Paa (2009) Reviews

• I'm glad it's original

  jaskunwar9932009-12-04

  For once, I was entering a Hall with the assurance that the movie I was about to watch was something ORIGINAL, something not copied from the West. And so, OBVIOUSLY, my expectations were low. You never know what you can expect from an original Bachchan movie! The credits began, and Jaya Bachchan could be heard individually pronouncing each name (the cast, the team behind the movie), and slowly, by the time she reached "Writer and Director", you wished her to stop. And then, in a magical tone, she says "Paa!", laughing along, and a soothing tone fills your ear and heart... and you know, yes, this is going to be a good show. Paa has its moments that touch you, that move you, that make you laugh, that make you feel warm, that make you happy... etc etc. There are moments that are supposed to make you cry... but they don't. I guess that's where Paa fails. Amitabh Bachchan in the lead role delivers a sweet performance, and Abhishek is seen trying very hard to fit in. Vidya sort of stumbles out of her "Vidya" character. The music of the movie is simple. The end credits song sung by Amitabh Bachchan was one amazing track. Even "Hitchki" was nice. The direction and flow was simple, though the cuts between Auro's waiting and Amol's political moves were rather jerky. The cinematography was simple and fulfilling, though the editing required spicing up. In the end, definitely go watch Paa. I was disappointed to find only 15 had come for the first day first show... me being one. It's films like these that should be more prevalent. In contrast, if Kambakkht Ishq was a HIT, then in that case this should be a BLOCKBUSTER. Sadly, I know that will not be the case. 7/10.

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• The story of Auro, a 13-year old boy suffering from progeria. And the story of his Maa, and Paa. In true Bollywood style.

  satyanshu_singh2009-12-04

  Imagine this. R Balki arrives with his second film after Cheeni Kum (2007), starring Abhishek Bachchan, Vidya Balan, Paresh Rawal and introducing a twelve-year old child actor. We do not know this kid, although it is possible that he impresses us all after we see him perform. But does this essentially guarantee a bumper opening for the movie? Can we safely assume that the audience will come into the theatres? Now, take this. The entire cast and crew remains the same. And although it is indeed possible to find an immensely talented child artist and create the desired character using prosthetic make-up and voice modulation, the director decides to cast Amitabh Bachchan as the child. And he calls the film Paa. The result is for us to see, in the form of one of the most smartly promoted films of our time. This is what we call star power. This is what I admire about the phenomenon of a superstar. And this is what this film uses in the best possible way. The film also uses the personality, and not the acting, of Abhishek Bachchan to create a gen-next politician, and we connect. It uses Vidya Balan to portray a strong, independent, modern Indian woman, and most importantly – a mother; and we connect. And it utilizes the human curiosity for the weird, our tendency to look at 'freaks' with wide eyes and held breaths, and converts that 'freak' into a warm, lovable and memorable character called Auro, and takes us into his world. It uses songs, melodrama and the Bollywood cliché to tell a story. It relies on the time-tested formula of emotional manipulation and succeeds in making the audience cry. It has decent production values, is marketed smartly and sold at cheap rates. The result is not a great, timeless, flawless piece of art. The result is a film that knows how to use the illusion of the medium. The result is a movie that moves. The best thing about Paa is that it knows what it is doing. It does not claim to be 'socially relevant', and does not ask us to leave our brains home before coming to the theatres. Instead it asks us to bring our brains, our hearts, our entire selves, not excluding the 'curiosity for the weird' that we all have but fail to accept. It treats itself as a film for everyone, and successfully creates an entertaining cinema experience. In its attempt, it often gets inconsistent, but it never seems uncertain. It is an innovation, and yes, that it is, which is sure of itself, including how to sell itself. It is an innovation that does not go wasted, and that is indeed an achievement in the Hindi film scenario of today. It has been a few decades now and Hindi cinema is desperately in the need for revival. For that to happen, if it ever happens, we need socially relevant cinema, we need cinema as works of art, we even need cinema with an international appeal, and with the guts to experiment . But what we need most is innovative ideas, true to Hindi cinema sensibility and tradition, not necessarily great in the absolute cinema-sense, but films which make people come, watch and connect. We need more films like Paa. I have no idea about how it is going to fare at the box-office. If it is a commercial success, my point would be proved beyond doubt. If it fails, well, I will try my best not to lose hope.

