The director of “English Vinglish”- Gauri Shinde - is proving to be a
film-maker with much evolved sensibilities than her husband R.Balki. In
“Dear Zindagi”, she presents a delightful story of a girl who is caught
at the crossroads of life and torn between the pulls of her love-life,
the struggles to carve out her own identity in career and the stress
created by repressed childhood. Alia Bhatt is the twenty-something girl
who is undergoing these multiple pangs at the same time and she has help
from a psychotherapist Shah Rukh Khan on an unexpectedly overdue trip
she makes to Goa – home of her parents. Director Gauri’s strengths are a
well-written script, engaging screenplay and a commanding grip on
characterization of all the major and minor characters in the film. She
makes a point without belaboring the narrative and knows to weave
nuances into the main story. All the men in Alia Bhatt’s character
breathe fire and passion and so does Shah Rukh Khan who gives a
dignified performance even as he takes a backseat in a film of this
kind. There is a mathematical precision to his portrayal as Dr Jehnagir
Khan and any other person without his aura would have botched the role
by lowering the bar of poise and respect that a therapist should have
with his patient. Alia Bhatt is of course, the show-stealer. After
“Highway” and “Udta Panjab”, this film would pitchfork her as the new
Diva of Bollywood - the one on whom long-term bets can be placed – with
a fair conviction that she would balance any role. Whether she grooves,
hums or shrieks out in anger, her screen presence magnifies her persona
better than any million-buck lines written for her. Music by Amit
Trivedi dovetails with the scripts of Gauri Shinde – it seems a zone
that the composer is comfortable – atypical yet chart-buster variety yet
versatile in range. One wonders why many commercial film-makers don’t
sign Trivedi on for their scores. I don’t understand why the film got
U/A – it deals with a subject that even toddlers can relate to and
parents should get beaten about.
My rating: 3.5/5
My rating: 3.5/5
