Last week I caught up on a wonderful movie -
The girl in the café. The reason I call it wonderful is because there are two brilliant sub-plots to it which meander their way each oblivious to the other to a powerful message ... of that of balancing need and greed.
The first sub-plot is where a lonely man tries to find love desperately but there is a professional barrier that he needs to scale ...
The second where a country tries to push hard the case of prioritizing aids to the poorest of nations and fulfill a promise of sorts ... almost fails ... and then finally succeeds
Both of these plots though revolve around the theme of greed overpowering need and how each counters it... and the common bond is the 'the girl in the cafe'.
Now r the days where enough is not good enough ... you have to be the best, own the best and live the best. The pressure is too much, succeed or perish, you cannot be left behind ... no way. Thinking of self-preservation first is passe, its now self only, else you risk being called a fool and be left to cry.
Gone are the days when you could have a nice tea by the corner shop and discuss the latest score ... nowadays you need to go to a certain Cafe Coffee Day in order to be even mentioning coffee in casual conversation. You need to be mentioning INOX when you speak movies ... gone are the days when you could speak of DC (Dress circle, remember ?) . Have we become too selfish ... or is there really a measure of selfishness ... or is it that we are born like that?
Two lovely quotes around the sub plots in sequence and you can feel what the movie is about -
Lawrence: We have a pair of unfortunate situations here. A man who has nothing in his life except his work, that is unfortunate. And then by a stroke of bizarre chance, he finds someone who makes that not true for a day or two. But then, suddenly, it seems as though the price that has to be paid for that ray of light is some kind of... disgrace. It doesn't seem quite fair.
Chancellor of the Exchequer: Ladies and gentlemen, we're handing around new proposals. And remember, even if the Prime Minister and I are alone on this, we are not alone. Behind us stand the 30,000 children who will die of extreme poverty each day and we are proud to be their representatives. I didn't give my life to politics in order to say that I was part of a generation that succeeded in cutting the tariff on the import of processed coffee to 27.3%. I want to be a member of that great generation that for the first time had in its power to wipe out poverty, and did so. Are we alone in this? Or will someone else stand beside us?This is hit-on-your-face movie with a big impact, a small goof notwithstanding (G8 summits are held always in a G8 country so Reykjavik is out of question).
The insane ease with which tend to accept deaths due to poverty, civil war and lack of medical aid in the deprived countries as mere statistics is massively challenged and we are compelled to take a fresh look at our inner self ... r we man enough ? man enough to stand and be counted ..?
That takes me to another movie albeit in Bollyland ..
Halla Bol ... Ajay delivers to his potential though seemed to be a little low on delivery... this movie has the indomitable Pankaj Kapoor with another stellar performance ... good watch both ...!!
