A bejewelled thief - Lootera

I am not a first-day first-show kind of a person, not a weekender, fortnighter or even a monthly-movie goer (there’s only ever an exception when it comes to my favourite heroes and I am not going to name them here, for I would so not want a deluge of sarcastic comments here :P). Coming back to the crux, since I am neither a fan of Sonakshi nor Ranveer and I haven’t even watched Vikramaditya Motawane’s much acclaimed Udaan, it is solely because of the reviews (by friends and my favourite celebrities) that I went for a show of ‘Lootera’.

But even then, I don’t pick up my pen unless I am so driven that articulation of my feelings becomes a need. And boy! I am overwhelmed.

I read ‘The last leaf’ years ago in school. It is one of the very few stories that have leapt out of curriculum to occupy a permanent corner in my heart. But in all these years I hadn’t imagined that it could be retold more beautifully. Well, I was naive. Lootera is a heart-warming tale, written like poetry and shot like a painting... its like a glass of warm golden vintage vine, which mesmerizes all your senses before quenching your thirst. Throughout the first half, I marveled at the craftsmanship of the director, thinking about my own writings, feeling hopeless and hopeful at the same time.

But the greatness of the movie lies in the fact, that I couldn’t objectify it for long. I didn’t realize, when I stopped picking up the nuances of the story, and instead got engrossed in Pakhi and Varun, their smiles,  their feelings, their love, loss & pain. On and off, I saw my reflections in Pakhi. I don’t think anyone could have been there and done that better than her. And Ranveer, well he just didn’t paint a masterpiece of a leaf, but of a character as well.

Standing ovation to the entire cast and crew of Lootera.... In the crowd of mediocre blockbusters, once in a while someone creates magic. Lootera might not run to packed houses (half the hall was empty today), but it will linger in my memory (and hopefully in that of few more people like me) and make me feel alive, as a writer and as a woman.