Black: Review
Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Hindi/English
122 mins, colour

-Cyril Sebastian

So, the big one has come and gone. In retrospect, is Black really going to change the face of Indian cinema as prominent public-relations-spokespersons-parading-as-journalists have claimed?

I, for one, do not think so. But before getting any further with that question, let's look at the movie itself.

Black is about the relationship between Michelle Mcnally (Rani Mukerji), a deaf and blind student, and her teacher, Debraj Sahai (Amitabh Bachchan). Or so it seems. Sanjay Leela Bhansali attempts, through this relationship, to portray the suffering of ‘challenged' sections of society, and of course, to show the triumph of the human spirit. Again, so it seems.

The film takes us on a journey through Michelle's life, from the time that she was a traumatized (or traumatizing) child with a severe disability, to the point where she overcomes it and gets a college degree. It also captures Debraj's unending optimism and dedication to bringing Michelle out of her ‘black' world. Luckily, his optimism does end when he loses his memory as a consequence of Alzheimer's disease. So, at the end of the film, there is a role reversal, with Michelle slowly starting to bring Debraj out of his ‘black' world of diminished consciousness.

Other themes are touched upon as well, notably, social stigma and society's hesitation at including such people within its fold.

I do not think that a film as ostentatious as Black will create a stir in any social consciousness or awareness about the lives and times of the challenged. The film is too pretty to actually make one seriously wonder about the problems of the disabled. It also assumes a given ‘humanity' or viewer empathy towards the physically challenged, which actually isolates them further. The sexual longing of someone with a disability is expressed, but it leaves the viewer with an awkward taste in the mouth, since this is the point where Debraj leaves Michelle and goes away, only to return as a man with no memory whatsoever of what had passed between them. Given the purity of the relationship (as claimed by Bhansali), such an act could not bring the house down.

The production values, art direction and cinematography are definitely a departure from what is conventionally seen in Bollywood, but I am sure that if Karan Johar (or anyone else) made a film about a similar subject, the look and feel would be quite similar. As such, there is nothing truly individualistic about this film maker's approach which might strike the layperson as unique.

Black does have an unconventional story line, relationships, look, and music, but it cannot be termed path breaking in any respect. However, in a country starved of any refreshing, mainstream content, Black has an appeal that is lacking in most current Bollywood films. In any case, it seems to have aroused enough curiosity, persuading people to go out and see the film in theaters.

To be fair to Bhansali, he has taken a definite risk making a film like this, even while he is (competently) exploring mainstream sensibilities. And it has worked to a reasonable extent. However, it is the same old Bhansali -- his sense of drama, aesthetics, and ultimately, a morality which refuses to evolve. If it was Hindustani classical music in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam , it is western painting and sculpture, dramatically lit, in Black . Though this may be in keeping with the setting of the film, one cannot but wonder if it is being deliberately foisted on the viewer as a justification of Bhansali's own aesthetic. While this may be the personal aversion of this reviewer, it is important to note that these aesthetics never dissolve into the film, they remain precisely at the level of aesthetic or stylistic elements.

Black may change the face of Bollywood cinema in the years to come, but at the moment, it remains one man's idea and one man's self-indulgence. It also smugly shelters itself in the elitism of film making as an “art.” It is neither mainstream, nor art house, nor middle cinema. I wonder if a film that is an exception on so many counts will change anything.