Movie Revew : Mumbai Pune Mumbai 3

Mumbai Pune Mumbai – the Marathi Movie Franchise, is now in its 3^rd installment – and is easily the most famous movie franchise in Marathi cinema at least in the first two parts. To top that, the lead pair – Swapnil/Mukta is also probably the most famous and well liked pair in Marathi entertainment, with their pairing being a popular one in several movies.  Thus, extending it to a third part was both an opportunity as well as a risk; as it turned out, it proved to be a risk worth taking!

STORY
As is by now usual for Marathi Cinema, the story is pretty much unique. The third part of this iconic franchise has iconic lead actors Gauri and Gautam [probably by now household names in a majority of Marathi homes} going the family way. This is the story of the lovers, into the 3^rd year of their marriage, planning a child {or rather, having a child]. And it is the story of the Pregnancy. That, my friends, is the story. They get the good news, 9 months pass, and they become parents. Nothing much there, isnt it? Well, think again; this is one of the most delightful, fun, thought-provoking scripts ever penned; heart-warming, touching and is an exemplar of what Indian Family life is all about!

The base story has nothing much to it; even if you fill it out properly. Gauri/Gautam have not planned the child; it just happens. G1 is ok, G2 isnt with this; G2 feels they need to financially secure first. Problem – G1 tells the rest of the immediate family. Obviously there is no way they are going to accept G2’s  logic! And being an Indian Family – their opinions matter. Anyway, moving on – G12 agree to it. Life moves on. In the final stages, when Gauri goes to her parents for delivery as per our culture, Gautam {the idiot} clean forgets to call her regularly, as his focus is now earning more for family. Gauri gets in a quandary – why isnt he calling? How it all pans out is the rest!

ANALYSIS

I have repeatedly emphasised the difference between a story and a script; this movie is where this comes to the fore in the strongest manner feasible. The story above is fleshed out in the script with its detailed relationship focus – this needs to be highlighted, for making a 2 hours 22 minutes movie on the above story is a real challenge. This is a movie about human relationships, the Indian Family, the small / tiny daily events, talks, fights, discussions that happen in any family – magically presented with superb skill to make a delightful production you will fall in love with. The everyday things weaved in  – all of which serve to carry story forward  effortlessly – make an immediate flowing connect with you. These images I have shared, around 10 in number, should give the readers some basic idea of the atmosphere generated...

Executing this is no mean feat; you run the very real risk of the audience finding it mundane, and lose their attention. Ensuring audience stickiness needs a series of scenes, all interlinked, all making an instant connect. And to do this you need top notch direction, strong performances by skilled actors n actresses all of whom share an excellent on-screen chemistry alongwith / supported by good music, engaging sets, strong and thoroughly consistent character plots {given this is a long running movie franchise} and overall presentation. In each of these, the movie scores very high!

A word here for the character plots : this is the third installment of G1-G2, I.e. Gauri – Gautam. The first one was 8 years ago, the second 3 years ago. Within the story itself, 3 perhaps 4 years have passed. The great care shown in building the two characters is fanstastic. Both {in fact all} characters are nearly, but not quite, the same in the non verbal and verbal communication – reflecting the passage of time and yet maintaining continuity with the older movies. Fantastic attention to detail! My only grouse : the music, which though really nice, is slightly lesser than the past 2 ones.

Performances – G1 / G2 are both strong story-backed roles. That said, in this one, Mukta Barve steals the show initially, till the climax, when Swapnil's role provides the punch. Absolutely stunning performance, even by her incredibly high standards, as seen in Amhi Doghi and Hrudayantar. This is partly due to the role itself, which offers her a much greater scope, with clear deep lines as opposed to G2's subtle underplayed shades;  And then the climax comes. And in that 10 minute scene, Swapnil comes to the fore in an  incredible yet contolled performance of a highly emotion charged scene. This scene does one more thing:  and that is it helps you realize the small nuances of his performance earlier, the subtle shades and detailing throughout. Simply amazing; not only that, you then begin to note the lovely attention to minutiae throughout even by Mukta. All in all, M/S playing G1/G2 have excelled!

CONCLUSION

All in all, rated 9 stars on 10.  I wish I could give it 10; but music does cost it one star. It isnt lackluster : it is really good; just that I had expected more. As I said in the opening, this is a movie of detailing, of attention to excruciatingly small points of a set of relationships, of Indian Family values, of the growth and maturing of two lovers into the path that leads to mature parenthood, and of a heart warming touching set of human emotions and butterflies in the face of a major new positive phase of life. It is a movie of a very high grade of performance by two accomplished actors. And this is a movie that brings Gauri / Gautam {G1/G2} much closer to us, to our hearts, to our minds – leaving a deep emotive connect. We are going to miss you, G1/G2… I hope there is  4^th part that deals with your later lives…

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