Well Done Abba (Hindi)
Well Done Abba is the story of Armaan Ali, a driver working for a Senior Executive in Mumbai, who goes on leave. He wants to find a match for his teenage daughter, who stays with his brother Rehman Ali and his wife Salma. When Armaan returns to work after 3 months his young employer wants to sack him.
But Armaan Ali has a story to tell. The story he tells is a humorous and often hilarious account of the events and happenings that delayed him from returning after a month. He avails a government scheme to dig a well in his agricultural patch. Things spiral out of control so much so that the Government is about to collapse! The question remains, how true is this compelling story!
We live in corrupt times and how?! Well done Abba reminds us of that and more. It reminds us of the gravity, the irony and our own submissiveness to the whole do. Would have worked much better if it were about an hour shorter.
Depending on where you look at it from, Well Done Abba could portray varied degrees of class, or the lack of it. Compare it with regular bollywood fare and it'll come across as a good film. But place it alongside Mr. Benegal's other works, and it'll look like a cheap magazine kept alongside Dickens, Premchand & Tolstoy. If you really want to see contemporary Benegal, invest in a DVD of Welcome to Sajjanpur instead of buying at ticket for this one. This can be watched on TV if you're really interested - the ads might make it worth the time.
Well Done Abba is a Vadivelu sketch stretched out to feature length, elevated to political satire. But the laughs don't come often, and the lampooning is gentler than it perhaps needs to be.
The tale is narrated by Armaan Ali, driver to a high-powered executive in Mumbai, who decides to have a well dug in his backyard, applies for a Government grant to do so and finds himself up against corrupt bureaucratic machinery at every turn. Left to himself, he might have given up. Or maybe not even gotten started on the well in the first place. But his daughter Muskaan (Minissha Lamba) is made of sterner stuff. And so begins the satirical portion of the story...
The strange thing is, Benegal never pushes too hard for a laugh. He seems content with a chuckle here and there. The cases where he tries really hard -- Ravi Kishan is a prime example -- work as often as not. On top of which, he uncharacteristically shoehorns in a couple of songs that really don't work and almost threaten to derail the entire enterprise.
Holding it all together is a magnificent performance by Boman Irani, who by now comfortably wears the mantle of best character actor of his generation. His Armaan Ali is a meek man, loves his daughter and his wayward brother (Irani again, in another role the film doesn't need) and wishes to be a lot more progressive than his environment seems to approve of. Boman Irani portrays his character arc through a process that is more inward than outward -- as Armaan meets more and more people who want their share of the Government's largesse, he seems to shrink into himself. When he finds the courage to fight back, it is not in the chest-beating, in-your-face manner favoured by the people around him.
What makes his performance so interesting here is that, for the most part, Armaan is simply reacting to the developments around him. Despite the fact that he is not the prime mover in the proceedings, Irani portrays the transition from meekness to despair to courage so naturally that he makes it seem like he is.
He deserves the compliment in the title. As for the film itself, I'm not so sure.
"Well Done Abbaâ€
But I'd say Good Work. Those who love the off-beat cinema, "Well Done Abba" is a good movie from the film-maker but not his best. I shall start off my review differently by citing them in points
Plus:
Minisha Lamba's acting - slightly improved from her previous performances. She could perform better though.
Shyam Benegal's direction - going better. Detailing he has done to his characters is excellent including the way they were made to portray them. Hats off to director for making a script / adaptations from various stories and linking them together, linking them well... has a realistic feel
Shantanu Moitra's Music - his experience in jingles n the soft subtle music really works well with the movie. (I liked Sandesha sandesha and Pani ko taraste songs. The Wedding song by Ila Arun with those western beats n mix will surely find its place in North Indian marriage Processions / ‘baraats’)
Neutral:
Boman Irani's acting - There wasn't much of a stand out performance as for an actor but has an earnest portrayal of both characters he handles. But at times it was more like he was merely acting to the direction rather than giving life to the character. There are times when he did some scenes well though - Like the expressions he makes for the passport photo-shoot, reaction he has when he finds out Samir Dattani is an orphan and his religion is unknown.
Story line - Seemed slightly feeble.
Comedy - There are many light moments well placed in the movie that may cause rib tickling: P.
Cinema's Message to Society - If Benegal had focused his script more on one or two subjects rather than grazing through many of the problems or situations in our society, it'd have been better. The story has its focuses on Water issues, the problems faced by illiterates in villages, the nature & flaws of government policies and the officials involved - the bribery in the system and the modes to reclaim them, education of the girl child, of how women politicians turn out to be mere puppets in the hands of others (citing e.g. of the Panchayat President), off women being 'sold' to Sheikhs. It also points out on how relationships should be maintained (relation build up of the two Ali brothers), of being patient ( Boman Irani while portraying Arman Ali never reacts in anger, but has his way to respond to them innocently.)
The idea of "stolen well" - The script is not that clear of how the idea of a stolen well is brought up by them. (or that I didn't understand)
Minus:
Lingo - The Hyderabadi lingo throughout slightly reduces the entertainment factor. Not many will like the style.
Pace of Movie - it starts slow. Even though it build up pace, somewhere the continuity seemed missing. (I felt so). Audience needs to be slightly patient till the end of first half
Sonali Kulkarni & Rajat Kapoor - Of these Sonali Kulkarni's role was wasted. Felt hers was a silly role of that of a newly wedded wife. Rajat Kapoor is not given enough importance as for his character by the director.
A curter product to the viewers might have left a better impact. "Well Done Abba" is not everyone's cup of tea, but if you drink it slowly, you may like it too...
A good movie on the whole. Some elements in the movie were a bit unrealistic, but those are pardonable offenses. If you decide not to analyze the details too carefully, there is a good chance that you may enjoy the movie. By the way, I might prefer calling the movie, "Well done Muskaan!"