Rags to Riches story, story of an underdog getting success despite all odds still warms our heart and Gully Boy wins our heart and hence,box office. Ranveer Singh's acting, Zoya Akhter's flawless direction and Alia Bhat's spunk made this so watchable. Story of an underdog becoming successful never fails, almost never.
After ZNMD this is Zoya Akhter's best. As the camera moves in slums of Dharavi, that we urban middle class ignore because they are poor and we are richer, the city of Mumbai slowly becomes a character in this film. Typical Mumbai lingo, reference of Bollywood are evident. Is it mere coincidence that an actor named Vijay Verma ( Moeen, the mechanic) actually spoke " Ja jake usko pucch jinhone inko kachre ke dibbe ke pheka tha" ? Traces of Deewar (1975) crops up where Amitabh's screen name was Vijay Verma and he spoke " Ja jake uska sign leke aa jinhone mere hat pe likha ta Mera Baap Chor Hai". What an uncanny similarity with Deewar and a tribute to Zoya's father Javed Akhtar who wrote Deewar. Javed Akhtar's poetry interspersed in the film still rocks.
Slum based movie in Bollywood is nothing new. We have earlier seen Salam Bombay, Dharavi etc. Slumdog Millionaire from Hollywood was also on Dharavi. However in most of the earlier movies o portrayal of underworld, crime, poverty, inequality reigned supreme. Gully Boy rather discloses an entirely new face of Dharavi, the hitherto unknown underground Rap and Hip Hop music genre. Like me many would have found a new side of Mumbai. Never heard of Divine and Naezy before Zoya Akhter brought them to light.
I liked Alia's spunk immensely. I have had students like her in Mumbai and I could see how realistically she portrayed a young educated Muslim girl's character who wants to come out of the shackles of tradition. That scene where she wears a lipstick sitting in a suburban Mumbai station displayed her rebel. Ranveer successfully deconstructed himself from a typical Hero's image and his " Apna Time Ayega" rap will be remembered for a long time for optimism and angst spelled out in simplest of Mumbai lingo. Soon this song is going to be DJ night or party Anthem of India. The scene where he confronts his abusive father displaying 4 lakh likes in Youtube and says " Mera aukat hai" is the defining moment of unbridled optimism.
After ZNMD this is Zoya Akhter's best. As the camera moves in slums of Dharavi, that we urban middle class ignore because they are poor and we are richer, the city of Mumbai slowly becomes a character in this film. Typical Mumbai lingo, reference of Bollywood are evident. Is it mere coincidence that an actor named Vijay Verma ( Moeen, the mechanic) actually spoke " Ja jake usko pucch jinhone inko kachre ke dibbe ke pheka tha" ? Traces of Deewar (1975) crops up where Amitabh's screen name was Vijay Verma and he spoke " Ja jake uska sign leke aa jinhone mere hat pe likha ta Mera Baap Chor Hai". What an uncanny similarity with Deewar and a tribute to Zoya's father Javed Akhtar who wrote Deewar. Javed Akhtar's poetry interspersed in the film still rocks.
Slum based movie in Bollywood is nothing new. We have earlier seen Salam Bombay, Dharavi etc. Slumdog Millionaire from Hollywood was also on Dharavi. However in most of the earlier movies o portrayal of underworld, crime, poverty, inequality reigned supreme. Gully Boy rather discloses an entirely new face of Dharavi, the hitherto unknown underground Rap and Hip Hop music genre. Like me many would have found a new side of Mumbai. Never heard of Divine and Naezy before Zoya Akhter brought them to light.
I liked Alia's spunk immensely. I have had students like her in Mumbai and I could see how realistically she portrayed a young educated Muslim girl's character who wants to come out of the shackles of tradition. That scene where she wears a lipstick sitting in a suburban Mumbai station displayed her rebel. Ranveer successfully deconstructed himself from a typical Hero's image and his " Apna Time Ayega" rap will be remembered for a long time for optimism and angst spelled out in simplest of Mumbai lingo. Soon this song is going to be DJ night or party Anthem of India. The scene where he confronts his abusive father displaying 4 lakh likes in Youtube and says " Mera aukat hai" is the defining moment of unbridled optimism.
This movie is a celebration of Mumbai and its unstoppable throbbing spirit which rises against all odds and gives you hope.
This movie also reminded me of City of God based on Ri De Janeiro's slum and a slum boy becoming successful photographer.
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