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• The father, the mother, the Auro... all is good but could've been better!

  Peter_Young2010-02-13

  R Balki directs 'Paa', a film I was very interested to watch. At first, the promos did not impress me and I expected to see a pretentious film at best, but the positive reviews and several recommendations made me finally catch this one. The film was a pleasant surprise: nice and simple, but somehow I still expected something else. R Balki did a very good job in terms of both writing and direction. The film's story is well-written and told, the execution is steady, and the dialogues are witty and light. But at some point I did feel that something was missing there. Don't know what. Maybe something in the portrayal of Auro's relationship with his mother could have been better done, though I liked how Balki portrayed his friendship with school kids, particularly a boy named Vishnu. Bachchan's casting in the role of Auro, which created a lot of buzz and curiosity pre-release, was brave and bold, but frankly speaking, it would have been more interesting to see a child actor playing Auro. I say that while considering the many young talents in the industry who could have easily been suitable for the part. Bachchan is somewhat overly tall for the role and since all of us know Auro is played by the great Amitabh Bachchan, it reduces the level of credibility in the film's authenticity, and many may feel it was made to showcase his greatness and to evoke such reactions as "wow! He plays his son's son!" But Bachchan does not disappoint. He manages to make Auro a likable character with his under-toned line delivery, expressive eyes and simplicity. A lesser actor of his age could have played the role in an overly childish manner with exaggerated mannerisms and noticeable attempts to overdo and emphasise the character's young age and disease symptoms. But not Bachchan. Hardly recognisable under this heavy mask of make-up, he naturally transforms into a little, intelligent kid of our times and is thoroughly convincing. Abhishek Bachchan, playing his real-life father's father is strictly okay in a role that is not very deep or demanding but still contributes to the film significantly. Vidya Balan is excellent as Vidya, the caring and loving mother who is also an assertive and independent career woman. Balan acts with grace and restraint and she is natural and compelling throughout. And she is absolutely stunning in her traditional Indian looks. Arudhati Nag is fine and effective as Vidya's supportive mother. The child who plays Auro's best friend Vishnu is simply adorable. I particularly liked a scene in which Auro and Vishnu have a phone conversation, and Vishnu sharply criticises his father. That was hilarious! Coming to the music, Ilayaraja composes a lovely, classical and joyful soundtrack for the film which gives it a very light and feel-good mood. The editing and the cinematography are well-done. Towards the end, 'Paa' is a bit emotional. It neither made me shiver nor tear, but it still was efficient and moving. I recommend you to watch 'Paa' with family or friends. Do not plan to either hate or love it. If you watch the film trying to ignore this wow factor, you will definitely enjoy it and will probably be able to appreciate Balki's efforts to make a lightly dramatic episode about one young boy and his relationships rather than a socially educative film on progeria. Just enjoy this witty, interesting and refreshing piece.

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• You got to see this cinematic excellence.

