The Lunchbox

My review: The Lunchbox

There are films that you watch, only a few you experience. Most of the time you see actors enacting the roles written for them, only rarely you forget that it is "actors" who are enacting roles written for them. Whenever a movie evokes your interest you get hooked to it  but very rarely you become part of the it. Even the best of movies will make you laugh or cry at the proceeding but once in a while you come a movie that makes you laugh or cry along with it. "The Lunchbox" is one of those rare movies that befit the later descriptions.   

In the days of texts and emails the main theme of two totally strange and diverse persons sharing a beautiful serendipitous relationship through letters right away gets you sucked into the narrative. Once you do then it is two hours of once in a lifetime experience through the gullies, crowed trains, busy roads, and mundane government offices of Mumbai along with the protagonists. You actually get to smell the sabjis when Imran takes a sniff at the lunchbox or when Nimrat prepare them under the tutelage of her neighborhood aunty. That is the power of Ritesh Batra's writing which transforms an obscure chennaiaite watching the movie in a multiplex into a Mumbaikar. 

Movie's characters are not that unusual or obscure beings. These are the people you and me come across everyday in our work place, neighborhood, and the public transport. A lonely grumpy widower yearning for company, emotionally dissatisfied taken-for-granted housewife, an young at time annoyingly sweet intern, intrusive at the same time helpful neighborhood aunty are the ones none of us are oblivious to have known. Especially the neighborhood aunty whom we only get to hear is one of the best supporting cast in films recently. We don't feel like we have not seen her face, Bharati Achrekar is simply awesome with her voice acting. Don't be surprised if she gets an award or two for the best supporting actress and if she gets it would go down in history as for first time any one would get award without even appearing for a second on screen which she truly deserves.  

Irrfan Khan is simply superb as Saajan Fernandes, a brooding grumpy old man on the verge of retirement. His body language, voice modulation and demeanor, everything about his Saajan is memorable. Watch out for the subtleness in his acting whether when he consciously takes a sniff at the lunchbox in the middle of a busy office or when he realizes that he is too old to play this romantic game. 

Nimrat Kaur is an excellent and exciting find to Indian cinema. She seems to have a natural flair for acting, her theater background comes to fore here. Her portrayal of Ila is so casual and effortless. Both the writer and the actor have restrained themselves from melodrama though there is ample scope for it which is a huge relief. Nawazuddin Siddiqui is a bundle of talent and once again he rocks the screen. What an actor he is turning out to be. In each every frame he is on screen he grabs the eyeballs which is no mean feat considering the stature and the performance of the co-star he shares screen space with.

Max Richter's background score adds soul to the story. Michael Simmonds' camera work captures the hustle and bustle of Mumbai's crowded trains, the route traversed by the dabbawalas, their lifestyle and the interiors of  Mumbai's middle-class households.

Ritesh ends the movie with a poetic happy ending that is open to the interpretation of the viewers. Thus rounding of a well made movie that is bound to find its place amongst the best of Indian cinema.

Bottomline: An exquisite lunch.

4.5/5