By Goher Iqbal Punn, Film Critic & Entertainment Analyst, Showbiz Bites
Producer: UTV Motion Pictures, Dharma Productions, DAR Motion Pictures and Sikhya Entertainment
Director: Ritesh Batra
Cast: Irrfan Khan, Nimrat Kaur, Nawazuddin Siddique and Nakul Vaid
Rating: [rating=4]
The movies with unique subjects always work big time if made with creativity and conviction. Interestingly and luckily, whenever some unique subjects are chosen to make movies on, brilliant filmmakers come up to execute the cinematic ventures most of the time. Most of the times, these movies are made on low-budget with not high-profile stars on board, but what matters the most is that these films are well-received by the intelligent moviegoers. The Lunchbox too walks on the similar route. Debutante director Ritesh Batra really has done the wonders with this film that carries a simple yet appealing subject.
The Lunchbox is an old-fashioned romance that shows the fears and sufferings of the people living in the metros. While watching the movie, you remind of the old days of hand-written letters in this age of e-mails and technology advancements. The brilliant actor Irrfan Khan is the real life of the film, who lures your heart from tip to toe.
The movie tells the story of Ila (Nimrat Kaur) who is a young housewife. She always tries hard to get her husband’s (Nakul Vaid) attention all the time by cooking scrumptious foods for him. But despite her cooking expertise, she fails to register any impact on her husband. But one wrong delivery of lunchbox leads her life to stumble upon a middle-aged man Saajan (Irrfan Khan), who brings pleasures to her life.
The plot is simple, but is really catchy and gripping from all aspects. You even don’t get bored for a moment. Even the old-fashioned way of communication (hand-written letters) too does not bother you at all rather you love seeing all this on celluloid. Ritesh deserves applauds for writing a fine screenplay. His direction too catches the attention of the viewers. How brilliantly he brings up the simple subject on screen is what deserves big claps. Editing is fine. Cinematography is nice.
Irrfan Khan is the great talent of Indian film industry. Whenever he comes up, he brings up another great talent to show to the audiences. He is simply the finest talent on Indian celluloid. He impresses with his role of a middle-aged man in this movie. Nimrat Kaur is great to watch. Nawazuddin Siddique is as usual luminous. Nakul Vaid is first-rate. Others too reveal their talents on this cinematic venture.
Final Verdict:
In a capsule, The Lunchbox is a brilliantly executed film that deserves to be watched. It is a simple yet catchy film with great performances by the likes of Irrfan Khan and Nawazuddin Siddique.
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