All of Karnataka
waited patiently for Yograj Bhat’s new film
with great expectations. The critics were ready
to shower heaps of praise; the box-office hungry
distributors were ready for another opportunity
to get the cash registers ringing madly; the theatres
were designing weather proof posters that could
survive a year; the audience was ready for another
round of applause. The man who delivered Kannada
filmdom’s greatest hit, Mungaaru
Male, and who has been often labelled as the
messiah and saviour of Kannada cinema and Kannada
pride, Yograj Bhat, has let everyone down. Gaalipata,
to put it simply, is a major disappointment.
The story begins as three friends Gunny (Ganesh),
Diggy (Diganth) and Kitty (Rajesh Krishnan) take
off to a village nestled in the hills for a brief
getaway. There, they encounter three girls, and
promptly each of them is smitten by one of them.
While the marriages of Kitty and Diggy are easily
finalized, Ganesh has trouble with the third girl
(Daisy Bopanna), a widow. She is torn between
the love for her lost husband, and her new found
love, that she secretly nurtures. How they come
together forms the climax of the film.
 It
becomes inevitable to make comparisons of this
flick with Bhat’s earlier hit, Mungaaru
Male (MM). Sometimes things just magically
come together in a movie, to create a sense of
completeness. In MM, music, dialogue,
performance and camera magically fused to create
a great movie. In Gaalipata, this simply
does not happen. Bhat’s repetition of ideas
leads to a deep sense of disappointment. While
there are no doubts about Bhat’s talent
to write interesting material, there are now serious
doubts about his ability to explore new and unchartered
territories. In fact, one wishes the hills of
Karnataka simply vanish to prevent Bhat from going
there again ! The imagery of the hills and rain
make Gaalipata look like a MM
part II.
In Gaalipata, Director Bhat lets loose
all his obsessions once again. An animal character
in the form of a wild boar, loosely translated
to be an avatar of the hindu god Vishnu; the misty
hills; rain and waterfalls. While he holds his
characters with brilliant and funny dialogue and
his ability to deal with themes of friendships
and relationships is immense, he lets his talent
wither away with filling the film with many clichés
and stereotypes.
Now, coming to the most important part of the
movie – actor Ganesh. He simply stands tall
and mesmerizes the viewer with his performance.
His effortless ease before the camera, his disarming
smile, his charm and his powerhouse acting stun
the viewer. Like many superstars, he has the ability
to rise way above the script and hold a falling
film together with his sheer talent. They say
actors are not born but are made. Ganesh disproves
that theory. He is truly born with an uncanny
ability of having mastered the craft of film acting.
Every little wink, every little smile and every
little gesture is done to perfection. His sense
of timing, so crucial to the craft, is impeccable.
It is a real pity that he is not seen in a larger
National film. Hope he does someday. He truly
deserves National exposure.
There is not much to discuss about the other
actors. Diganth and Rajesh Krishnan need to take
acting lessons before their next outing. Veteran
Anant Nag doesfull justice to his part. Of the
girls, Neetu and Bhavana are miscast. However,
Daisy Bopanna is charming and beautiful and easily
the best of the heroines in the film.
On the technical side, even as Bhat’s movie
falters, cinematographer Ratnavelu ensures the
film is a visual delight all the way especially
when the story moves to the hills. Wonderful misty
frames, well choreographed camera movements and
soft lighting ensure that apart from Ganesh, Ratnavelu
holds his head high in Gaalipata. However,
music director Harikrishna is a big let down.
There are none of those eternally hummable tunes
Bhat presented in his earlier film. Except for
one gem - Minchaagi Neenu Baralu sung
beautifully by Sonu Nigam, the other songs simply
fall flat.
Director Bhat needs to rest and think afresh.
As lovers of Kannada cinema, we cannot let this
powerhouse of a talent be wasted way on clichéd,
misty-romantic tales. He has the ability to write
good movies and endearing characters. He shows
he can capture small moments with ease. His sense
of humour is wonderful. C’mon Mr Bhat, we
waited for your movie with baited breath. You
let us down. But we still have faith in you and
your talent. We will wait again. Don’t let
us down next time.
Anand Subramanian is an alumnus of the Film and
Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune with
specialization in Film Direction, 1993. He has
made several corporate films and television commercials
and as acted in films like Mysore Mallige
(1991). He has just completed making his
first feature film in Hindi, Doosra.
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