Dhanak Movie Review

Dhanak is a fable-like film set around a brother-sister duo that is simple yet never simplistic.

Cast: Hetal Gadda, Krrish Chhabria, Vipin Sharma, Gulfam Khan, Vibha Chibber, Vijay Maurya, Rajiv Laxman, Chet Dixon
Direction: Nagesh Kukunoor
Ratings:

(4/5)

Dhanak (English meaning: Rainbow) takes place in a utopian Rajasthan where two kids can undertake a journey that stretches over hundreds of kilometers, over days and nights. Where they meet a bunch of colourful and harmless grown-up characters, all eager to help them reach their destiny, and the few bad people they do meet are as harmless and simply sketched as the good grown-up characters to do any substantial harm.

It's that kind of a movie which we call "sweet and simple". This small, intimate film from Nagesh Kukunoor is a breezy, inoffensive, and often charming, two-hour ride that is all fable and fairy tale.

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Dhanak revolves around Pari and her young brother Chotu, who is blind. Pari has promised Chotu that she is going to help bring Chotu's eyesight back before he turns 10. They live in a hut in rural Rajasthan, with their strict aunt and easygoing uncle. The aunt is too involved in her household chores and the uncle (Vipin Sharma delivers with effortless but quality acting) is too fond of his hookah to care about Chotu's blindness. When Pari comes across an eye-donation drive poster featuring Shah Rukh Khan, her favourite superstar, she is convinced only he can make Chotu see again.

A still from Dhanak

Thus begins the journey of Pari and Chotu, who travel from one part of Rajasthan to another in search of their Godot. Except, they don't stand in a place and wait; they keep moving and never stop, just like the movie.

Dhanak's success lies in its simplicity. The story of this brother-daughter duo will bring to mind Satyajit Ray's stripped-down, matter-of-fact treatment of Pather Panchali. Pari and Chotu, in their journey, traverse through a Rajasthan that is curiously but understandably removed from its politics. Dhanak's Rajasthan is almost dreamlike and carnivalesque, thanks to the colourful cast of characters they meet on their way.

Kukunoor's ensemble cast of known and experienced character actors like Vijay Maurya, Vibha Chibber, Rishi Deshpande, Suresh Menon, Flora Saini, and some interesting faces like Roadies' Rajiv Laxman and actor and musician Chet Dixon is one cheerful lot and it is their individual performances that forms the backbone of the film.

While it is indeed the performances of the supporting characters that help Dhanak sail safely to shore, the film is carried entirely by the two first-timers playing Pari and Chotu, Hetal Gadda and Krrish Chhabria, respectively. The actors show tremendous chemistry throughout the course of the movie. The two never hug or declare how much they love each other. There's no "cute" scene where the sister wipes the brother's tears and promises to stick by his side. In that way, Dhanak may be simple, but is never simplistic. Nagesh Kukunoor never takes an easy route for exposition. Pari and Chotu's synergy and dissonance is defined by their constant bickering, their individualism and their contrasting reactions to different situations. The way the two kids have been directed shows what a master filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor is, even though his oeuvre has been patchy.

As for the music, Dhanak has one of the best soundtracks of the year. Tapas Relia, who has earlier worked with Kukunoor on Lakshmi, delivers a strong soundtrack that is mostly folk but sounds "contemporary" i.e. high production value, mainstream verse-chorus-verse structure, and accessible melodies. The most interesting song comes post-interval; yet another rendition of Mast Kalandar and among the most engaging versions of the song in recent times. Actor-musician Chet Dixon rap-sings about love and peace, playing a small role of a wandering hippie, while Chotu lip-syncs to Devu Khan Manganiyar's voice; this stretch is one of the many magical moments of Dhanak.

Even as the behemoth that is Udta Punjab will decimate anything that has released along with it, this inexpensive, humble but excellent production deserves some love and attention this week.