthing their dialogue in English language, will limit its viewership to select cinemas of metros only. And secondly, the treatment of the theme is such that it will appeal more to the gentry, not the hoi polloi.
* Two, the writing in the latter part of the film leaves a lot to be desired. For instance, the culmination to Amol and even Vinod Khanna's characters should've been better thought of. Even Dimple's decision to lead her life on her own terms is not as impactful as it was in ARTH.
A significant scene portrays Vinod Khanna swearing love and life to Dimple, yet her wanting to drift away from this relationship seems a little mystifying. For, there's no crisis or any kind of a personal trauma in her life for her to arrive at a decision like that.
Also, the scene when Vinod Khanna tells Amol Mhatre that he is aware his wife Dimple has slept with him and that she thinks very highly of him (Amol), is extremely difficult for the Indian viewer to digest, howsoever broadminded he/she may be.
Directorially, Somnath Sen has handled a couple of delicate sequences with dexterity, but his writing fluctuates from plausible to hard-to-believe. There's not much scope for songs in the film, but the Jagjit Singh tracks are well rendered, well worded, well tuned and well placed.
Dimple Kapadia essays her part with complete understanding of her character. Her performance merits an award. Deepti Naval is efficient. The sequence outside Dimple's house, when she addresses her (Dimple) with not-very-complimentary words, is brilliantly written, executed and performed.
However, it is newcomer Amol Mhatre who registers the strongest impact, despite being pitted against stalwarts. Here's an actor to watch! Vinod Khanna and Gulshan Grover are alright.
On the whole, LEELA deals with an adult theme, but there are very few takers for this genre of cinema in India. From the business point of view, the film has some chances in metros at best.
Rating:- * *.
http://www.indiafm.com/reviews/02/leela/index.shtml
Edited By arsh on 1036169376
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