There are many films that have
been made on the theme which glorifies the evil of Mumbai, which brings to
light the cruelest this city can ever be to an individual, which scraps out
various insights about the struggle to survive in a city where People are the
drugs. They are so many around you that it may make you feel claustrophobic and
yet isolated at the same time! Such is Mumbai! Such is life here.
And adding a layer or two of
emotions to this already boiling with emotions kind of a theme, Citylights does
not do much in terms of storytelling as compared to the performances it
showcases per se!
Routine is not always monotonous
or mundane! Presenting or projecting it in a correct manner can make routine
feel like a one-time phenomenon. Citylights picks up a routine topic of
survival against odds and goes on to weave a cloth that is drenched in the
colours of tragedy and grief with a slight shade of hope creeping in through
the borders of the cloth. It is the the predictable-ness of the proceedings
that takes a toll on the story telling.
The screenplay gets stuck at
places which makes a scene seem elongated for no reason or rhyme. Character
Graph and character development seems spot on and stupendously planned for
Rajkumar Rao but the same cannot be said about his wife. This unevenness at
times creates doubts regarding the behaviour of a particular character.
Yes they say that clichés are clichés
because they are true but clichés about Mumbai, which there seem to be plenty
in this Hansal Mehta flick seem to irritate more often than not! When in need
of money and if you happen to a woman, being a Bar dancer is the only freaking
job available to you! Isn't it?
There are certain scenes which
have a brilliant impact and convey a lot in terms of emotions. Deepak's wife
being forced out of her home and the closing scene of the film are sheer
marvels! Such scenes make cinema worth watching!
When it comes to performances,
Rajkumar Rao is unabashedly and brutally real! From the dialect to the
emotions, from the vulnerability to the helplessness, Rao shines in his role
and gives a towering performance. An extremely well crafted performance. It is
for him that Citylights can be watched. He is an amazing talent with an
extremely rare gift of emoting through his eyes! The National Award last year
was very well deserved indeed.
Pratilekha who plays the role of
the wife of Rajkumar Rao too pitches an extremely honest effort which is let
down hugely by the uneven character sketch drawn for her.
The supporting cast acts as per
required. Manav Kaul does an excellent job as Rajkumar's colleague.
The music by Jeet Ganguli is
below average and talented singers like Arijit Singh and Neeti Mohan are wasted
in an album which is filled with tracks that are repetitive and unimaginative.
Hansal Mehta has been competent
with the direction but the overall impact of the film gets lost in a screenplay
which has too much to offer but too less to convey. Yes the director has been
honest with his effort but Citylights, like Hansal's much appreciated SHAHID,
is a bit overrated according to me!
Citylights has nothing new to offer
to the viewers. Despite being an attempt to make realistic cinema, Citylights
offers an extremely dramatic outlook to the already theatrical life of
Mumbai.
Dreams should have wings but the
wings of a sparrow can never achieve the heights attained by those of an eagle!
Dreams also deserve a reality check!
This possibly summarizes the
message that Hansal Mehta tries to convey through his film which could have
been an excellent film had it been edited properly, curtailed in clichés it
tries to prove true and tried to offer something which wasn't seen before on
celluloid in a film based on the extremities of MUMBAI!
Citylights is watchable simply
for the performances and the simple message that this film tries to
convey.
**2.5STARS**
