Ya Rab Hindi Movie
There is a pleasant change for Indian cine-goers off late. The much talked about anti-tobacco ads that were drawing protests from all over have been replaced with ads which are not gory and attempt to touch your heart. However the makers of Ya Rab decided to go with the same old ad. As I walked out of the theater after the film, I wondered if that was an indication of what the film was going to be - dated, unwanted and so loud that it would evoke entirely negative response.
Ya Rab, directed by Hasnain Hyderabadwala, is a tough speech on how Islam is misinterpreted and how peaceful Muslims are subjected to communal hatred.
Relevant? Yes! Extremely relevant in today's times! More so with frequent communal digs that are being made in the country's politics.
Well made? No! Ya Rab is at best a badly made TV show. But of course Indian TV standards are better than this.
The story is primarily aimed at showcasing two different mindsets - one who understands Islam the way it is, the other twisting the verses of the holy book to create disharmony. This is done via two characters - a doctor and a maulvi - and a screenplay that could straightaway make it to the hall of fame of the trashy movie club. So we have a doctor - Asia's best Neurosurgeon - who can't get more technical than a CT Scan and an MRI at a conference about advances in medical science. And we have a maulvi whose grandchild has better sensibilities.
The film reminded me of a carpenter who is particularly bad about his work. He would take the nail and keep hammering it till it went into the piece of wood, quite regardless of the fact that he could have easily hammered it in one clean shot and avoided all the noise as well. Ya Rab rubs in the same dialogue about Islam being misinterpreted every 10 minutes, till it tires you out.
I remember a beautiful Pakistani film Khuda Kay Liye that also did phenomenal business in India. It walked down the same path, propagated the same message and yet it did it in style so pleasing that it stayed in our minds. Much like the precision of a good carpenter - hammers the nail in with one clean shot!
It's not just the bad screenplay and older-than-fossils story. The direction is amateurish. This despite the director having directed three films earlier! Other departments - acting to cinematography to continuity- fail, glaringly pointing out at the director for a rather dismal job. Check this - girl hurt in bomb-blast has severe injuries on her face. Next scene face she is dying but her face does not have a scratch. She probably decided to get a make-up done while in coma. And this is the least important good up.
Ya Rab is a totally avoidable fare. I could not help pleading, Ya Rab, reham! [Oh God, mercy!] Random Youtube videos make better sense than this.
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