Available on Zee5
It’s been years since we talk about the efforts Abhishek Bachchan took in Guru, let’s now start talking about how amazing he did as Bob Biswas, thanks to Sujoy, Diya Ghosh’s filmmaking & the thumping music
We’re dropped straight into the heartland of Kolkata to get introduced to a new drug that tackles ‘attention deficiency’ named Blue. It’s illegal & a rage among teenagers wanting to hold their focus. One teenager who turns into a Blue-addict is Mini (Samara Tijori), a bright & scholar student welcoming her out-of-coma step-father Bob Biswas (Abhishek Bachchan) at home. Bob has lost his memory and doesn’t remember a single thing about his existence.
The mystery of this thriller lies in its tightly-knitted story, multiple mini shocks & well-packaged dialogues, thanks to the brilliance of Sujoy Ghosh. It’s not just Bob getting introduced to this whole new world for the first time, it’s all of us going through the same together with him. The beauty lies in its unpredictability because we don’t exactly know what to expect from the antagonist. In a scene, Bob asks his wife, “Am I a good person or a bad one?” & that’s exactly what all of us will ask the makers, as they soothingly put together each layer of the puzzle pacing towards a competent climax.
Abhishek Bachchan had two issues even before deciding to be Bob Biswas, it was to get into a required physique and replace a talent like Saswata Chatterjee. This had more risks of everything going haywire than any other character he has attempted in the past. But, boy oh boy, the range he brings to the table is remarkable. From someone just waking up out of an 8-year coma, Abhishek just nails the portrayal of a confused man looking for answers. With the film, his character grows & so does his power to surprise us with multiple sequences.
Chitrangada Singh’s character works as the bridge for us to see the positive shades of Bob Biswas which weren’t part of Kahaani. She makes him look good manipulating our minds to make any final decision about Biswas’ true identity.
Diya Annapurna Ghosh unburdens herself completely from matching the standards of Kahaani set by her father & that’s completely visible from scene one. For Bob, she creates a world similar to yet completely different from Vidya Bagchi. This is Bob’s story & you’ll easily settle in his universe rather than missing what’s already done and dusted. Her transitional scenes are *chef’s kiss*, especially the one in which Samara pours in drugs in the glass but mixes coffee as the scene changes. All these minute details freshen up the narrative to earn its own recognition and novelty value.
The film is musical heaven for those expecting some offbeat tracks matching the beat of the film. Bianca Gomes’ Tu Toh Gaya Re (composed by Vishal-Shekhar) remains to be the standout performer adding the necessary groove to the feel. Clinton Cerejo & Bianca Gomes’ background score is one major reason why this universe is way different from what we’ve seen before.
Bob Biswas holds your attention not just because it has a great story but it also throws you in the middle of nowhere to figure out things.