Lootera- T(w)oo much happening

Note: Spoiler Alert! You have been warned.

Lootera (2013, dir. Vikramaditya Motwane) is a complicated love story set in 1950s India. With breath-taking cinematography and soulful music, the film successfully transports you to its quietly grand setting of a zamindar’s mansion in the age of this dying class. Despite its successful attempt at establishing setting, the plot is unnecessarily complex. In true Bollywood style, the filmmaker uses song to bring together its two story lines- the world of the gangster who betrayed his lover and her family and the world of the dying lover who needed a saviour.

The film is full of beautiful visuals, capturing the period and its old world charm with the use of poetry not only in dialogue but also visually. The character of Pakhi is introduced to us as playful when we see her delight in playing with the new electric bulb. 

Pakhi plays with the bulb

The colouring in the film though largely sepia is not overpoweringly done; certain shots are grainy, which only add to this effect. The elements such as the use of windows, doorways and corridors, light streaming in, characters hidden in shadows, build an almost Ray-esque setting. The sparse and poetic dialogues put greater emphasis on pauses and silences- giving way to music. All these elements are essential for the build-up to the climax of the last leaf, but are in contrast to the titular gangster concept which we are introduced to halfway through the film. 

The Bodycam technique

The slow languid pace of the first half shifts to a more realist, swift pace. Even Pakhi’s desolation after her loss comes to us as the calm before the storm. The lengthy chase scene, shot and edited masterfully is effective is heightening our emotions. We see Varun remove the bullet from his body, the wound in focus, his pain evident. This is in contrast to the contained emotion we see from him in the first half. In the scene where Varun decides to turn back to save Pakhi, the bodycam technique breaks the slow narrative the filmmakers built in the first half. Further, the concept of the ‘Last leaf’ is arrived at in too roundabout a fashion- somewhat killing the simplicity of the humorous yet painful original.

Amit Trivedi’s music and Amitabh Bhattacharya’s lyrics reduce the need to verbalise and sets the mood of the film, but here too the styles differ greatly. Four songs in the second half of the film depict the two lover’s lonesome soul(s): The song Ankahee (Unsaid) where Pakhi reminisces about her relationship with Varun, shows her alone in her grief and pain. Manmarziyaan (wilful desires) where Pakhi struggles with the conflict within her to reject Varun’s help and her desire to die, her life, coming to an end as her condition deteriorates. Shikayatein (complaints), where Varun decides to choose Pakhi over his life on the run and we see the transition in him, from gangster running for life to lover seeking atonement. Zinda (alive), where Varun  hangs up the last leaf are all central to the assimilation of the two plot lines- the desire for atonement and love that Varun had and the narcissism of making a masterpiece leading to his altruistic act in the conclusion of the film. 

Where the film could have been either a story of betrayal and love or of selfless love and sacrifice, it becomes a mix of the two- making the viewing not disappointing, but somehow unsatisfactory. That said, I loved writing this review and going over every detail of the film, so it is definitely worth a watch. At least.

References:

Ganti, Tejaswini (2004, 2013) Bollywood: a guidebook to popular Hindi cinema.  London: Routledge.

Henry O., 1907. ‘The Last Leaf’ on Online Literature.com, Viewed on 05-011-2014 <http://www.online-literature.com/o_henry/1303/>

Lootera (2013) Directed by [Film]. India: Shobha Kappor, Ekta Kapoor, Vikas Bahl, Anurag Kashyap.

Image sources:

1. http://www.oneknightstands.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Lootera-Sonakshi-Sinha.jpg

2. https://oorvazifilmeducation.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/bulb.jpg

3. https://cinemachaat.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/lootera-varun-on-the-run.jpg