Beauty Interrupted - My Thoughts on Fashion (2008)

After a very long time, I guess after 10 years, I am back to writing about an Industry that once was kind of as regular for me as the next coffee from Cafe Coffee Day or the next lunch at  Bade Miyan's - I still remember my days modelling and choreographing for 'high-profile' inter-collegiate fests and events like Mood Indigo, Aarambh, Astitva, Ashwamedh, Horizons and Malhar and dreaming under the Bombay sun with stardust in my eyes of being a Star myself some day

Those were the days - Those were the times. Specially the days of Mood Indigo, a fest that happens in December but for which my friends would prepare from January and why would they not - the girls would prepare for the boys from the IITs and the boys - they would prepare for the girls from Delhi and Bangalore and Chennai and what not. Days would be spent in dreams and night would be spent in revelry. Those were indeed the days

As Tughlaq says in that great play by the same name

"19 Saal - Bade Hi Dilqash Hoti Hai Ye Umr - Duniyaa Fateh Karne Ka Jazbaa Hota Hai Iss Umr Mein"

This world - The world of Fashion has a hypnotic spell on minds - young and old - alike. For proof, see the number of hot and cold-blooded males who would gladly stay up late in the night, watching FTV, with remote in hand and sweaty palms holding the channel button so that they can immediately change the change in case of unwanted intrusion, eyes moving from one corner to other and the mute button firmly in place. Eyes pop out, bodies rivet, bodies start sweating and temperatures start rising as soon as the 'Lingerie' Section gets under-way. This is not to say that the beautiful ones are away from the lure of the Fashion World. The World of Fashion has a similar spell on the women watching the show too, the only difference is the effect shows up monthly on the credit cards payments and daily in the malls that showcase the dresses and accessories - although it's a given fact that 90% of the Dresses on show can only be worn in the loony-bins of Agra and Alibaug and that too amid great caution. Ask any young girl or boy from Bombay to Delhi and Calcutta to Madras and the chances are that he or she would list the world of Fashion as a desired destination, somewhere between the movie world and the business world as a most-desired world

But behind the scenes - somewhere behind the sensual stares; somewhere behind the silent plastic and mud-smeared cakes that hide the true face of the model, behind the face 'that could launch a Thousand Faces' and behind the nose 'that could change the path of History' lies a dark truth. What we conveniently forget is that "All that glitters is not Gold."

We all admire the Tiger for his stealth and the power that rips from his moving frame of body. We all marvel at the swoop and the thrill associated with the swoop of the Eagle but have you seen the same from the eyes of the Deer that bears the brunt of the Stealth or the Rabbit that will bear the power of the swoop? Behind every thing of beauty lies a brutality that can only be felt but not explained

Madhur Bhandarkar does well to base his story on this world of Fashion and exposes the world in as simple and as brutal a way as only he can. The research is complete but so is the compassion evident. Still he takes care to ensure that one does not end up thinking that the entire fashion world is bad. He refrains from painting the entire industry with the same brush; he refrains from tarring all with the same stroke but in his own deft manner just puts on gentle strokes that underline the world between the black and the white; the world we call grey. He refuses to preach and let's the viewer decide on what the viewer wants to take away from the film - but during the entire duration of the film - the director is the one in command and maintains a strong grip on the story so here you have a well-made intersection of the world of the designers and the world of the models and the world of the all-powerful media and the advertising agencies, all meeting together at one point

Priyanka Chopra plays in my opinion the role of a lifetime. Her performance as Meghna Mathur is the name by which she will be remembered once the arclights  have dimmed and the audience has forgotten her and newer and prettier faces have come to rule the marquee. The transformation of a young girl from the moffusil sleepy towns of young but awake India who dreams to do the impossible and become a supermodel in the face of mounting pressure and severe challenge from her family; the role of a woman who has strong values in life but who in pursuit of her life compromises on each and every one of them and finally ends up as nothing but a mirror image of herself is brilliant

