*This is for the SXSW Film devotees, who are crowding the streets.
*An interesting development here as the Bollywood indie scene experiments with MMS video and shaky handheld digital cinema-verite. Cinema gets a little geekier every day.
http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movies/review/14205/index.html
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LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA signifies the changing face of Hindi cinema. Ekta Kapoor's first foray into experimental cinema has all it takes to be a cult film that might just trigger off a new trend in Bollywood. It's courageous, disturbing and yet entertaining!
Story I: In a film institute in North India, a student gears up for his diploma film. With an amateur small-town cast, Rahul starts filming a love story and eventually falls in love with his heroine Shruti. They elope, get married and dream of a blissful future.
Story II: Adarsh installs security cameras in a small, upcoming 24-hour department store. In desperate need of cash to clear off his debts, Adarsh hits upon the idea of making a porn clip through the security cameras in the shop. The victim? Rashmi, who works in the store. (((Ripped from today's headlines!)))
Story III: Prabhat - a sting journalist - attempts a series of failed suicides. He meets Naina, who is also trying to commit suicide. She had been promised a music video by Loki Local, a Hip Hop pop star. She slept with him for the same, but the video finally went to a Russian blonde. Prabhat and Naina decide to do a sting operation.
The first story starts off as a spoof on Bollywood, but you gradually realize that it bears an uncanny resemblance to at least two real-life love stories, which have had a heart-rending ending and which continue to remain in news to this date.
The second story - the MMS scandal - is scary. Just Google on MMS scandals and you will realize that so many girls have been victims of this technology. Unfortunately, in several reported cases, the MMS clips were distributed by the boyfriends themselves.
I'd like to add something more about this story... The sequence, however, is not meant to be seen as individual scene because it's an integral part of the story. The nudity is not aimed to titillate, but repel you. The scene is so stark and shot so pragmatically that at the end of the story, you start feeling distressed.
The third story - a sting operation - mirrors an actuality, yet again. You can't deny that the casting couch exists and people do resort to shortcuts to attain name, fame and money overnight. The sequence involving the Hip Hop pop star and the wannabe actress seems straight out of life. Also, we get a glimpse of how we consume news these days and journalists are forced to cover entertainment, instead of facts.
Director Dibakar Banerjee has a unique sensibility and a keen eye for the unconventional. His choice of subject and decision to shoot the film on a digital format needs to be lauded and also the intertwining of the three stories. LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA is sure to shake you. It's provocative and steamy, but it's scandalous and startling as well.
There's just one song in the narrative - the title track - which is already popular thanks to its catchy tune and filming....
