DevD: A Perfect Film

It is not very judicious to defend yourself when you find yourself ion a minority of 9:1. I committed that sin yesterday and suffered the consequences of being called the odd man out. I felt like Henry Fonda in the classic ‘12 Angry Men’. I still hold on to my opinion with utmost conviction that DEVD is the most wonderful film I have come across in life. Although I missed the version of Bimal Roy and Saigal but then it is certainly steps ahead of what Bhansali had created out of Sharat Chandra’s Devdaas. I might have an edge over others for having read the book in the mothertongue but that does not in anyway make the movie look alien to someone who’s been virgin on the subject of Devdas.


I would argue with my contradictors as to what makes a movie good or bad? Story? The story remains an eternal saga of an anti-hero. The book itself has been translated to numerous languages and remains immortal even after 100 years. Its Screenplay? Well, we commend the screenplay of movies like, Requiem for a Dream, Love and Loathing in Vegas, Dazed and Confused, even Ghajini for that matter. Was DEVD too difficult to understand? ‘No’, said my opponent. Does the background music make a movie good? Yes and doesn’t the movie have a great music. My adversaries will have to buy this point for it is they themselves who have been singing the songs of the movie. In fact the music score was never forced on to us, it spoke the soul of the movie. That is one point which made me love the film. I found a soul in it which I miss in many a movies. Any piece of art is a creation and giving it a soul is a very tough task. The legendary directors of the likes of Ray, Guru Dutt, V. Shantaram, Rakesh Om Prakash, have always laid emphasis on this. Anurag Kashyap comes out as a director who has had his lessons learnt really well.


My friends would agree that the Actors make a movie great. Abhay Deol did not take it long to establish Dev. Scene 1 was sumptuous. He does not make an extra effort to ascertain his character. I saw the rawness in him which is Devdas. Even after being in London, he remains the natural, impetuous, impulsive and reckless being. It was very much correct when Shahrukh Khan had said during his time that ‘everyone of us has a little bit of Devdas in us’. The phenomena is that the viewer does not sympathise with Dev but empathises with him. We reveal the same ego which Devdas has in situations alike. Devdas finds Paro beautiful however she’s not so physically. What makes him love her so much is the sensuousness and affection he has fathomed while growing up. The fresh Mahie Gill says all of this without any difficulty. A wonderful actor; I wouldn’t be wrong to say that I saw Smita Patil in her.


The special effects which showed the psychedelic Dev in intoxication and drunkenness are something new to the Indian Film Industry. The colours have remained dominant throughout the movie and it looks so dazzling and intense because of it.


Rarely did I find in Indian movies characters showing the sensitiveness, subtly projecting the feelings and expressing themselves without the dialogues. They have done it here. The scene where Paro standing on the door after washing his clothes says to Dev, “Tumhari aukaat yad dila rahi hun”, is too natural. It comes out with such an ease. Paro’s eyes and expressions say more than these words. Paro has taken her revenge. There is malice and contempt in the heart of both these people and equal is the love that they have, but the ego takes over them that moment. The scene so innocently drives on to becoming so strong and powerful.


It’s the beautiful mind of a very intelligent director which has given birth to a miraculous film. The consequences? Devdas still remains a rage in Indian cinema, but this time round He is DevD the Dude!