Sometimes we watch films to feel inspired, since there is such little in our lives that make us feel the same way. There is enough exhilarating drama in Mary’s life. I’m glad the filmmakers kind of play it straight. The story of Magnificient Mary is still being told. She is currently aiming for gold in the next Olympics. Her story so far should certainly be watched!

This picture is unique not so much for its subject as for the manner and choice of the story being told. The film effectively employs techniques of narrative fiction to spin a hugely engaging, entertaining drama. The chief protaganist is an appealing anti-hero (Loha Singh).

Repeated references to scenes, characters and situations from DDLJ may bug you sometimes. This film can fully stand on its own feet. It’s hard for a movie to remain in public memory as long, given the choices of entertainment available now. DDLJ is still playing in a theatre in Mumbai. This would be the chick magnet for the week, for sure.

Does it matter that Bobby Jasoos takes far too many creative liberties so far as plot is concerned? Yes, it certainly would, if you went in only for a detective drama. Don’t. It’s a lot more than that.

The genre is the same. It is totally Tarantino-esque in its tone, making light of goons with guns. Though Tarantino by now has started employing his time-tested technique to make overtly strong political statements (Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained). This film doesn’t. It’s hard to tell whether that’s for the better (probably not).

The film at some level goes back to the original purpose of all public entertainment – the circus. That’s where it is set. It’s also about magic on a grand scale, a reason pop-corn laden blockbuster flicks fascinate us anyway. Is it worth 700 bucks? Do we need to rob a bank to watch it on the giant screen? Well, money is a relative measure. I don’t think anyone at my theatre was thinking about demanding a refund. I wasn’t either.

This picture primes you up for the end, slowly taking control of your emotions when you’re willing to go either way so far as this film’s conclusion is concerned.

This is probably the first Bollywood film that looks closely at India’s political involvement outside of its own shores. The director (Shoojit Sircar: Yahaan, Vicky Donor) ably spins this as a war film, visually referenced to near perfection, yet scales things down to the details of a tight espionage thriller set among R&AW agents between Jaffna and New Delhi.

This is a dark film. It is quite different from Bollywood romp and masti of half-demented heroes (Akshay Kumar, John Abraham) in Desi Boyz (2011) that delved on a similar theme.

His first film Udaan (2010) was both a commercial success and an entry at Cannes. It’s the kind of reception Bollywood films would get back in the 1950s (Awaara, Do Bhiga Zameen ….). Those films exuded a certain self-assured thehraav, and a love for language, words, even quieter emotions. As does this film.