  bobbysing2009-12-06

  "Paa" evidently proves that Bollywood has still not lost it all and we still have film-makers who can deliver movies at par with the other parts of the world. Yes, the story-idea may have been borrowed from Francis Ford Coppola's "Jack" and the make-up may remind you of "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button". But at the same time, it's also true that "Paa" has nothing else related to these two names. "Paa" certainly belongs to its director R. Balki and the phenomenon called Amitabh Bachchan. Just when everybody thought that this man has done it all, he comes up with an extraordinary and out of the world character named "Auro". What's even more astonishing in his portrayal is that you never find the real Amitabh Bachchan anywhere on the screen in those two hours. In the entire past comprising all his mammoth blockbusters, Amitabh has always been there as a Bollywood persona hidden in his on screen characters. But here is a movie where you know that there is Amitabh featuring in it, but you still can never feel him on the celluloid. He simply adopts a completely different soul minus his world famous style and baritone voice structure. And that's the magical spell, cast by the magician actor. Truly speaking, Amitabh literally sends every reviewer in search of new words to praise his impeccable and incomparable act of 'Auro' in "Paa". Right from the first scene introducing "Auro" in his school function, the veteran actor makes you believe what you are seeing. He humbly forces every viewer in the theater to admit that he is watching the most accomplished actor of all times who has just walked beyond any number games and Bollywood Titles. Especially in the scenes where he is interacting with his kid friends in their own school lingo and in the emotional climax sequence inside the hospital, Auro goes on to set new benchmarks for the entire Indian Film Industry. Though the script has some unnecessary references of political activities and slums which could have been easily avoided, but the spotless performances of the entire cast don't let you ponder over these needless insertions and the movie goes on impressing you continuously. Unexpectedly Amitabh is not the only one to watch out in the movie. He is superbly supported by three highly talented people in the cast lead by Vidya Balan as a tough mother who raises Auro on her own with the help of her mother. For Vidya's effortless performance, I would only like to say that in all these years of movie watching, she is the only female actress who reminded me of Jaya Bhaduri Bachchan and her flawless natural acting.To feel what I am trying to say, just carefully watch the scene where Vidya gives Auro her approval to visit Delhi. She exactly acts like Jaya in that particular scene. Abhishek Bachchan as the truthful politician and father of 'Auro', delivers another polished act on the lines of his "Guru" and "Yuva". He comes up with a very controlled emotional performance and never tries to outshine any other person in the scene. Both Vidya and Abhishek share a very cozy chemistry on screen which actually helps a lot in enhancing the overall impact of 'Auro' on the viewers. The third worth mentioning act comes from Arundhati Naag, who plays Vidya's mother and Auro's naani, whom he fondly calls as Bums. Her praise worthy act emerges as a strong pillar in addition to the other stalwarts present in the movie. Paresh Rawal again remembers his immense talent after few irresponsible acts in some brainless movies. Last but not the least come all the child artists in the movie, who are intelligent enough to understand the pain and suffering of their friend "Auro" and try to help him out wherever they can. It was really nice to see that 'Auro' was not being teased in his school as suggested by the promos. In fact it was very thoughtful to show all the kids having the empathy to feel the abnormality 'Auro' was born with. Musically, the film has the maestro Illayaraja to give exactly what was needed as per the subject. His theme music is pleasant and his songs don't act as a hindrance in the narration. R. Balki very skillfully uses the songs in their short versions and in the background wherever needed. Dialogues are intelligent, witty and well written. Cinematography by P.C. Sreeram is remarkable. He brilliantly uses innovative camera angles to portray the character of "Auro" and his abnormal body structure. But what makes "Paa" so believable is the unimaginable make-up done by Christien Tinsley and Domini Till. Kudos to the duo to achieve this herculean task and hats off to Amitabh Bachchan for undergoing such a painful process in this age. Honestly, the main highlight of the movie is that even when the story revolves around a diseased character with an abnormal behavior, the director is simply not interested in taking you onto an emotional journey at all. So, "Paa" is not just another tear jerker as expected by many. On the contrary it's a very enjoyable movie having many light entertaining moments with 'Auro' for everyone in the family. And for that the director R. Balki rightly deserves all the praises. In short the movie is an amazing must watch experience for everyone still enjoying the gift of life at any age. It makes you realize the importance of all your days left in the count. And on the top it has a performance which can easily be kept along with any world class act by any actor in the entire globe. In other words, only one statement can match the unbelievably expressive and impressive act of Amitabh Bachchan in the movie. He once again proves that at present he is the only "Big Paa" for the entire Indian film Industry.

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• Paa....!! Go for it....

  mujtabashareef2009-12-05

  Paa...a great movie... I have seen it yesterday....loved it...story is simple and subtle, the characters are really very good... Big B...he has shown his one more form of acting, no one could compete him on this.... He enacted the role of a 13 year old boy with so sincerity , that in Auro you will never be able to see that its him who is enacting this character.... Auro is a gem.... Vidya Balan as a unwed mother is good to see...she has proved her mettle once again after very long, thats after Parineeta.... she looked beautiful in sari's.... Abhishek Bachan has enacted the role of a Young Indian Politicain sincerely...if all India Politicians, become like him, we wont have any more corruption in India... Paresh Rawal is good in a brief role and Bum is exceptional... Technically, the movie is very well directed and the dialouges are very good... R Balki is a very good director and Paa is another feather in his Cap after Cheeni Kum.... Music by the maestro Ilaiyaraja is very good and soft on ears, Paa Theme is the best... Go for it with your Family... This is for all ages from 6 to 60... My Ratings.. Perfomrances... 10/10 Story and Direction ... 9/10 Music ... 10/10 Overall... 9/10

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