Ankhon Dekhi

The first fifteen and the last fifteen minutes of 'Ankhon Dekhi' (Writer/Director: Rajat Kapoor, 2014) prove that the hype around this film wasn't so unfounded. And the 60 near Bauji's almost neurotic quest for truth & meaning, beyond a life of routine, duplicitous and hand-me-down experiences, strikes an immediate chord with similarly stricken 50 (and) above. However the ride is not always smooth, with moderately false notes sometimes marring a heartfelt narrative. Bauji's ragtag bunch of converts do not always sound convincing. The incessantly babbling young boy (later cured by a 'silent' and attentive Bauji) too feels like an implant. However the principal cast (led by Sanjay Mishra as the idiosyncratic yet fondly familiar Bauji, and including Rajat Kapoor as his half-loving half-resentful younger brother Rishi, Seema Pahwa as Amma - his long-suffering yet protective wife, Maya Sarao as Rita - his spirited daughter, Taranjit Kaur as Chachi, Rishi's wife caught in the pushes & pulls of a non-harmonious joint family and Namit Das as Ajju - Rita's soft-at-heart and prudent lover) is outstanding. Thank you Rajat, for making an almost perfect enigmatic tale, of concerns particular and universal, of life, living, and dying. And yes, of flying, in the clear light of a warm day, or the somnolence of the cold night. I loved the last shot (special effects could have been better, though).