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this is a disgusting review by mr komal nahata.
SUR - THE MELODY POF LIFE - (Reviewed By Komal Nahta)
Director: Tanuja Chandra
Music: M M Kareem
Lyrics: Nida Fazli
Producer: Fisheye Network Production
Starring: Introducing Lucky Ali & Gauri Karnik
RATING: 0.25/10
Fish Eye Network's Sur The Melody Of Life is about a middle-aged music teacher who is himself a famous singer. His greatest need is to find his successor who has his talent and passion. By chance, he meets a young girl in a church one day and, realising her potential, takes her under his wings. He trains her alongwith his other students in his school till he soon realises that she is a greater genius than even him! When this hits him, he is consumed by jealousy.
His endeavour to train the girl, soon gives way to tricks to sabotage her imminent rise. He even robs her tune and composition, passing it off as his own, and sells it to a music company. As if that wasn't bad enough, he insults the girl in full view of the music company's officials for not doing a good job of the song which he knows was her very own creation!
Shattered, the girl leaves his school and decides to become a nun. Days later, the music teacher feels guilty for his selfishness and tries to woo the girl back. Though an uphill task, he finally manages to make her leave the church and return to where she belonged - the world of music.
The film is a soulless exercise as emotions in the drama never ever touch the heart. Incidents unfold and, in the process, confuse the viewers more than convincing them. For instance, while the audience and the girl realise that the music teacher has stolen her composition, she later tells him that she had quit his school because she had let him down badly due to her poor performance.
Why is she silent about the stealing part? It is not as if she didn't understand that her tune had been stolen. In fact, it is made amply clear that she is both, shocked and shaken that her own teacher could plagiarise her composition. What the director would like the audience to believe is that she did not want to be disrespectful to her teacher, but that doesn't come across at all.
Besides, for the teacher to have been bowled over by the girl's voice when he first hears her, there should've been a super-hit song which she sings, not a choir song in a church. Even the music teacher's great popularity as a singer of repute is sought to be established after he is presented as such, instead of before. Showing the girl to be a Christian and showing a good part of the second half in the church and nunnery will greatly restrict the film's appeal as Christian lead characters rarely find favour with Hindi film audiences. (Bobby, Amar Akbar Anthony and Julie were the few-and-far-between exceptions.)
The film is too philosophical and, therefore, very boring at many places. Add to this, the lack of face value! Comedy is almost completely missing and so is romance. Emotions fail to touch the heart. What then remains is music and the film, no doubt, has some melodious songs and one haunting number, but that is just not enough to sustain audience interest.
Lucky Ali hardly impresses as the music teacher. His dialogue delivery is flat and, quite unfortunately, his voice has no emotions in it. Yes, some of his facial expressions are very good but that's about all. Gauri Karnik makes a fairly good big-screen debut but her chances of continuing as a heroine are bleak. Simone Singh is natural and impressive. Achint Kaur does a fine job. Ehsan Khan, as Harman, is effective. Harsh Vasisht also leaves a mark. Divya Dutta is good in a special appearance. Others lend able support.
Tanuja Chandra not only fails in the scripting but also in the narration. The scenes in the church and with the nuns lack sensitivity. No care has been taken to establish things and, quite often, it is left to the imagination of the viewer to interpret the goings-on. For example, it is not clear till the end if Lucky Ali is in love with Gauri. It almost appears as if the intention were to cater to a thin elitist audience only. Selecting a subject in which a 40-plus man plays the lead role was also not the wisest thing for her to do, more so because today's audience likes to see youngsters playing lead roles.
M.M. Kreem's music is the biggest plus point of the otherwise drab film. 'Aa bhi jaa' has a haunting quality about it; it is an excellently tuned number. 'Dil mein jaage' and 'Jaane kya dil dhoondta hai' are also wonderful songs. But notwithstanding the hit music, it is also a fact that the songs have more class and city appeal. Though 'Kabhi shaam dhale' is tuneful, the need of the situation (climax) was an extraordinary number. Song picturisations are just about fair. Lyrics (Nida Fazli) deserve mention.
Camerawork (Nirmal Jani) is of a good standard. Dialogues (Vibha Singh) are simple and good. Production values are ordinary.
On the whole, Sur will prove to be the malady of Tanuja Chandra's professional life rather than The Melody Of Life. A poor show, it will appeal to a very, very small section of the city audience only. At the box-office, it will meet with a disastrous fate, whether in India or abroad.
Released on 13-9-2002 at Maratha Mandir, New Empire and 20 other cinemas of Bombay thru SPE Films India Pvt. Ltd. Publicity: very good. Opening: very poor. …….Also released all over. Opening was horrifyingly poor everywhere
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