*Spoiler alert*
Murad/Gully Boy(Ranveer) is a working class graduate living in Dharavi 17. He stumbles upon MC Sher (Siddhant), a rapper, and moves on a journey to make his opinion count through his words (ye shabdon ka jwala meri bediyan pighlayega). He has the urge of breaking through his uncles comments of ‘naukar ka beta naukar hi rahta hai’.
‘Uth ja apni raakh se,Tu utha ja ab talaash mein
Parwaaz dekh parwaane ki, Aasmaan bhi sar uthayega
Aayega, apna time aayega‘
The rap feels like a breath of fresh air from others we have heard in Bollywood before. Thankfully, it has limited usage of words describing a woman’s waist, eyes or the length of her heels. Instead, after a guy abuses a singer because of her looks in a college gig, MC Sher replies with ‘Tujhe chedne ki talab hai, tu nakli wala marad, mardangi pe kalank, haivaniyat ki shakal’.
This also brings us to one of the most beautiful elements of the movie who is Safeena; a modern girl who’s inner volcano bursts in form of her studies and will to practice medicine. For her, freedom is as uncomplicated as applying lipstick or talking to boys.
The film brings a certain hope to the future of music in India; where feelings aren’t subdued in the fear of politics in the country (credits to Naezy, Divine and others for the songs). It’s a fictional set up where chants of ‘azaadi’ don’t come with its own repercussions of arrest.
Gully boy has fabulous performances, strongly built characters (well, mostly) and scathing dialogues. At one point the film seems like a repeated story of an ambitious guy with an abusive father, limited resources and a deranged lover, which honestly, it is.
Watch Gully Boy if not for the flawless acting, then for the picturization of parts of Mumbai that have rarely been captured before.
