Give and Take, Niki Laskaris
My first look into Bollywood with DDLJ was pretty good. Even though we’ve been reading that the structure and content of Bollywood is pretty straight forward, there were a few symbols in motifs in this movie. For example, the opening scene with the father and the birds is definitely symbolic. Or, throughout the film, the constant presence of trains. Raj and Simran have many experiences together on trains, and many pivotal moments in the film involve a train (their meeting, their journeys, them ending up together).
The use of “destiny” is definitely strong throughout the film, like we’ve learned it to be. The month-long trip to Europe is an example. Both Raj and Simran, in their then separate worlds, plan the trip.
I like that Raj and Simran don’t immediately fall in love with each other. First, they are enemies. Then, work to being friends through a series of fights [started by Raj acting like a clown] and make-ups. Simran seems very uptight with Raj until he tells her that he understands her customs as a Hindi woman after she is mortified at the thought that she had a one night stand with him. Raj’s jokester personality shows even when he attempts confessing his love to Simran.
I also like how Raj and Simran do not realize their one for each other until they are apart. It would have been extremely corny for them to have fallen entirely in love on the trip and ended up together immediately. Of course, that couldn’t have happened because there needed to be the big, terrible-sounding fight scene at the end.
The opinions of characters are definitely established, and very evident. Through intradiegetic activity [music, reactions, etc], a clear perspective on each character is made. For example, when Kajol and her sister, Chutki, meet Kuljeet, his character instantly becomes the antagonist. This is done through the characters, music, and setting in the scene.
My favorite character is definitely Raj’s father. He’s awesome. He’s such a relief from his extreme counterpart– Simran’s father.
Filed by nlask at January 28th, 2013 under Uncategorized