Offbeat Films On Offer This Friday; What’s Your Pick?

No hardcore romance and no rib-tickling humour – the first Friday of February has five offbeat films releasing in theatres. Mai…, David, Midnight’s Children and Listen… Amaya – each film has a different flavour to offer.

However, there is a common thread between Mai… and Listen… Amaya. Both are about relationships.

Mai…, the acting debut of veteran singer Asha Bhosle, narrates the story of an old desolate mother, who suffers from Alzheimer’s and is tossed between her four children.

When her son and two youngest daughters try to run away from taking her responsibility, the eldest daughter Madhu, played by Padmini Kolhapure, takes a stand against the wishes of her husband and tends to her mother. How the daughter’s family life gets affected by this, and how the relationship between ‘Mai’ and her son-in-law takes a miraculous, life-changing turn, forms the rest of the story.

Directed by debutant Mahesh Kodiyal, Mai… also features actors Ram Kapoor, Navin Kaushik and Shivani Joshi.

The other film, Listen… Amaya, directed by debutant director Avinash Kumar Singh, tells the tale of Leela Krishnamoorthy, played by actress Deepti Naval. She essays the part of a middle-aged widow, who owns a library and runs it. Amaya, played by actress Swara Bhaskar, is Leela’s only child. She is 22, quick-witted, confident and an open-minded writer.

A widow since 12 years, Leela refuses to become a stereotypical wallflower and falls in love again with Jayant Sinha, played by actor Farooque Shaikh. In the film, he is a 60-year-old retired photographer and Amaya’s good friend. The film explores multiple relationships in their own unique ways. It also traces Amaya’s journey of anger, betrayal and disbelief.

A self-funded movie, Listen… Amaya, which has been to international film fests and been awarded too, is also in line to be screened at the 15th London Asian Film Festival in March.

The third film on offer — action-thriller David by Bejoy Nambiar — is in total contrast to the other two options.

Starring Neil Nitin Mukesh, Vinay Virmani, Monica Dogra, Isha Sharvani and southern star Vikram, its story is set in three different time periods and the plot revolves around the lives of three different men named David.

One narrative, set in London in 1975, is about 30-year-old David who works for Iqbal Ghani, a dreaded Mafia don. Another David, a devout Christian, is a 19-year-old musician in the year 1999 in Mumbai, while the third David is a 40-year-old fisherman, who lives in Goa in 2010.

Produced by Reliance Entertainment, the film was shot in Mangalore and Mumbai, among other locations.

Well, of course we also have Kamal Haasan’s much touted Vishwaroop releasing in Hindi this week. Vishwaroop was scheduled to first premier on Direct-To-Home (DTH) platform Jan 10, but the event was called off following stiff protests by theatre owners and postponed to Feb 1 for the Hindi version.

The film, which stars Kamal in the title role, also features Andrea Jeremiah and Pooja in the lead. Rahul Bose, Shekhar Kapur and Jaideep Ahlawat are among other actors in the movie.

Last but not the least, it’s Deepa Mehta’s Midnight’s Children, based on the Booker Prize winning novel by Salman Rushdie with the same name.

The film features an ensemble cast of Satya Bhabha, Shriya Saran, Siddharth, Anupam Kher, Shabana Azmi, Seema Biswas, Shahana Goswami, Rahul Bose, Soha Ali Khan and Darsheel Safary.

Shot mostly in Sri Lanka, the film revolves around the national emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi from June 1975 to March 1977.

So, what’s your pick this weekend?