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Dhanak - film review

'Dhanak' as in Rainbow (not sure in which language), is a tug at your heart tale of two precocious kids in Rajasthan (a western frontier state of India) roaming in the desert in search of a unicorn.  Not really but close.  The girl protagonist is an elder sister to a young brother who has gone blind at an early age.  She is on a naively innocent but pure of heart mission to find sight for her sibling before he turns nine years old.  And that too with help from a famous Bollywood movie star.  Or so she dreams.

Whilst they have their playful and angry moments in the movie, the kids who have lost their parents in an accident and live with their uncle in the desert of Rajasthan are inseparable.  The older girl actor plays her role with a natural, easy going manner while the younger brother at times looks like he is trying hard.  But overall amazing piece of acting on the big screen at a young age.

The director, one Mr. Kukunoor,  is an engineer by training from the southern state of India, that traditionally churns out IT consultants but here we see a refreshingly different spin from the mind of a genius.

The movie as a whole is clearly breaks the Bollywood mold, both in its simplicity and honesty as well as the subject matter but perhaps an hour too long for my taste.

Cinematography is also noteworthy with the vibrantly colorful scenes and the use of various characters to meld the fantastical tale together.  But there are several spots during the journey (literal and artistic) that I could have done without.

Singing or background music, a must have formula in the Hindi film world is timed well, is adequate and sounds good.

All in all a film about hope and undying love.  Good job.


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