Dec 24, 2023 11:48 PM
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(Updated Dec 24, 2023 11:55 PM)
As the world’s largest origin for international migrants, India leads the pack with a 32 million-strong diaspora out of which 18.68 million are of Indian-origin. Among all states, data has shown more than 4.78 lac people from Punjab flew to foreign countries in search of better opportunities in the last five years. Every year, more than 20, 000 youth from Punjab attempt irregular migration, ” according to a 2009 report by the United Nations.(Sources: https://unodc.in, https://migrationpolicy.org, https://mea.gov.in)
Rajkumar Hirani’s ‘Dunki’ is a riveting tale about similar aspirations, the associated challenges, with a hope to find an amicable humane solution to it.
The story begins in the 90s at Laltu, a tier 2 city in Punjab where 4 youngsters Buggu(Vikram Kochchar), Balli(Anil Grover), Mannu(Taapsee Pannu), Sukhi(Vicky Kaushal) with stressful personal lives are struggling to meet ends. Each of them strongly believes that migrating to UK is the only way to get rid of all troubles. In a sequence of events, Hardy(Shah Rukh Khan) an ex- army officer bumps into the quartet, decides to help them channelize their efforts and move to London. Deep down, he also has a soft corner for Mannu, which gradually blossoms into love. Geetu Gulati(Boman Irani) runs English-speaking classes to train all aspiring immigrants for IELTS preparations. Just before the fabulous five are all set to move ahead, something untoward happens which forces them to opt for the unpredictable, & dangerous donkey(dunki) route instead. How things progress hereon forms part of the remaining story.
The first half of the narrative is typical Rajkumar Hirani(RKH) light-hearted stuff with a combination of slapstick, situational and cultural humor. Post interval we see what Hirani has never attempted before, some hardcore action & thrill(inspired by real incidents), followed by few intense touching moments.
Writers, Hirani, Abhijat Joshi and Kanika Dhillion have done a decent job no doubt . However, since a lot of research was done by the team to understand the nuances of donkey routes, a deeper dive into traumatic experiences of travelers would have added value to the screenplay. Aaja Mexico Chaliye, a Punjabi film on the same topic that released last year was able to capture the ordeal of migrants brilliantly.
Cinematography by C K Muraleedharan and team is top notch especially the international locales. Ditto for the set designs by Subrata Chakraborty. Action by Sham Kaushal is good. Use of VFX of SRK’s ageing and de-ageing seems a bit inconsistent at times. Same goes with his voice modulation in a few portions. The music by Pritam is heart-warming & soul stirring. All lyric writers Javed Akhtar, Swanand Kirkire, Amitabh Bhattarcharya, Irshad Kamil have done a fabulous job.
RKH holds a benchmark in hindi cinema when it comes to wholesome entertainers with his previous body of work. In Dunki, the focal point of screenplay aligns more with ‘emotional’ and the comedy is restricted to subtle & basic. Secondly, the portions that are meant to pleasantly surprise or shock you are also presented differently. While this may be welcomed by a certain section of audience as an experiment, for multiplex viewers expecting hilarious one-liners & frame to frame entertainment, this may appear as off-track or flat. The social commentary & implied messaging towards the end comes in as a simplistic bird eye view in the current geo-political scenario.
Performance wise, Taapsee Pannu emotes really well and does complete justice to her role. Vikram Kochar and Anil Grover also perform their parts brilliantly. Boman Irani is good, but his character deserved more shades. Shah Rukh Khan plays his part effortlessly and is impactful in every scene. Though being the protagonist, he allows his co-stars to take charge and underplays as and when required. But the showstopper undoubtedly is Vicky Kaushal! Even in a short role, his mere presence in every scene overshadows all the others including SRK.
Overall, Dunki is definitely a one-time watch for its heart-warming performances and emotional moments
