Wake Up Sid
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Movie But life has a way of throwing up surprises. And none is bigger for the rich, cool kid than the accidental encounter with Aisha Banerjee (Konkona Sen Sharma), a just-arrived girl from Kolkata, the sort who reads Murakami's Norwegian Wood and hangs Woody Allen's Annie Hall posters in her room. She is independent, focused, gritty - everything Sid is not. But there's a kismat connection between the two.
And when Sid gets into a big fight with his dad over his career, or the lack of it, he moves out of his capacious home into Aisha's cuddly apartment. It is the beginning of his education in life and its realities, his first chapters of growing up.
Wake Up Sid could have been just another spoilt-brat's coming-of-age flick: plenty of attitude but bereft of soul. But it ends up being much, much more. And what makes it special is debutant director Ayan Mukerji's (also the film's writer) attention to detail, his nuanced way of looking at GenNow life.
The relationship of the lead pair is every inch 21st century urban; but it doesn't follow the route of liplocks and no-condom sex to become so. The change in the tenor of relationship between the lead pair as well as the texture of their own changing selves is detailed with diligence, delineated with tenderness. We understand Sid's joy on making his first omelette. And we enjoy the moment when he rustles up the fastest birthday cake in the world: a lone matchstick burning atop four pieces of bread and jam. Mukerji gets the bigger picture right too. There's a subtlety with which he repairs the relationship between Sid and his mother (Supriya Pathak).
Wake Up Sid
The distance between the two is born out of the different cultures the two belong to. She is uneducated, he is westernised and the twain don't meet. There's a tragic dimension to the Punjabi mother who speaks English, even though it is pretty awful, hoping that it will bring her Westernised son closer. It's tragic because we know it's so real. Sid has warts: he is great with friends but rude to those not on his wavelength: his mother, dad, servant. Through him, we know that the ugly and the cute can live together in the same person. It is not an easy part and to Ranbir Kapoor's credit, he is near perfect.
Watch Wake Up Sid (2009) - A spoiled young adult living in Mumbai experiences a change in his lazy ways when he meets a woman at a party, who inspires him to 'wake up'.
But Konkona as Aisha is simply outstanding. Her performance underlines how good actors instil regular part with real soul. The script offers generous space to Sid's extra-large friend Laxmi, a rare instance when an obese girl is not a caricature in Bollywood.
And we love the fourth-floor bombshell in Aisha's apartment, Kashmira Shah in a bindaas, wine-drinking act. Kher is brilliantly controlled as Sid's father. In fact, every actor is perfectly cast. Whoever is the movie's casting director deserves a pre-Diwali bonus.
Neatly lensed, the movie looks at Bombay - and now after producer Karan Johar's apology, Mumbai - with love and affection. Too bad, Raj Thackeray missed the point. The songs - lyrics Javed Akhtar, music Shankar Ehsaan Loy - have a sense of romance too. But none is better than composer Amit Trivedi's Iktara, a song filled with an unbearable lightness of being. Songs make the movie soar; they help us look inside the head and mood of Sid and Aisha and help carry the story forward.
In the end, Wake Up Sid becomes a sort of template of how GenNow navigate their lives: deal with their own little rebellions, find meaning to their own definitions of independence and handle their own set of mistakes. It feels good when the two friends finally meet in driving rain under the grey skies by the sea. Refreshing and heart-warming, Wake Up Sid really puts you in the mood for love.
Director: Ayan Mukerji Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Konkona Sen Sharma Rating:. Wake Up Sid in literal terms if the coming of age story of one rich but irresponsible boy to a man. Siddharth Mehra (Ranbir Kapoor) never had to try hard and always got everything he wished for on platter thanks to his affluent family. Freshly out from college, his attitude towards life continues to be careless as he keeps hanging around without any aim.
He befriends Aisha (Konkona Sen Sharma) who has come from Kolkata to Mumbai to lead an independent life and find her own self. Sid fails in his graduation resulting into a spat with his father (Anupam Kher) after which he leaves his house. He seeks shelter under Aishas apartment and life changes drastically as he has to live on his own without his prosperous parental support.
One can instantly draw references of Siddharth Mehras carefree characterization from similar characters played by Aamir Khan and Hrithik Roshan in Farhan Akhtars Dil Chahta Hai and Lakshya respectively. The basic premise of the film might seem predictable not because you have seen that several times in films before but experienced something similar in real life. An average youth can relate to Sid since its a common phase most might experience in life when one has to shoulder responsibilities after a spoon-fed life. The simplicity of Ayan Mukerjis writing is what appeals to the viewer.
Wake Up Sid Full Movie Dailymotion
The screenplay is fresh and frothy and the feel-good factor is devoid of a mushy treatment. The scene where Sid makes an instant cake for Aisha on her birthday or another where a classmate pays his bill when Sids credit card stops working are sensitively written and directed. The delicately designed dialogues by Niranjan Iyengar mainly comprising casual conversations from daily life add depth to the drama. Unconventional as the pairing might seem, the chemistry between Ranbir and Konkona is very richly and gracefully developed. Much against the conventional candyfloss chemistry concocted from dream songs and romance-laden lines, the rapport between the duo is so slice of life and unadulterated.
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loys music is soothing. Find software registration keys. Mainly playing in the background, it acts as a catalyst to the romance as each song has a lot to say through its multiple montages set in transition mode; much refreshing over the clichd song and dance. The pacing is slow but the momentum drops only in the second half where the screenplay tends to get somewhat cyclic. Also most of the subplots from Sids friends to Aishas neighbour (Kashmera Shah) do not contribute much to the central plot. Again half-baked parallel love-stories of Sid and his colleague Tania and Aisha and her boss (Rahul Khanna) do not make the narrative multidimensional.
The second half could have been crisper and the end could have been more innovative. Technically the film is flawless with Anil Mehtas cinematography capturing the Mumbai city in a fresh perspective. Whether its the Mumbai monsoon in the climax or the Queens necklace at Marine Drive in the summer nights, each frame is rich in texture. Priyanjali Lahiri and Manish Malhotras costume design complement the characters aptly. Ranbir Kapoor effortlessly gets into the character of Sid and its good to see him in a fresh outlook over his lover-boy image so far. Konkona Sen Sharma is dependable as usual and is expressive in her act. Anupam Kher is persuasive in the scene when he confronts Ranbir post his results.
Supriya Pathak is a pleasant change from the regular Kirron Kher kind Bollywood moms. Rahul Khanna almost gets to play the same special appearance character that he did in recent films like Love Aaj Kal and Dil Kabaddi. Shikha Talsania and Namit Das as Sids friends are decent. Kashmera Shah gets no scope. Its pleasing to see Bollywood warming up to fresh talents like Ayan Mukerji and waking up to compelling narratives like Wake Up Sid.