The Bong Connection movie review: The Wrong Connection

When one thinks of Bengali cinema, one name that instantly pops in is Satyajit ray. With his brilliant vision and wonderful cinematic sense, he has created classics that will never be forgotten. Quite a few of these were based on his culture - Bengali. Even as I say it, it is impossible to not acknowledge this microcosm that Bengalis have created for themselves. Be it cinema, or festivals or even daily life, they have a distinct identity that they manage to forge. It is this connection that Anjun Dutt has tried to capture in the film ‘The Bong Connection’.

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This film is based on two central characters - one is Andy (Shayan Munshi), who is your Indian- American dream come true. He projects (though not very successfully) this well bred all American personality. In an effort to find his true vocation as a Bengali singer, he travels to Kolkata. On the other hand, we have Appu (sounds familiar?) who wants to go to America and make his dream come true, since like every other person, he wants to run to the land of opportunities. In case you have not figured it out by now, these two are completely polar in nature and the only thing that connects them is their Bengali roots. Through these two very different tracks, the director tries to tell us about a deeper meaning, help us see a deeper connection. As the movie goes on, we see Andy getting disgusted with the “ape the west” lifestyle in Kokata. This includes the rock music and clothes. He feels the need to get back to his roots; the only problem he feels is whether there are any roots left. On the other side, in U.S.A, Appu is trying to desperately fit in into a culture and find his footing too. The entire film is about the emotional, spiritual and religious bonds that the two boys forge.

While the idea seems to be pretty good, I believe it came a couple of years too late as in the recent past we have seen such “American-born-confused-desi” films sprout out by dozens. But still, it might have worked if the storyline and plot would have been a wee bit stronger and not so scattered. Now don’t get me wrong, there are some really good moments in the film - especially the one where Victor Bannerjee makes a reference to the Appu trilogy - the reference is made in such a way that it looks personal, something that you are party to because you know about the masterpiece. This is the most brilliant scene in the entire movie. But sadly, there are not too many like it.

The acting is strictly ok, and that too is an optimist speaking. The actors seem raw, unaware of the undercurrents that their roles hold. The dialogue delivery is stilted and unnatural.

If you are lusting for some truly Bengali cinema, I suggest you revert to the classics because you will not find the Bong connection in this film.

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This entry was posted on Sunday, July 8th, 2007 at 9:11 pm and is filed under Raima Sen, Shayan Munshi, The Bong Connection . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.