Omkara

Saw this film yesterday: very well written and very well made.

Two of the best and well thought out reviews/comments on the movie are on blogs, rather than a conventional medium. Both are wonderfully written, worth a read. Read this for a mostly positive review focused on the movie itself. Read this for a more negative review, focused on the movie's departure from Othello.

My two cents:

- Multiple references to Ramayana, in a Shakespeare adaptation. More than the UP gangland setting, these make the story strongly Indian. Of course, desi gaalis and mannerisms play a part too.
- The "sarat ghodon pe lagaayi jaati hai, sheron pe nahi" (Bets are placed on horses, not lions) has to be one of the most well written lines projecting bravado.
- The film is an exciting fusion of genres, stories, dialog and all other elements, drawn variously from folk culture, great cinema, and bollywood kitsch. The item numbers Beedi and Namak are good examples. Some of the background music doesn't work that well.

Much more could be written, and deserves to be written about one of the best Indian movies of the year. For now, I am content to have watched the film and read the above two reviews.