Movie Review – Kai Po Che (Hindi) – This kite flies high and high!!

We all have grown watching youth-centric Hindi films that are set in a city. As always, we put some expectations in place and want to see chic visuals and cool costumes on screen. That’s an archetypal Bollywood-ish film for many. If there’s a backdrop of a college and the actors studying there, it gives us many reasons to cherish. But, beating all the aforesaid myths to pulp is all about Kai Po Che – the term literally translates to “I have cut (the kite)” – a phrase used to display the jubilation that’s a post-effect of making your opponent’s kite flightless! The movie stays true to the the essence of the phrase and is a cut above the rest. The film is devoid of ‘Love is in the air’ hook-ups, tear-jerking break-ups and above all candy-floss visuals and songs. It’s only the deft story-telling technique that refines an otherwise simplistic story.

Kai Po Che is the second outing of Abhishek Kapoor who won many hearts with his debut film Rock On. He more than ably adapted Chetan Bhagat’s The 3 Mistakes of My Life to screen. The movie set in Ahmedabad revolves around three men with aspirations in their hearts and loads of responsibilities on their shoulders and the drama surrounding their lives. They want to dream big and stay progressive but their incorrigible ‘make ends meet’ attitude makes them regressive. They are always on the verge of walking against the grain but are succumbed to a custom-driven society in which they live in that still believes in entrepreneurship being a myth. In their odyssey, they try to bust this myth and become torch-bearers of real India. Like a whiff of fresh air, the director induces drama in the narrative and makes us believe that a film with small town lads could be as engaging as that of city-groomed fellas.

It is a simple, unworldly, wafer-thin storyline which racks our greycells by throwing some questions at us. Can the sport of cricket really act as an elixir to sort our differences? Is it possible for a college graduate to be nonchalant about the overtones of social consciousness? How does a political party championing Hindutva gets fresh blood into their system and then transform them into fanatics? The most important one – Kya dost ki behen kabhi girlfriend ban sakthi hai? The film hovers over these questions. And they fuel the thought provoking moments of the film. 

When compared to his last film, Abhishek Kapoor showed a lot of maturity in handling the script. You will be surprised to see how Bhagat's novel metamorphosed into a cinematic brilliance that’s irresistible and leaves the audience wanting for more. That’s the sheer magic of Kapoor and his team. The way he packs solid content in 2 hours brings out the finesse in him. Deepak Bhatia must be lauded for keeping the film crisp with his slick editing. The director pulls a knotty task trying to cut the clutter of conventional film-making that relies heavily on an apparent emotional quotient. The film strikes a fine balance by touching the emotional abyss without giving way to melodrama. In spite of the upsetting environment of politics and devastation, the film is appealing. Amidst the tears, you find a smile on your face, because, above everything, it’s the tale of triumph and togetherness.

Let’s meet the main characters Govind (Raj Kumar Yadav), Ishaan (Sushant Singh Rajput), Omi (Amit Sadh) and Vidya (Amrita Puri) in the up-country Gujarat. The three men are utterly contrasting to each other. They start their entrepreneurial journey in the year 2000 and during the course they see the first shopping mall being constructed in their town and they go through the turbulent times of facing the wreckage of the earthquake that hit the region. Every significant event from that period has been embedded into the narrative to weave a fine tapestry. 

The lives of the three were altered by things that are beyond their control, and this cinematic tale culminates in an overwhelming finale. Many hurdles cross their path but always their unswerving nature makes them stem the tide. The first one is the earthquake followed by many dire circumstances – both personal and political – leading to chagrin in their lives. But they stay undeterred and stand as a living testimony to the adage – Every cloud has a silver lining.

The director extracts more than able work from the acting department. This is the debut film of television actor Sushant Singh Rajput and he shines in the film’s most chromatic character of Ishaan. Amit Sadh, though a bit inconsistent in the character, delivers a persuasive performance as Omi. Amrita Puri’s Vidya is warm, vibrant and plausible. The one who steals all the brownie points is Raj Kumar Yadav. This guy is a novel talent in Bollyland. He plays the middle-class Govind with aplomb. The effectiveness of his role can be seen all through the film. These are not characters you would really know, because the story does not allow you to, but Kapoor’s clever handling of scenes reveals just a little more about them. Rather than getting deep into the subtle nuances of the four principal characters, the foursome writers’ brigade - Pubali Chaudhari, Supratik Sen, Abhishek Kapoor and Chetan Bhagat - left them shallow and superficial. But the film casts a magical spell with meticulously crafted cinematic details.

Another appreciable feature is the way cricket interludes were placed adeptly in the screenplay. Layer by layer the cricket element builds up the tempo until the climax. A young India takes shape from the cricket pitch and seeps into the national spirit. The second test match in 2001 India Vs Australia series, V V S Laxman’s staggering knock of 281, and finally India’s win against the Aussies was used effectively to ease the tensions between the characters. Cricket and cinema is not new, but this fine placement of cricket in cinema knew no bounds and forms the right connect with the theme.

Kai Po Che looks elegant because of the artistic flair exuded by the technical department. Camera work of Anya Goswami was near perfect in capturing the rustic locales of Gujarat and the fast paced game of cricket. It’s clean and gloss-free. Amit Trivedi tried to bring in lot of diversity in his music. The mélange of Indian instruments with their western cousins in phenomenal. He tried to break the jinx of wearied fusion and pulled off three commendable tracks for the film. As composer Sistla Suresh (www.facebook.com/SistlaMusic) remarked, Trivedi is poor man’s A R Rahman. The music forms an integral part of the overall sound design. Albeit it’s sporadically used in the narrative, the notes remain for long. An excellent new find, Hitesh Sonik, created the background score and he’s an amazing wealth of talent. Way to go.

Bottom-line: Kai Po Che has the sure-fire uphill arc of friendship, bromance, set-up, conflict, loss, aspiration, forgiveness, climax and a resolution. Everything is methodically and skillfully built up. The film is born out of conviction and is made interesting at multiple levels. On one side, it is gratifying with a simple story of hope and dreams, and on the other it brings out the intricacy of the nation’s most reprehensible socio-political segment. We seldom find a finely-crafted entertainer about all-embracing emotions. So don’t commit the FOURTH mistake of not watching this film.

My Rating: Expectation – 5/10; Reality – 8/10