It has been quite some time since the movie released. 11 January 2019, this movie came to the theatres and I was keen to watch it because the book it is based on is quite an interesting read. The trailer failed to appeal to my taste as it seemed more like a parody, like any another spoof on YouTube about Manmohan Singh. And unsurprisingly, it didn’t fail to disappoint either- it indeed was a spoof.
Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, and every other character was just popular culture’s interpretation of these personalities. Manmohan Singh’s depiction was worse of them all- a caricature to say the least. I wonder, in which sane mind would an actor like Anupam Kher agree to do such a misinterpreted, not even artistically appealing character, and a movie that is a tomfoolery of an adaptation. It is apparently based on the book but deviates from the crucial ideas highlighted in the book which circles around the making of Manmohan Singh.
The book, in my humble understanding, was written to make people realize the true nature of the misunderstood Manmohan Singh, whereas the movie represents him as a laughing stock (yet again). The movie looked like a Congress-bashing machine wherein Congress was blamed for everything, quite similar to what BJP spokespersons say when asked about policies and ‘ache din’.
The writing and direction deserve a special mention(!) here. Being honest about the art of Filmmaking is very important to be able to do justice to the art itself, and filmmakers here weren’t only insincere but lazy. The writing was pathetic, to say the least. They picked random pieces and encounters from the book and created an underwhelming overly caricatured screenplay. It was clumsy and propagandist, a bad ode to the art of filmmaking- near criminal, if you will.
Whereas, the book was a memoir of the author Sanjaya Baru’s time as the media advisor to Dr. Manmohan Singh and presents quite a comprehensive account of his time. The author doesn’t claim anything throughout the book instead states quite explicitly that it is his political biases and understanding which form the conclusions in the book. He connects certain dots in the book but with informed apprehension instead of certainties.
I would avoid commenting on the book’s writing style and content. However, I would encourage that more books of this kind be written and made available to a larger audience. And a word of caution for someone who makes a movie adaptation of such books, kindly ensure that the attempt is not a clumsy and impassionate move to spread propaganda as in the case of the “The Accidental Prime Minister.”
And if your stubborn self and propagandist ideologies convince you to make a movie nonetheless, then do take accountability and make it with sincerity ensuring there are as fewer loopholes as there could be- so it can at least provide the audience with some entertainment if not facts.