Eklavya Movie Review

Eklavya: A thumbs down below expectations

Vidhu Vinod Chopra is an interesting film maker. His first outing Parinda was a classic for the 80s. But 1942 a love story was unusually bland with no one feeling much for Anil Kapoor's dilemma. Mission Kashmir again did not do enough justice to its theme as a movie about terrorism. If we look at all these movies, the central theme could in a way be construed as decision making dilemmas: what is right and wrong in a grandiose canvass (underworld, freedom struggle, terrorism).

Vidhu Vinod Chopra extends the same with a liberal use of dharma concepts and Mahabharat references right from the title sequence itself. The movie starts with Amitabh in his baritone explaining the story of Eklavya to a kid( a voice that reminds of you the old DD chanda ek sooraj ek NFDC cartoons). The kid who grows upto Saif says that Eklavya was wrong.

The story in short is that Eklavya(Amitabh) is the guard of a decadent royal family somewhere in Rajasthan. The movie starts with the queen(Sharmila) on the death bed asking for Eklavya with the effeminate king(Boman) watching in angst. Well the truth is that Eklavya is the father of the two royal children ( Saif and Raima) and not the impotent king. Although Eklavya guards this secret in true dharmik karma , Sharmila reveals it all in a letter to her son with extra funda (Dharmam Matibhyah Ugradhatya: dharma is what comes through the exercise of Mati (brain). Meanwhile the king is facing a security threat since his brother ( Jackie) and nephew ( Shergill) have usurped the lands of farmers. Enter a low-caste police officer ( Sanju baba providing the movie its light touches with elan) who is a great fan of Eklavya. The king unable to bear the news that a royal guard has slept with his wife instead of some Gangotri rishi (...eeeshh), plots to kill Eklavya. The prince tries to balance coming closer to his true father who does not want to acknowledge the truth and his beloved (Vidya Balan) with political compulsions.

What happens after that is an interesting karma cola which Vidhu Vinod Chopra dishes out after researching for 5 years . The scenes that stand out are 1. Amitabh showing his archery skills(after all he is Eklavya) with a dove for Sanju baba 2. The train death sequence although both are cinematic liberties. 3. The last scene of Saif's coronation

The performances are all first rate with Amitabh again showing his immense prowess in a Bhishma pitamah type role. Saif excels with a measured performance.

But there are the typical flaws of Chopra's self involved film making that places form over content in many places. He writes scenes rather than a fluid screenplay. His complete inability to use background music to good effect shows up at crucial scenes. Like in 1942's dholona during patriotic scenes, in Eklavya we get inappropriate recitals of Gayatri mantra(Isnt 5 years enough to do better research on shlokas). His handling of emotional sequences somewhat falls in the no mans land between subtlety and dramatism leaving us without much feeling for the central characters. And in Eklavya he even shows Jimmy Shergill dying in the backdrop of a DVD player running the Parinda scene where Anupam Kher gets killed in front of Anil Kapoors eyes. Well that is sheer hubris that comes from writing a script for 5 years. He also uses English liberally in this movie in places where Hindi would have been more impactful. Although Boman reading out Shakespearean sonnets to his dying wife shows the angrez chale gaye namoone chhod gaye irony well.

In summary, Eklavya is a well executed film but it fails to create an engrossing experience. In fact Vinod Chopra could have used more screen time to allow for certain sequences to simmer for better impact. In a way its a chicken dish which you will consume more for your love of chicken even if the marination has limitations.