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 roommates Isabella, a student, Pedro, a sex worker and Jonata, Pedro’s HIV-positive nephew. Its just around the pandemic's fourth wave, the film moves into the three of them traversing through the city making astute contemplations about the society they live and what the future holds for them, in a Sao Paolo that is bled dry by a memory-easing virus and rampant capitalism. There is no story as such because what we see is the three folks meetings clients of Pedro and other random, terrible equals eccentric, natives in that city leading to some tragic yet funny situations. It's a film that feels more with a lose structure meant to encompass a mood than anything else.
The film falls in the category of what I call parallel and art house cinema, The characters are floating through this strange world that looks like our world but clearly isn't. It's the disorientation of normalcy. The film presents us with a trio of protagonists who are not entirely sure of who they are yet, and are searching for their identities through trial and error, simply venturing out into the world and discovering what works best by interacting with those around them. This makes the more serious conversations embedded in the film even more poignant, since the journey to get to that particular point has been so complex, layered with meaning that can only be drawn from an engaging and insightful understanding of issues surrounding identity within the LGBTQIA+ community, which serves as the foundation for this enthralling film. The intersections between the internal journeys of these characters and broader subjects relating to the queer community, whether it be institutionalized homophobia or the HIV/AIDS crisis, add to the deeply melancholic sensations. This film is definitely not meant for everyone. Personally, there were parts that I enjoyed and others where I couldn't wait for them to end. This one is going to be a very personal choice. I would rate this one strictly average from a general audience point of view. (4/10)
Comments