After the storm of rubbish and masala films, we have been presented with "Madras Café", a relief. Madras Cafe gives a new hope to Indian Cinema which touches the edges of a political espionage thriller. A real-life incident from a very recent history though dramatized but portrayed with utmost honesty and realism avoiding any kind controversy, political stir and it never disrupts the communal harmony. It is a well-researched story which has been decrypted and provides some unseen and unknown political sides to some extent.
I admire the endeavor devoted to get the facts and places. This time the money has been invested perfectly on a focused theme with a great ensemble. Madras Cafe's seemingly narrates the horrifying tale of Sri Lankan civil war, Indian intervention in this war and the conspiracy theory behind the Rajiv Gandhi's assassination which was the most unfortunate event of the recent Indian History. The narrative is streamlined; comprehensive and it does not get into too much detail, does not take names directly but gives you what is envisioned. Madras Café is the first of its kind makes its success considerably important from the cinematic point of view.
Madras Café is in par with any Hollywood political thriller with all the right elements, it was never attempted in Indian Cinema in this scale. Kamaljeet Negi's cinematography is impeccable which shows true pictures of the shocking war and takes all the necessary scenes of Sri Lanka beautifully, a poignant and well-paced music score by Shantanu Moitra and a great production design by Vinod Kumar.
I wouldn't say it is flawless; its description is tense and proceeds rapidly but has many loopholes which are somehow evident if you follow it with an acute observation. However, when it portrays a genuine substance and the treatment is very resourceful, we cannot deny that it is very well explored unlike many contemporary Indian films.
Overall, Madras Café demonstrates a prolific knowledge for niche as well as the serious cinema lovers. Kudos the courage of exploring a difficult subject matter which is often considered quite challenging and tough to tackle especially in the content of Indian cinema.
Nargis Fakhri seemed most comfortable as she does not have to speak in Hindi; she looked somewhat believable with subtitles. John Abraham delivers his best performance ever. Another performance which deserves a special mention is that of the Prakash Belawadi. Siddartha Basu's dialog delivery is authentic.
Madras Café is a peculiar espionage political thriller and is for serious movie lovers.
8/10.
I admire the endeavor devoted to get the facts and places. This time the money has been invested perfectly on a focused theme with a great ensemble. Madras Cafe's seemingly narrates the horrifying tale of Sri Lankan civil war, Indian intervention in this war and the conspiracy theory behind the Rajiv Gandhi's assassination which was the most unfortunate event of the recent Indian History. The narrative is streamlined; comprehensive and it does not get into too much detail, does not take names directly but gives you what is envisioned. Madras Café is the first of its kind makes its success considerably important from the cinematic point of view.
Madras Café is in par with any Hollywood political thriller with all the right elements, it was never attempted in Indian Cinema in this scale. Kamaljeet Negi's cinematography is impeccable which shows true pictures of the shocking war and takes all the necessary scenes of Sri Lanka beautifully, a poignant and well-paced music score by Shantanu Moitra and a great production design by Vinod Kumar.
I wouldn't say it is flawless; its description is tense and proceeds rapidly but has many loopholes which are somehow evident if you follow it with an acute observation. However, when it portrays a genuine substance and the treatment is very resourceful, we cannot deny that it is very well explored unlike many contemporary Indian films.
Overall, Madras Café demonstrates a prolific knowledge for niche as well as the serious cinema lovers. Kudos the courage of exploring a difficult subject matter which is often considered quite challenging and tough to tackle especially in the content of Indian cinema.
Nargis Fakhri seemed most comfortable as she does not have to speak in Hindi; she looked somewhat believable with subtitles. John Abraham delivers his best performance ever. Another performance which deserves a special mention is that of the Prakash Belawadi. Siddartha Basu's dialog delivery is authentic.
Madras Café is a peculiar espionage political thriller and is for serious movie lovers.
8/10.