Review : Swades

Swades is a subtly nationalistic film. Its a find yourself, your roots, your country film. It is not sophisticated or glamorous, so if you want the breathtaking locales of Switzerland (don’t get me wrong ; I like those too) this film is not for you. What it is, is earthy , smacking resoundingly of that indescribable thing I call quality.

The movie plot is basic and simple, but the director enlarges it effectively to deal with the issues of communal and societal ills. It is the story of Mohan Bhargava (SRK) an engineer at NASA, who comes to India to find his childhood nanny Kaveriamma (Kishori Balal). He traces her to a village and stays with her some weeks trying to persuade her to come back with him to the States. Kaveriamma lives with Gita (Gayatri Joshi), a principled young schoolteacher and her younger brother, and she won’t budge until Gita is married off and settled. Gita’s school building is about to be usurped by the village Panchayat unless she gets new students to enroll. So Mohan’s problems are twofold – to get new students for Geeta’s school and find a good “boy” for her. In resolving these two problems, Mohan meanders through life at the village getting to know the people, their problems, and their beliefs.

Through Mohan’s eyes, Gowarikar potrays the state of present day India, its poverty, its caste system, its child-labor and illiteracy. And lest you think he’s being one-sided he evens out the scale by beating up on NRIs (“Non-returning Indians”). Common sense rules though, and the dialogue between Mohan and the villagers on development, exemplifies that. Gowarikar also borrows from Dilip D’Souza’s writing, so if you are a fan of D’Souza’s work, this movie is for you. Go see it , you’ll know why .

Situations are real, and the inherent humor is well-developed, a definite relief from the slapstick comedy of other movies. The music is truly melodious, and the songs fit. I’m not an AR Rehman groupie, but hey, with this film, he’s elevated himself to the genius-level category. The title track which he has also sung, is an astounding number, and pretty patriotic. Sort of makes me want to be good and do better. All actors have done a fine job, although I could have done without SRK’s incessant eyebrow twitching. One of Sharukh’s better performances though. The movie is well-developed, flows smoothly, the forays into village (and metaphorically the country’s) problems, which are well-set into the story. The film is long, but holds your interest. I did not find it preachy, although it does embody the spirit of activism.

It is a rare film, which can string together many issues into a single storyline and still get you to feel for each one. Indeed, it is a very rare film, which can weave into its storyline subtly patriotic threads, to expose the enemy within. Admittedly, the treatment of some solutions in the movie is simplistic. Life never is that easy. But when the director’s intentions are honest, its gotta shine through. In Swades it does, and how.