Let me get the basics out. All reviews you may have read do not do justice to the film. No it’s not something extraordinary. It’s just different. And that makes it click with me. This is the sleeper surprise. What would you expect with ALIA BHAT and RANDEEP HOODA- only saving grace was the directors name IMTIAZ ALI The same underestimated guy who had delivered ‘JAB WE MET and ROCKSTAR. I would have written it off before actually seeing it and the loss would have been mine.
IF YOU ARE WATCHING ANY MOVIE IN COMING DAYS- MAKE IT HIGHWAY.
That’s what I tweeted after the movie- fresh with what you can say was the HIGHWAY EFFECT. Now with almost 24 hour gone, I do downgrade my observation to- go and watch it or you may miss a fine movie.
HIGHWAY
Veera (ALIA) belongs to a super rich and influential family. She is getting married. She is tired of all the rituals and goes for a mid night spin with would be hubby. Wrong time, wrong place and wrong choice. They find themselves in crossfire at a petrol pump where Mahavir Bhaati ( Randeep Hooda) and his friends are doing one of their contractual crime. She is abducted and the story of a differential experience starts- which ends with her having soft feelings for Mahavir Bhaati. Ah yeah all of you remembered STOCKHOLM SYNDROME. Go experience it.
In between there is a angle of Veera Traumatic childhood that opens a new understanding of her. The grudge that Mahavir has for the rich plays a perfect foil to it. Soon there is a different situation- she is allowed to return but she won’t. She has tasted the life of freedom.
You may have your reason to find fault with the premises of the film. How could someone be so relaxed with the kidnappers? But when you can Chennai Express,, RaONE, BOSS, JAI HO, HERA PHERI etc and not have any issues with them. For a moment forget all these and watch it just like the purity of new snow and the Silent Mountains. Just flow with the movie.
HIGHWAY ALIA BHAT
Alia Bhatt has been a surprise. I had watched parts of her last film ‘STUDENT OF THE YEAR’ in bits and pieces and had summarily stated- another FILMI KID. She has proved me completely wrong. She give a smart mature performance. Though you may say she missed a few of the nuances and at few puzzling places does not look that convincing- still it’s a great role and she done justice to it.
But there is almost perfect performance. RANDEEP HOODA as a rustic
HIGHWAY RANDEEP
Haryanavi with deep angst gives a stellar performance and somehow people miss this out. If one was to look at who else could have done this- a few name of NANA PATEKAR , NASURUDIN SHAH, ARSHAD WARSI and IRFAN KHAN would come to mind. comes across as Randeep Hooda proves to be an actor par excellence.
The editor of the movie must be complimented along with the director. In nut shell most of movie is a salient journey and the expression count a lot. The editor has created very distinct edit patterns. These been hugely justified use of the beauty around Indian Highways makes a mark. Seen a few places may get more tourist this year round.
I did feel a bit of drag towards the end and a need of the directors to spell out the ultimate justice. Need for Uncle Shukla to be reprimanded. An obvious stale end. And that is where the movie sputtered.
HIGHWAY POSTER
The episodic treatment of the movie with long pauses filled in with mystic expressions seems to muddle the experience a bit. May be it was a bit long. But it never let the viewer in me to escape its clutches. And that is an achievement in itself. There are so many insightful observations that have been leveraged to create the connect.
One of the shot that I stands ups and shouts to be notices is- ALIA dancing to English Music that one of her abductor has sourced for her. Its playing on the truck music system, It’s a free flow of body and mind. And after watching her for a long time- her abductor joins in with his typical squat balle balle.
One time she asks to see the gun and Mahavir indulges her. She is playing with it in typical shoot posture. Feeling the power and then a simple question- Is one bullet good enough to kill. And a very apt answer ‘It all depends on the person shooting and the person shot at’
IT ALL DEPENDS ON YOUR FRAME OF MIND. YOUR EXPECTATION. AND YOUR COMPANY
Oh go discuss the movie with friends and somewhere if you do drink- take a large swig of your favourite poison and ponder at the pick of the movie- ‘You taught us to be cautious of people outside, why did not taught us – to be vigilant of the people within the family- a place where I was most exposed’
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