Parineeta (2005)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Pradeep Sarkar

Writers:

Saratchandra Chatterjee (novel)
Vidhu Vinod Chopra (screenplay)

Release Date:

10 June 2005 (Australia)

Genre:

Drama | Musical | Romance

Plot:

The lifelong romance between Lolita (Balan) and Shekar (Khan) is upset by the arrival of another man.

Plot Keywords:

Calcutta India | India | Brick Wall | Critically Acclaimed | 1960s

Awards:

3 wins & 21 nominations

Cast

Sanjay Dutt	...	Girish Sharma
Saif Ali Khan	...	Shekhar N. Roy
Diya Mirza	...	Gayetri Tatya
Raima Sen	...	Koyal (Lolita's sister)
Sabyasachi Chakraborty	...	Navinchandra Roy
Rekha	...	Moulin Rouge singer
Vidya Balan	...	Lolita (Gurcharan's daughter)
Achyut Potdar	...	Gurcharan (as Achyut Poddar)
Ninad Kamat	...	Ajit
Surinder Kaur	...	Rajeshwari
Kumkum Bhattacharya	...	Vasundhara
Supriya Shukla	...	Sunita
Smita Malhotra	...	Charu
Rajesh Sharma	...	Ratan
Howard Rosemeyer	...	Siddhart Tantiya

Also Known As:

A Married Woman (International: English title)

Runtime:

130 min

Country:

India

Language:

Hindi

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Malaysia:U | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | UK:12A | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Calcutta, West Bengal, India

Company:

Vinod Chopra Productions

Trivia:

The train Shekhar Rai is riding during the song "Kasto Mazza" is the same one his mother, Sharmila Tagore, was riding in the film Aradhana (1969)

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The guitar that Shekhar plays in this movie was not made in 1962 (when the movie is set). The first synthetic roundbacks, introduced by Ovation, weren't in production until 1966, and the particular model seen in the film was brought in much later than that.

Quotes:

Shekhar Rai: Quite a weak business man you are, Dad. Entered into such a loss inducing bargain.
Nabin Roy: [shocked] What?! How much did the bargain settle for?
Shekhar Rai: For free! And still you paid such a heavy price. Becasue you gained the land, yes. But you lost your son in the process.
Nabin Roy: Have you lost your mind! In a few minutes Mr. Lala will be here and-
Shekhar Rai: First will you aks Mr. Lala whether he is willing to give his daughter to a married man?!
Nabin Roy: [Mother and father are both shocked] What!
Shekhar Rai: That's right! I'm already married!
Nabin Roy: To whom?!
Shekhar Rai: Lolita
Rajeshwari: [overjoyed] Really son? When did this happen??
[...]

Movie Connections:

Version of Parineeta (1953)

Soundtrack:

Kaisi Paheli Zindagi

** Movie that reassures our faith in good cinema **

First things first. Parineeta is a classic. When smart choices like these are made by film makers nothing much can go wrong. Of course, there is always the ever lurking risk of comparison with the novel, but it is safe to say in this movie's case that everyone involved does a wonderful job in executing it on the screen.

Vidya Balan(as Lolitha) makes a mind blowing debut. She seems like someone who has been doing this for ages! The natural flow of emotions that she carries in her eyes and so many unsaid words makes you fall in love with her every time she comes on the screen. I am going to go out of my way here and say Lolitha is my kind of a life partner. No two ways about it.

Saif Ali Khan (as Shekar Rai) once again proves that he is a horse for the long run. His character is a complex array of emotions - ranging from the musical and romantic to the obedient son of a rich man - and Saif does justice to his role big time. I would definitely recommend him to star in more such classics since it suits him really well.

Despite his small (yet very significant) role as the kind hearted gentleman - Girish Babu, Sanjay reassures you why we love him so much. If you were rolling on the floor when he was Munnabhai, you will take a bow to his dignified personification of Girish. A legend without a doubt.

All said and done there is one thing which kept haunting me is Sanjay's casting. Call me crazy but somehow Abhishekh Bachchan kept flashing in the mind's eye for Girish's role. He would have been ideal for that role given the range the character covers.

Music is just mind blowing. Mitra does an excellent job in recreating the 60s Calcutta and feel of the life in post-British India without a single glitch. My personal favorites are "Piyu Bole...Piya Bole.." and "Kashto Mazza..." shot on the train to Darjeeling.

For someone who wants to see a REAL Indian movie this is the great example. If people loved Lagaan for being Indian to the core, this one will definitely make it to their list. Movies like these go to show that one does not have to bare skin and gyrate to remixes to be heard. What is loud and clear are the silences that this movie captures.

Well done everyone who were associated with "Parineeta". It was a brilliant and satisfying movie experience.

A 10/10 for this pure classic and hope to see more such wonders come out of the think tank of the Indian movie industry. (Calling it Bollywood will not make justice to such gems.)