BLACK FRIDAY: A fearlessly truthful and powerful movie...

DIRECTOR: Anurag Kashyap
STARRING: Kay Kay Menon, Pavan Malhotra, Aditya Srivastava, Dibyendu Bhattacharya.

REVIEW: Over the years, I have developed a strong liking for Anurag Kashyap's unique and enjoyable movie line-up, and what started merely as a bleak interest, has now snow-balled into full-fledged fanaticism. I am actually researching Kashyap's career in reverse, because it was not until 'Gulaal' that I took this guy seriously. After that, however, I enlightened myself with his previous works like 'No Smoking', 'Black Friday' and more recently, 'Dev.D'.

Coming to the film at hand, first of all, I'd applaud the sheer courage and intelligence of the director to translate the real-life happenings to the 70mm screen with great intensity and flair. Passion for anything always brings out the best men in that field. Kashyap is one of them. He does his job with remarkable romance and commitment towards what he is trying to achieve.

The film basically follows the various characters who were involved in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts. It tells about the meticulous planning and training that went on underway to make the attacks successful. The film is sub-divided into various chapters, each having a different perspective from the former. The whole incident lies bare for the audience to gasp and bewilder on. Black Friday is one of the most breath-taking depictions of a real-life incidence in the history of Indian cinema.

The acting put forward by the ensemble cast, including veterans like Kay Kay Menon, Aditya Srivastava, and Pavan Malhotra is flawless. The actors never seemed to be acting, they seemed to be living out their reel-life counterparts to the core. Its a pity to mention that these amazing actors act as mere props in high-budget flicks, sidelined away to make way for the 'star-kids' to hold forte. This truly shows how immature our audience is. There is no scope for commercial success for anyone who tries and experiment with unconventional themes.

The dialogue of the film is worth mentioning, and a chill ran down my spine every time a character shrieked with anger. The editing is one of the best that we have ever seen in Indian cinema. The chapter-wise story-telling had till now been left alone by our film-makers. The music score by Indian Ocean is very beautiful, and one I liked very much. The lyrics are also something that I found thought-out.

This is purely a director's movie, and I find it safe to conclude that it would act as a perfect lesson in film-making for all the aspiring directors out there. The overall experience is sure to give the viewers goosebumps, and a lot of food for thought on the subject tossed by the director. I also found the no-nonsense narration and raw feel of the movie very attractive. It conveys its message without being too loud or over-the-top, and subtly makes the audience believe what it wants them to. This indeed is a remarkable feat for a 2 and a half hour movie, and that is why its one of my favorite movies of all time. Let's hope Bollywood is adorned by such masterpieces in the coming future.

RATING: 4.5/5 for top-notch output in all departments. Hats off!!