Nagesh Kukunoor is a gutsy filmmaker – an aberration in an industry so used to clinging to formulae. Where most others would cash in on the success of their previous work by casting bigger stars and choosing bankable themes, he takes the off-beat path and follows up last year’s feel-good ‘Iqbaal’ with a stunning film about friendship, love and loss – ‘Dor’.
The plotline itself is quite intriguing. Zeenat (Gul Panag), a newly married girl from Himachal Pradesh learns that her husband, who is working in Saudi Arabia, has inadvertently killed his roommate Shankar and faces a death sentence. The only way Zeenat can save his life is by getting a pardon plea signed by Shankar’s widow. And so she sets off for Rajasthan in search of Meera (Ayesha Takia), with nothing more than a photograph in hand.
As Zeenat’s character unfolds, the film starts growing on you. Here is an admirable woman who knows her mind and heart and has the conviction to follow her chosen path undeterred by any obstacle. Along the way she meets a local impersonator (Shreyas Talpade) who decides to help her and tags along. Isn’t it wonderful to watch a platonic relationship between a woman and man conducted with such grace and dignity – far-fetched as it may seem?
Zeenat’s self-confidence and resolve waver in the face of Meera’s innocence and she is unable to spell out the purpose of her mission. But being the person she is, she gradually wins over Meera and transforms the timid widow into the lively teenager she was, not so long ago. The chemistry between Zeenat and Meera is magical – a true delight to watch two radically dissimilar women bonding so beautifully, that too in the myopic universe of Hindi cinema where friendship and fortitude are generally reserved for the male hero.
The odd glitch comes in the form of occasionally preachy dialogues and Takia’s out-of-place dialect which doesn’t quite suit her rustic character. Similarly, Kukunoor himself is miscast as a Meera’s lecherous neighbour who tries to buy her off from her father-in-law (Girish Karnad).
But that doesn’t take much away from this tightly crafted film with exquisite visuals of Rajasthan (and mercifully not garish and overly colourful), an excellent musical composition in “Yeh honsla” and awesome performances. Talpade is in prime form as the ‘Bahuroopia’ who mimics popular actors. Takia looks every bit like the vulnerable girl who’s trapped in a life of drudgery following her husband’s death. But the show-stealer is Gul Panag, whose personality suits Zeenat’s resolute character perfectly. In Zeenat, Kukunoor gives Hindi cinema a rare ‘modern’ heroine.
‘Dor’ is dedicated to the memory of Hrishikesh Mukherjee. Nothing could be more appropriate. Like Mukherjee’s cinema, Kukunoor’s works are populated by people who live by their convictions and preserve their self-respect through every adversity. More power to you Mr. Kukunoor. Our cinema needs men like you.
Deepa Gumaste
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