Reviews

I don't watch much Tamil cinema (mostly because I'm not familiar with it), but when I was last in India I heard many people talking about this film. They were saying it was moving and touching, something which i generally equated to overwrought melodrama.

Almost eight months later, I came across the DVD for "Autograph" by accident, and decided to give it a try. I was shocked.

This was an excellent picture, done with care and a lot of heart. Sure there are a few (and only a rare few) overly melodramatic moments, but overall it really touched me. Anyone (especially men) who have gone through the turmoils of relationships broken or incomplete will feel a joyfully sorrow connection to this film. I was moved by its honesty and quite frank look at relationships, and it brought a smile to my face when the film reveled in the exuberance and innocence of childhood crushes and young infatuation.

I rarely recommend modern commercial Indian cinema (because most of it is unfortunately subpar), but this is a lovely little film, definitely an engaging romantic drama. Kudos to the director/ writer Cheran for doing excellent work with visuals and performances, and I hope he continues to make such honest films in the future. 8/10

I saw this film on Indian television many years ago and remembered it distinctly, one for its storyline (which as a South Asian American I could relate to), and second for the quite interesting name of the director. Little did I know way back then that I was watching the work of one of current cinema's more gifted filmmakers.

I found a rare VHS of the film and recently viewed it, and much could be see of the distinctive M. Night Shyamalan style. There is no twist ending to this film, but there is a silent and slow development to the story which pays dividends to the viewer. One could see that Night was not in complete control of his powers, but as a debut film, "Praying" is a highly accomplished piece of work, and was a precursor to a wonderful talent indeed.

The cinematography of DP Madhu Ambat is excellent, the acting is even, and the music a bit synth-cheesy, but what truly stands out is the emotional depth of the film. In hindsight there may have been too many issues tackled within the film (arranged marriages, caste, religion, poverty, ragging, elderly respect, diaspora, and family) but nonetheless all are addressed truthfully and honestly.

If you can locate this film, it is worth a watch. You'll see the beginnings and origins of Shyamalan's signature style, and a wonderful little piece of independent low-budget film-making.

Devdas, to my understanding, was written as an insight into a tortured soul. It was also a parable of class and almost feudal divisions- something which the Indian subcontinent is still struggling to get over.

This is where the production values of Devdas destroyed the essence the story- for some reason, perhaps because he had a budget that was unprecedented in Indian cinema, director Bhansali decided to go opulent in every facet of the the production. Paro's family, who in the text is a working class family, lives is a mansion on their own right in the film. I found it hard to empathize/ sympathize with any of the character's logic about "lower class" versus "upper class" because the production made them all more wealthy than 99.9% of the population of India! It puts an elitist spin on the entire film, and I really didn't appreciate it.

Devdas is not a story that deserves opulence- it is a dark, personal tale. It's spaces are small and internalized, almost claustrophobic. The character of Devdas is continually drawn inward, and he brings everyone he loves down with him into his abyss. What we are given instead is a wide open canvas, something more fitting for an epic battle between nations, not hearts.

Some might argue that Devdas is an exercise in escapism, but what the novel was about was escapism in an entirely different spectrum. Alcoholism is indeed escapism, but in the worst possible way. So is class discrimination. If Bhansali really wanted to create an opulent epic worthy of his budget and production team, he should have chosen a subject such as the Taj Mahal or the life of the Nizam. What he's given us is a high gloss finish on a rough and tormented subject- a very ill fit indeed.

And on a side note, I found it funny that the entirety of Chandramukhi's village was lit by 10,000,000 candles. Women with saris take extreme caution.