Discourses From the East
It’s been 6 days(05 Nov) since opening of Zubeen Garg’s last movie ‘Roi Roi Binale.’ The grand opening in over 91 screens in Northeast India and 92 cities across India has made it one of the biggest moments for Assamese cinema, earning box office collection of 12.46 crores till today.
Written by Rahul Gautam Sharma and Shantanu Rowmuria, directed by Rajesh Bhuyan, co-prodiced by Garima Saikia Garg, Zubeen Garg and Shyamantak Gautam, the film has received IMDT rating of 9.2 surpassing any past record.
Since the very opening, the cinema halls are housefull which is unprecedented in Assam. Young and old, boys and girls, rich and poor all have flocked to the cinema hall to see their beloved star for one last time.
Why not? For Zubeen Garg is an emotion. His swansong cannot go uncelebrated by his countless fans and followers. It is as much a tribute to their beloved celebutante. Projected as his dream project during his lifetime, the movie is a telling story of a visually impaired artist which resonates with his own life journey.
His visual impairment may be taken as symbolic for his own innocent nature for which many people tried to take advantage during his lifetime. Raul’s character (played by Zubeen Garg) is pretty much like him in real life who does not know much about business, connivance, tricks and politics. He is for art and a pure artist. Music enlivens his being and erase all his sufferings. He tries to use his art for betterment of life and society. A true ingenuous artist.
Abrupt transitions (may be because of certain post-production cuts which were required because of public sentiment. Scenes of some people were cut as had been apprised by the production team) may cause sloppiness at times. However, at a broad stroke the storyline of the movie keeps the audience tethered with tenterhooks. Suspense, thrill and an innocent love story set in a modern setting, it gives a triangular love story with use of cliff hanger plot device. Audience are anxious about what will happen next between Mou (played by Mousumi Alifa), Neer (played by Joy Kashyap) and Raul ( played by Zubeen Garg).
Unlike many other movies, it is not a typical rags to riches story, rather a theatrics of relationship among melange of characters. While Raul (played by Zubeen Garg) is an innocent artist, Neer (played by Joy Kashyap) although an artist himself is a crook who try to exploit Raul. Mou while looks a modern day smart, strict, professional CEO of a talent management company, she also has a tender side because of her past.
The backdrops of these characters have been built beautifully to give them a fleshy appearance. The cinema also delves deeper into many recent issues including insurgency in the northeast that has left indelible mark on the psyche of people of the region. In fact, the character of Raul has been built on this. He has gone blind because of a bomb blast incident in his childhood.
Despite the earnestness of the storyline, the movie does not forget to bring in light elements of comedy and humour to give the audience the experience of light moments. Jimmy (played by Achurya Barpatra), Neer’s friend has amazing sense of humour who time and again entertains with his comic timing. The character of the MLA has also been portrayed more like a clown to draw home political satire. True to Zubeen Garg, Raul’s character makes his political stand clear with his comments like “MLA cannot be Sir because he do not teach us anything,” “ Artist is for people and not for the king.” His innuendoes are enough to reflect his conviction and apathy towards political leaders. While reel or real, Zubeen Garg did not shy away from his conviction, standing firm for his people and not for the king.
It is out and out a serendipitous chronicle of Zubeen Garg’s life itself. His philosophy, his politics and love for art portrayed on picture. The uncanny love of Raul (played by Zubeen Garg) for the sea is unnervingly enigmatic to the audience. In one of the scenes, Raul (played by Zubeen Garg) compares his life to sea shore, which is made of sand and salt. A tad sappy because it evokes emotion due to ethereal presence of a beloved superstar who had just left the earth. There are moments that would leave the audience in tear.
Also Read: Ode to the Immortal
Actors like Joy Kashyap (played Neer, an established singer), Mousumi Alifa (Mou, played Raul’s love interest), Achurya Barpatra (played Jimmy, Neer’s friend), Angoorlata Deka (played Mou’s mother)and small cameo of veteran actor Victor Banerjee (played Raul’s teacher as Victor Sir) did justice to their roles. However, the main highlights were the songs. All songs were sung and composed by Zubeen Garg himself. The beautiful rendition of 11 songs have made it a truly Musical Drama, a first of its kind in Assamese film industry. The title song ‘roi roi binale’ is a visual spectacle, choreographed beautifully with cinamatographic excellence. Sung as duet by Zubeen Garg and Italian opera singer Gioconda Vessichelli, roi roi binale song gives a transcending experience in theatre. The movie sets new heights in Assamese cinema and truly a trendsetter. However, time will tell how much it lingers to shape Assamese cinema and her movie goers in years to come.
Roi roi binale