Movie Review: Kai Po Che ! (2013) (Hindi) ***1/2 Rating

                         ~  Best Onscreen adaptation of a mediocre Indian Novel  ~

Theatre Release: Feb 22, 2013 (India)
Language: Hindi
Direction : Abhishek Kapoor
Banner :  UTV Motion Pictures
Genre:  Drama
Viewers Group:  15+

The Critique Lab Score Board
AVA Score: 8  (Max 10)
AVA Medal Honour™©     : Titanium
Recommended Level   :  High

Reference
(Ŏ BRONZE Medal Ŏ SILVER Medal Ŏ Titanium Medal Ŏ GOLD Medal Ŏ PLATINUM Medal) 
(L-Low   M-Moderate   H-High D-Don’t Miss it)

Three People, Three Dreams and a bond of friendship defines Kai PO Che!  with Cricket as its central theme of narration.  Based on the Chetan Bhagat’s ‘ The 3 Mistakes of My life’ it is perhaps the best onscreen adaptation of an Indian Novel till date which is true to its contents and research and the sheer credit goes to one person - Abhishek Kapoor, its director.

Kai Po Che ! is titled like that just not to seek attention of the audience but the indepth work of the director and his team. Even Chetan Bhagat had tweeted ‘ what the  hell Kai Po Che ! mean ‘ on its first poster release.  Kai Po Che!  as a term  means ‘I’ve Cut or Wo Katta’ in Gujarti which is used during Kite-festival (Makar Sakranti) to synonym your victory over your competitor and in parallel it synonym with the bond of friendship and love. Director Abhishek Kapoor has intelligently used this term to signify the bond between three friends viz Govind, Omi and Ishaan and in parallel the high & lows in their relationship just like the Kites.

Kai Po Che ! is about three friends and their dreams.  Govind who is a tutor wish to have his own business , Ishaan is passionate about cricket and Omi is clueless about his dreams which are later shaped up by his maternal uncle Bittoo Mama for his own political benefit. Somehow the cricket brought them together as they opened up a shop for cricket equipments and a cricket academy where all three contribute to their personal best. Somehow things change one desire of one overshadow the logic of other and few unavoidable circumstances like Gujarat Earthquake 2001 and the Gujarat riots 2002  change the complete panorama of friendship and their lives.

Abhishek Kapoor is to be credited for not unnecessary creating havoc on Gujarat earthquakes and riots and keep the spirit of the Movie in the right direction. He kept balance amongst all the requisite characters and events and towered the base of the movie on friendship and cricket. He could be the best examples to point out on ‘What a director  can do to a movie which is based on a simple and mediocre script (Novel), special mention to their screenplay writers. Also whether it’s the art direction, locations, costumes or sets everything has been chosen aptly and perfectly captured. Thou I would like to point out on cinematic liberty and creative liberty by the director and author respectively on the use of mobile phones in 2000-2002. They were there but not into a trend of common people like today in that period. Cinematography by Anay Goswamy is brilliant.

Kai Po Che ! has just three tracks viz Shubhaarambh,Meethi Boliyaan and Risto ka Manja are and all played beautifully in the background of the movie to maintain the pace of the movie. All three tracks composed by Amit Trivedi and penned by Swanand Kirkire.

Performances, thou the character who dies got the maximum sympathy and love of the audience and the same may be applied for this movie too but all the three lead character i.e. Sushant Singh Rajput as Ishaan, Amit Sadh as Omi and Raj Kumar Yadav as Govind played their parts brilliantly and Amit Sadh is outstanding. All other characters within their defined roles did a brilliant job, to mention Amrita Puri as Ishaan’s sister and Govind’s love interest and Manav Kaul as Bittoo Mama.

Kai Po Che ! Initially runs slow like a tortoise  to build its story but with its brilliant  direction and perfectly shot climax  it is  a sure shot winner in the long race. For the Dreams, For the Friendship and For the Victory Let’s Shout ‘ Kaiiie PO Cheee ! ‘

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