Posted on: 28-12-04 23:36:50
Loved it! Great film that shines in the depth of its simplicity.
No pretentious super-rich families having egos the size of skyscrapers. No fake hyper-emotional full-of-themselves actors and actresses living in some la-la land driving a different Ferrari every hour. No cheesy dialogue that comes as a jab to the ear every time. No boring repetitive “mahi/sonia/soniye” or garba dance tunes that make me cringe!
Just a simple beautifully made story of a young empathetic NRI’s inner-conflict between acceptance of life abroad and reluctance to leave his loved ones behind. Gowarikar’s attention to detail is amazing and this renders some of the simplest scenes (like the little kid selling water for 25 paise at a train station) the most poignant.
SRK has done a great job too, I’ve liked him in a movie after a long looong time. Gowarikar obviously put a very tight leash on him and you see none of that superficial “I’m a mega-star” attitude. The restraint makes him start from a blank canvas and he does a super job coloring it up with just the right shades of intelligence, humility and empathy.
Gayatri Joshi has done a really good job for a newcomer. And “Kaveriamma” (don’t know her real name) should probably get an award as best supporting role. She has done a fantastic job.
Didn’t find Rahman’s music that great, but its not bad either.
I think a lot of people went in expecting to see another epic like Lagaan and honestly I think it’s a folly to compare the two films. They’re both really good and quite different.
I’d call Gowarikar a true desh-bhakt because of his focus on village life in both movies. This guy seems to have vision enough to realize that true progress in India will come from these eternally ignored places. And he blends hope with a dose of reality in his message superbly. He may not have shown the way, but he certainly manages to stir up the desire to find one.
If you see Bollywood movies for the mega dance sequences and the latest fashions and hairstyles and shrink wrapped “Indian culture”, stay away from this film. Otherwise I highly recommend it! 
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Are you there?
BL --- Nothing against urs but my opinion on the movie .
My take ,
There was smthing missing in Swades which was there so much present in Lagaan .
Lagaan didnt make u take leave of itself and every next scene and dance engrossed u more . It also bore a village theme and was no less emphatic but Swades missed the zing and left no impact (much like the AR Rehman score ) apart from the later half .
Was it the AK midas touch or the money power in the sets of Lagaan and its sequences --- here it looked like an unknown caste and the only guy who carried the film was SRK . Others appeared as if they were being over dramatic -- right from the Post Master to the black youth .
I am yet 2 c a Gayatri type character in a village Every1 knows the +ves of returning back but did they show the -ves ?? I was really longing 2 c the polution and population burst upon the plane landing @ Delhi which was very smartly escaped .
And then that villager atop the van and SRK singing was most over dramatic . Had really gone in with a lot of expectations but ....... returned dissatisfied .............seemed a low budget bad direction squib . Anybody recalls 'Virasat' ??
Going for Raincoat tonight ........lets c !!!! Again hope a lot .
Manasvi .
Manasvi,
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I was really longing 2 c the polution and population burst upon the plane landing @ Delhi which was very smartly escaped .
I agree with you on that thing. They missed a lot of negatives. Like pollution. Another thing was everybody in the village seemd to fall in line to SRK's plans very easily. Now that's hardly the case there as we all know.
I wasn't really longing to see that though.
Also, IMHO that was not the point of the movie. The point was that it is time to stop griping about India's troubles while sitting in a distant land. If you feel so much, well, then come hither and actually do something.
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I am yet 2 c a Gayatri type character in a village
. I'm sure a lot of young NRI kids are going to wonder about this now. But that was not SRK's motive for going to India originally. Besides, SRK and Gayatri are actors in a Bollywood movie, they're paid to be beautiful. There may be some girls from the city who dream about teaching in a village and the point of the movie was to encourage that. Regardless, if someone interpretes this movie as a guy going to a village and finding a beautiful girl and getting married, they've been watching too many Bollywood movies.
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Lagaan didnt make u take leave of itself and every next scene and dance engrossed u more . It also bore a village theme and was no less emphatic but Swades missed the zing and left no impact (much like the AR Rehman score ) apart from the later half .
Like I said before, I would'nt compare the two. They're different movies.
I went with a bunch of friends and all of us identified with at least some of the feelings that SRK's character felt. And it impacted us all in one way or another.
Again, I've just grown tired and terribly bored of the mega blockbusters with Zing that SRK usually gives. Maybe that's the reason I loved this one. The movie struck a note of sincerity missing in a lot many more movies I've seen lately.
But yeah, its all a matter of perspective. There may be quite a few people who may not have liked the movie.
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OK Bluelobster
Let me watch the movie before I further post anything on this topic. Your review has made me change my mind. Otherwise, SRK was a big factor in my decision of not watching the movie.
I hope that the movie is not as pretentious like those coming from houses of Chopra/Johar/Ghais, where being Indian ONLY means marrying according to your parent's wishes and praising the small villages of India, while still being a hypocrite and living in USA
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Orginally posted by meghal
I hope that the movie is not as pretentious like those coming from houses of Chopra/Johar/Ghais, where being Indian ONLY means marrying according to your parent's wishes and praising the small villages of India, while still being a hypocrite and living in USA
Nothing of that sort, Meghal. This was one of the main reasons I liked it.
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I just finished watching 'SWADESH'
One simple word ....superb movie 
In spite of good acting I'll give more credit to director Ashutosh only because he took the risk of selecting a story line which some time ago also termed as 'Art Film' with very limited budget.
The movie sometime went into so much detailed grassroot level I was thinking that probably I am watching a Mrinal Sen or Ritwik Ghatak's movie.
Ashutosh for changing concept of modern commercial big budget Bollywood movie
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ani
Damn. I just read on most of the movie sites, and people are praising "Swades" like anything.
Too bad, I missed the movie in theatres. Now I will have to resort to those pirated cassettes to watch the movie. Neverthless, that task remains my top priority this weekend.
