DVD Reviews Delhi 6

MOVIE DETAILS

Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor, Waheeda Rehman, Deepak Dobriyal and Rishi Kapoor
Director: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Producer: Ronnie Screwvala and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Music: A.R. Rahman
Lyrics: Prasoon Joshi

THE FILM

Before the release of Videsh - Heaven On Earth, if there was one movie that won hands down in terms of being the strangest and most exasperating affair of 2009, it was Delhi 6. The film had a 'bandar' as the central protagonist sans any head or tail. The film tried to be all intelligent and message oriented but in the final run, it failed on both the accounts. Also, throughout its two hour odd duration, it could never make up its mind around the genre it belonged.

Ok, so the makers may argue that the subject of Delhi 6 is such that it couldn't be categorised as per a genre. Well great, that's fine but only for the creative (?) brains that have gone into making the film. For an average audience which walks in to watch a movie like Delhi 6 that boasts of an 'A' star cast and production values, one does go in with certain expectations of a concrete storyline to be told. If there is no storyline then the treatment has to be engaging enough to keep the audiences entertained. And if treatment is also an issue for the entire duration of a film, then the last resort is presence of some non-stop gimmicks that could ensure some 'paisa-vasool' moments.

In case of Delhi 6, the movie failed on all accounts. Neither did the entire metaphor of 'kaala bandar' work (makers may come back and say that 'aajkal ki audience ko yeh movie samajh nahi aayi' but that's not really the case as there was no hidden treasure to be unearthed throughout the film's length) nor did a huge ensemble cast that gathered to get some magic rolling but succeeded only in bits and pieces and that too only in the first half.

In fact Delhi 6 too got beaten up most due to the horrible 'second half syndrome' as the film started meandering in all directions. 'Pyaar-mohabbat' between Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor could hardly develop beyond a point, the story ceased to move forward even as Abhishek jumped from terrace to terrace in pursuit of a 'kati patang' and dozen odd other characters kept coming in and out of the scene. Deepak Dobriyal's 'jalebi-waala' act was fine but where was Rishi Kapoor gone after being his charming best in the opening reels of the film?

The worst is kept for the last 30-45 odd minutes of the film where the proceedings get truly unbearable. Introduction of a 'baba' who creates a rift between Hindus and Muslims appears to be totally unwarranted and this is the point where one starts wondering if Delhi 6 actually had everything bound, clear, checked and rechecked before it came on floors? The sequence of events from here keep taking the movie to an all time low and what hits most is Abhishek Bachchan's transition into a 'kaala bandar'. Oops, now where did this one come from? Hold on, there is one more place where you would repeat the same question. And that's the climax sequence where all of a sudden Amitabh Bachchan meets Abhishek in a 'Chandni Chowk' ishtyle heaven and shares 'jalebis' with him on a rooftop.

It's bad enough to make a monkey out of an audience!

PACKAGING

The DVD comes in a regular plastic case though it is better than the usual Moser Baer 'thin plastic case' that had almost become a trademark for cheap priced DVDs over the years

DURATION

The film's duration is 135 minutes

SPECIAL FEATURES

Now this is a real fast one that has been pulled on the DVD buyer. The DVD box proudly declares Delhi 6 to be arriving in a 2 DVD pack. However, there is a mere 10 minutes of content available in the second DVD where one gets to see the making of three songs - 'Masakali', 'Arzian' and 'Yeh Delhi Hai Mere Yaar'. Hardly interesting stuff even as Rahman and Prasoon give a few titbits around the conceptualisation of the three songs.

Other than this 10 minutes segment, there are 7-8 minutes more spent on a few promos of the movie followed by audience response to the film after it's release. One wonders that for these few minutes of extra software which would have easily fitted into the first DVD itself, why has a buyer been forced to spend some precious money on an additional DVD?

TECHNICAL DETAILS

- 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation
- Subtitles in English
- Dolby Digital 5.1 and Stereo

PRICE

Rs. 149/=

CONCLUSION

2009 was seeing one of the most disastrous times at the box office when Delhi 6 had released. The industry was reeling with the collective failure of Chandni Chowk To China, Luck By Chance, Billu and Delhi 6 was being looked as the saviour of Bollywood. However, it only added to the woes of the industry and was yet another unwelcome addition to the heap of disappointments. With a narrative that is neither engaging nor entertaining, Delhi 6 remains to be an absolutely un-engaging, pointless and self-indulgent exercise.