What happens you see a story on screen which seems like pages from your life? You hate it? You love it? Over to Navjot Gulati who writes about Amit Masurkar’s film Sulemani Keeda.
Disclaimer: I’m a struggling writer/filmmaker for over six years now, so I will be biased towards a film that tells my story, and in the process, will overlook its shortcomings because….
…I’m Vacuous Versova too!
So here it goes. I will now list some incidents which have happened with me or my writers friends lives as it is shown in Sulemaani Keeda. And this should be reason enough for you to not miss Sulemaani Keeda at any cost.
because This SHIT is REAL BRO!
The film is essentially about two friends – Dulaal (Naveen Kasturia) and Mainak (Mayank Tewari) trying to make it as screen-writers in Bollywood, where you really need one talent to be big – to be someone’s son/nephew. If you are an outsider, then all the best. Allah hi aapka maalik hai.
SPOILERS ALERT (But they hardly matter. Read it anyway)
Dulaal gets a call from the girl he is in love with, and she tells him, ‘I met someone’. Boom! His world comes crashing down.
Earlier this year, something similar happened with a friend of mine. He was madly in love with a girl and they were in a complex relationship where the girl would never commit to him, and keep giving him hope that one day they will be together as a couple. But then his world came crashing down just like Dulaal’s. One day she told him, ‘I met someone’, and life was never the same for him. He did use her as an inspiration in many of his stories just like Dulaal did.
The film has a hilarious appearance by Anil ‘Gadar’ Sharma and he sends Mainak and Dulaal to meet Gonzo Kapoor, the son of Sweety Kapoor, who wants to get launched in a film that is East European in sensibility.
Not long ago, a friend of mine was in a similar position. He was called to write the debut vehicle of a famous filmmaker of yesteryear who wanted to launch his son in a cool and contemporary love story (basically it involved a rich boy, poor girl and a college in Mumbai as the backdrop). I hope you get the contradiction – A cool and contemporary love story about a Rich Boy and Poor Girl. My friend was not talented enough to write it, so he said no. They did make it, and surprise – the film BOMBED!
Mainak goes to a party where he meets Oona from Poona, played brilliantly by Ruksaana Tabassum. She asks him to drop her home after the party. Mainak thinks he will finally get some action. But….
Aah, well. What follows next – A hot stud is waiting for Oona (from Poona) inside her house. Mainak’s dreams of getting laid are shattered. Yet again. I’m sure this has happened with almost every guy reading this.
The white handkerchief used as a metaphor for life.
Go hang out in any coffee shop in Versova, or Adarsh Bar, or even the (not so) new hangout of (wannabe) film people – WTF. You will find many out of work stalwarts who can change your life instantly with their pop philosophy, however they have not been able to change their own life.
Mainak and Dulaal are asked to go to a farmhouse to write the screenplay.
Farmhouse writing?
Yes? Yes!
This remains an unfulfilled dream. Once upon a time, a B-grade filmmaker of an unreleased film offered me to come to his farmhouse for fifteen days. He said lets finish the script and then he will take me to Aditya Chopra. Yeah. Right. I guess he meant in his dreams. In reality they won’t even let him cross the security gate of YRF.
Mainak and Dulaal have an argument with their tv-writer friends.
TV writers make a LOT of money but ALL of them want to write films. Film writers want to make a LOT of money but CAN’T write TV. #TrueStoryBro
Dulaal is asked, “which film have you written?” He says, “ek likh raha hoon..Aamir Khan kay liyein..bas milna baaki hai unsey”.
The identity of a filmmaker/writer in this B-town is only from the work that has come out. Spare a thought for thousands of us who have been working our asses off to get that one film made. And trust me, to have a solo film credit as a writer is nothing less than a miracle. After years of trying, one miracle happened in my life which is yet to get released. If there are no fault in my stars, hopefully, it should release next year. I wait that day when I can tell people that I’m the writer of that good film that you saw. And not only me. I’m sure everyone reading this is itching for such a thing to happen.
These are some of the similarities between the film and the life we lead. However, our lives are not as funny as the film. Kudos to the writer-director Amit Masurkur and his team for making it look so real and yet so funny. The performances by Naveen, Mayank and Aditi Vasudev are exemplary. The writing is brilliant. Efficient direction by Amit. And yes, even the songs are really good. I love the one sung by Namit Das. It’s called the Colaba song. That’s so rare in a desi indi-bhindi!
To cut the long story short, Sulemaani Keeda is one of the best Indie films made in India, and it deserves your ticket money so that people like Shiladitya Bora (of PVR Directors Rare) can continue to support films made with heart and not just ones with big budgets and bigger stars.
(P.S – I know the film will have difficult show timings and high ticket prices but please do watch it. If you don’t have the money, ask me. I will book the ticket for you. I can surely spare 300 rupees from my hard earned money to make sure people see what we go through everyday 😛 )
Offer Valid for 10 tickets only, on first come first serve basis.
– Navjot Gulati
F.i.g.h.t C.l.u.b 