Mirror Image I say, since a Mirror Image is you and I in shape and size but still what's an mirror image? It's only a shadow and shadows have no values - they bend as per the light and the angle of the light and as per the contours of the space they inhabit

Priyanka is as catty as required; as bitchy as can be and as vindictive as any in that high-pressure job. She plays the role as if it was a second skin to her and as expected the perforamance is just too good

Mugdha Godse as Janet is brilliant. She plays the role of the practical and good-hearted Janet to perfection. What impresses me the most about this young girl who happens to be a débutante is her body-language. Her body-language is not only stylish but also very comforting. No one can see her performance and say that this is her first performance. The subtleties and predicament of her position; the internal pangs of not being successful as a model and the mature and silent understanding of her position is something that makes her a force to watch out for

But the film really belongs to that young performer who has been taking the movie world by storm in the past few days - Kangana Ranaut. Kangana is the soul of the movie and the movie; however one may protest is essentially the movie because of Kangana

From the child-woman lost in her own world to the "showstopper" beyond excellence to the drug addict who just cannot stop being addicted to the model who has her breasts flashed all over in a classic case of wardrobe malfunction and is instead insinuated to be herself responsible for it all, to the model who is forced to be on the streets and then off it, Kangana displays a rare raw power and audacity. Such is the nerve of her performance that one may disapprove of her but one can never ever stop but feel for her. The strength of her performance lies in that she makes people empathize with her and not sympathize with her

The men in the movie are not the main movers in the film but each and every one plays his role with calm, poise and perfection. This is one of the few films that not only centre on feminine strength but are made with the feminine aspect fully in control of the ebb and flow of the movie

Arbaaz Khan as the double-minded and ruthless business tycoon who runs the Bombay fashion scene as his personal fiefdom is excellent. He does not have the author-backed role but he blasts away everyone with his brilliant portrayal of Mr. Sarin. I guess Arbaaz should should looking at roles like these that complement any performance and put forth his acting credentials for the world to see

Arjan Bajwa as Priyanka's one time lover plays his role of a conscience-keeper to the hilt. In his own way, the director uses him to carefully point out the difference between the one who claimed values but lost them and the one who made his career without compromising on the same. Arjan is focussed and plays his role well. Here's hoping to see more from this talented actor

Samir Soni as a designer with a different sexual orientation does a brilliant job. Unfortunately the director refuses to focus on his track but in whatever he gets, Samir still leaves a mark. Raj Babbar as Meghna's father plays his role well. The mature actor that he is, one gets a feel of what the tinsel-world sidestepped in the scene wherein he is trying to give his daughter a new lease of life. Kitu Gidwani and Rohit Roy are also well-cast in their roles - specially Kitu who does the role of an postman-editor quite well. Ashwin Mushran is superb as Meghna's best friend

Music by Salim-Sulaiman is brilliant and some of the tracks stand out. The one song that really makes me go wild and remember my days as a choreographer-cum-model is 'Mar Jawaa' which is brilliantly rendered by a a super stylish Shruti Pathak and Salim Merchant. Another track that makes waves when you listen to it is the all-dazzling "Fashion Ka Hai Ye Jalwa" by Sukhwinder Singh, Satya Hinduja and Robert Bob Omulo. It is a definite show-stopper

Another thing that I like about the movie is the Theme music that's fantabulous to say the least

Madhur Bhandarkar -an activist director is excellent to say the least. Like his earlier movies, each of them a masterpiece like Chandni Bar and Page 3, this movie also rivets the viewer and provides one with a ring-side show of the industry with privileged seats in the middle. The performances extracted are of the highest order and the metaphors used worth a dekko

It's rare to find a movie that encompasses so many different aspects of a movie and still remains so well-rooted and strong is rare in today's world but Madhur proves that a good director can still make movies that are different and beautiful - just like the boys and girls that inhabit that scene

Unlike the advice that Janet gives Meghana that a model is supposed to look and not think, this movie makes one think and think hard.