This Hindi movie is a pretty straightforward slice-of-life story that tries to give a modern look at what it's like to be a single, professional gay man. It dives into how he understands who he is, the chances he missed out on, and the personal choices he’s made along the way. The director used three parallel timelines to tell the story, which honestly didn't make much sense to me. While the core idea was actually pretty interesting, I really feel like this would have worked way better as a short film considering the point it was trying to make. Still, it wasn't a bad watch. The plot centers on Rachit, a city professional, and his friend Shikhar as they hang out for an evening. Rachit is a polished, urban guy, while Shikhar has more of a "small-town" rustic vibe, and you can really see the contrast between them when they talk. As the night goes on, Rachit starts thinking back to some old memories from a long time ago. He remembers being an intern after college in ...
We meet Long who works in an ice maker factory. Another boy Cuoi and him have sex often together. Cuoi loves Long but he wants only physical stuff. He later tells Cuoi that reason behind that is he is still in love with Lam. Lam and Long were both hustlers and Lam died 4 years earlier in a bad trick. Half way through the film we see that Lam is still very much alive and trying to make ends meet while continuing to prostitute himself. We follow his continued struggles with tricks trying to make money. A chance encounter leads him to meet Cuoi who takes him to meet Long. But Lam clearly tells Long that he will never love him since he will only ever love Khoi, (a character from the original film). Long tries best to persuade him but Lam is very clear. It's only later that Lam finds out that Khoi died four years ago right after they broke up after Khoi asked him to leave prostitution. Lam is extremely devastated and decides to eventually leave hustling and advises to Long that he should value Cuoi and his love since people often do not get real love. Just when he is about to Strat a new life, Lam is met with a deadly accident.
Considering the title of the film is supposed to be story about Loam, it was a bot weird that we do not see Lam until almost half way through the film. Almost first 30 minutes are all about Long and Cuoi. And since their names are not revealed until much later, you don't even know who these characters are. It was odd. Thankfully, you don't hav to have seen the original film but knowing the story will help in a better perspective, since clearly here everyone loves everyone else. Cuoi like Long who likes Lam, who in turn is still in love with Khoi. Clearly people have issues. The makers do try to show a lot of problems and issues that Lam continues to have while he is hustling including attest on his life more than a couple of times. I feel the makers were not really sure what is it thatchy wanted to focus son in the film. Was it supposed to be about the pain and anguish of being a prostitute or an unrequited love story or a combination of some sorts. It was a bit all over the place. Having said that, a lot is happening throughout, so I never felt the rush to fast forward the film. My one big complaint of the film is that most of it is shot at night, so almost 75% is very dark. You really have to focus on what you are watching.
Strictly and average film. (5/10)
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