A Death in the Gunj
Movie Info
Synopsis
Set in 1979, A Death in the Gunj is a coming of age story, about a shy student Shyamal Chatterjee. He uses a family road trip to McCluskiegunj, an old Anglo-Indian town, as an escape from his failed semester. At the outset, the makings of a perfect family holiday are in place but something is amiss. In the week that follows, Shutu's quiet unraveling is overlooked by the family revellers, until the holiday ends with an implosion.
Starring Cast
A Death in the Gunj Reviews
8
A Death in the Gunj benefits from Konkona Sen Sharma's perceptive, assured direction. It's one of the best films of the year, and one that you'll find hard to shake off in a hurry. I'm going with four out of five and a strong recommendation not to miss it.
7
Konkona Sensharma’s assured directorial debut, unpacks a complex sentiment with feeling, and gives us a layered film with memorable characters about the games people play, and how, sometimes, that can have terrible consequences.
6
Sirsha Ray’s camera work helps set a gloomy, mysterious, dark (not sinister) mood. The choice of locations and background scores does the rest. For the want of a better word, A Death In The Gunj has a ‘distinct’ feel.Konkona Sen Sharma’s film is a successful experiment despite loopholes. And it is brave.
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A Death in The Gunj ends on a note that fits in well with McCluskiegunj — a place set in the heart of Chhota Nagpur plateau’s tribal belt, where Ernest Timothy McCluskie, an Anglo-Indian from Calcutta, carved out a homeland for 400-odd Anglo-Indians in the 1930s, complete with bakeries, hunting trips and picnics under the shade of a tree in Mrs Priscilla Perkins' yard.
8
It is deeply engaging and like comfort food its memory and taste will stay with the viewers long after the credits role.
8
A Death In The Gunj is a chiselled gem of a film - as resplendent as it is sobering.
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If you have ever been to a small town for your summer holidays, listened in wide-eyed wonder as adults swapped stories around the dinner table and spent languid afternoons lying on the grass, then Konkona Sen Sharma’s “A Death in the Gunj” is just the film for you.
7
A Death In The Gunj will make you drop your jaw several times, except for the one time you'd really want it to: the climax.
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There are many large and compelling reasons to watch A Death in the Gunj. Here’s a small one: It’s a beautiful goodbye to Om Puri, who died this January. There he is, saying “Nothing gets better at this age” in that instantly familiar rasp.
8
Watch A Death In The Gunj for the gem of a first film that it is. It will let McCluskiegunj grow on you. It will make you laugh and silently crush your heart. It will make you thank the makers of the film for giving you this one.
6
Points A Finger At The Cruel Wolf Residing In Each Of Us...
7
Konkona Sen Sharma has proven she’s as good a director as she’s an actor. She’s kept a tight hold on every department, hardly making a false move. Looks like her new journey is going to be exciting as hell…
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In Her Directorial Debut, 'Death In The Gunj', Konkana SenSharma Uses One Of Her Father's Memorable Stories To Spin A Tapestry Of Intrigue, Keeping It Brimming With Emotions Of Dejection, Hurt, Passion And Love
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At the end, you are left with a lot of questions. You are also left with a satisfied heart after watching a gripping story, poetic in its narrative and artfully put together.
8
Bollywood desperately needs films like A Death in the Gunj — one that doesn't take itself too seriously or isn't easy to frivolously label, but yet doesn't insult the intelligence of its viewer. We need to have a middle path between "artsy fartsy parallel cinema" and "mass masala entertainer", and Konkona Sen Sharma seems to have found a way.
7
While the script written by Disha Rindani and Konkana Sen Sharma, is skilfully drafted giving every character equal weightage, there are moments that make it seem pretentious and predictable. But the last scene which works as a metaphor in the film, leaves a lot of scope for interpretations and discussions and that is what takes this film beyond the auditorium.
Audience Reviews for A Death in the Gunj
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I don't remember the last time I gave a film a full rating but I'm just positive about why A Death in the Gunj (A Death in the Echo) demands it from me. It's simply a a fabulous film that takes its sweet time to unfold through its atmospheric appeal, set in remote Bihar and with a stellar cast you wonder how the director got them together, narrating the depressing story of a young, taciturn man with demons in his mind and loneliness on his face. More than anything - and this drama is about many things - the film highlights the influence people have on other people. The final five minutes took my breath away and I'm confident it will make you think about depression, extroversion, sex, and longing. Konkona Sensharma's debut feature A Death in the Gunj is a masterpiece and easily one of my top 3 Hindi films of the 2010 decade. It's crisp, it's exotic, it's fantastic. TN.
0October 02, 19 -
Directorial debut of Konkona Sensharma is enough charming to keep you hooked from the start till the end, and that's the main reason why it is the best film in the cinema this year. Starring Vikrant Massey, Ranvir Shorey, Tilottama Shome, Tanuja Mukherjee, Jim Sarbh, Kalki Koechlin and many other actors, the moving film is about a boy called Shutu bullied amidst the gathering of family and friends in McLuskyGunj, Bihar of 1970s. The brilliant direction, writing and performances make for a perfect film.
0September 25, 19
