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Tikli and Laxmi Bomb
India 2017
produced by Sweta Chhabria Kripalani, Aditya Kripalani, Vijay Nair (executive) for Mumba Devi Motion Pictures
directed by Aditya Kripalani
starring Vibhawari Deshpande, Chitrangada Chakraborty, Divya Unny, Kritika Pande, Mia Maelzer, Rakhi Mansha, Bageshri Joshirao, Manasi Bhawalkar, Mayur More, Kamil, Upendra Limaye, Suchitra Pillai, Saharsh Kumar Shukla, Uday Atrolia, Vikas Shukla
screenplay by Aditya Kripalani, based on his novel, music by Aditya Kripalani, Dhanashree Ganatra, Laxmi Bomb, Ganesh Talkies, Akshay Gidwani
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Laxmi (Vibhawari Deshpande) is a seasoned sex worker in the streets of
Mumbai who seems to have seen pretty much everything and who has come to
accept her status in society, which includes to be taken advantage of by
every man she meets, from her small fry pimp AT (Mayur More) to his boss
Mhatre (Upendra Limaye), from the corrupt local police officer Moray (Uday
Atrolia) to random motel clerks where she does her business at. Enter
Tikli (Chitrangada Chakraborty), the new girl on the streets whom Laxmi is
to show the ropes - though at first Laxmi's less than impressed by Tikli,
as Tikli's fresh, won't stand for abuse, and questions the whole system
that grants the actual workers in the sex business the least rights. But
Tikli's not just hot air, she's quick with the knife to get out of
dangerous situations, she at one point attacks AT for not helping her, and
she gets Laxmi out of a jam - only to as a thank you later be raped by
Moray while at the police station. This should have broken her spirit, but
it only gets Tikli all the more mad, and while Laxmi at first wants to
break all contact with her, she later learns this was exactly how she was
broken many moons back - and now she and Tikli create a collective of
self-controlled prostitutes who won't take any shit from any men anymore -
but Mhatre and gang try to crack down on them every step along the way.
But neither Tikli nor Laxmi are in a position to give up anymore, so they
plow on with original business ideas and special tricks to stay out of
Mhadre's hair while siphoning off his business all the same - something
which soon steers towards disaster. But the girls soon figure they have to
play the system to beat it and seek employ with the same big boss Mhadre's
working for - and it seems to add up. But when one works in a business
like this, more misfortune's always around the corner ... A
very strong and touching drama that in approach is reminiscent first and
foremost of neorealist cinema - what with its contemporary,
straight-from-the-headlines topics, no-frills filmmaking approach, its
authentic locations and its being shot (mostly) with out the shoot of
artificial light sources. But this is certainly not a movie reminiscent of
cinema of old but one very much in the now, and one that doesn't forget
the art of good storytelling, which includes some violence as well as
lighter moments, even bits of comedy. And the ensemble cast's very natural
performances don't hurt one bit either. Recommended for sure!
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review © by Mike Haberfelner
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Robots and rats,
demons and potholes, cuddly toys and shopping mall Santas,
love and death and everything in between,
Tales to Chill Your Bones to is all of that.
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Tales to Chill Your Bones to
the new anthology by Michael Haberfelner
Out now from Amazon!!! |
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