Black

..and then there was light. its as if sanjay leela bhansali decided to wake up one day and change the perception of a bollywood film. gone are the garishly colorful songs, replaced instead with tones of grey - not the gloomy, depressing grey instead it makes us focus more on some unlikely heros. one who, while physically incapable of beating up villains , wages a battle with her disabilities and comes out triumphant. another is her mentor, who never tires of teaching her. the biggest one is the story and the way its told.

the story just sucks you in and pretty soon you dont notice that michelle(rani) is not speaking at all but you can still understand what she is saying. debraj(amitabh) is gesticulating like a madman but it seems as natural as blinking. debraj leads the blind and deaf michelle to the light by teaching her alternate ways to communicate and understand and then himself disappears into the darkness that mental disease inflicts on one's mind. michelle returns the favor by bringing him back from the black. a great background soundtrack, excellent camera work and fantastic color settings complete the picture.

i almost didnt go because it was showing at a suburb quite far away and it was a rather cold day. but thanks to some persistent friends and the lure of 'authentic' indian food at a restaurant there, i was able to see india's oscar nominee for 2006.