Did you guys watch the bloopers at the end, by
the way? Yeah. Once the credits stop rolling,
he's like, all right, finally, we're done. Can
I get my Rickshaw now? You see the kid, like,
step on the barbed wire. Blood's all pouring
out on the camera lens. And she's yelling about
missing a take and stuff. It's super, super funny.
Welcome to Fear of Stairs, Desi Films Decoded,
the podcast where four friends from different
backgrounds unlock the world of Desi cinema.
I'm Winnie, the Desi who's never been to India.
Hey, I'm Kili. I'm from India. I love films and
I like to talk about films. Hi, I'm Nikki. I'm
from Thailand and I love to talk about films
too. Hey, I'm Adam. I'm from America. I like
to talk about films as well. Wow. We have such
common... We should do a podcast about this.
I think that's a good idea. Anyway, so today,
I just have to tell you guys something. My depression
came back. From this movie? From this movie.
For real? This is a very heavy film. It's a heavy
film. I think... So, me, Keely, and Winnie didn't
realize what kind of movie we were going into.
And this movie is pretty heavy. It deals with
the poverty... Children? Children? Impoverished
children? Bombay. And of course, as you can see,
that movie is Salaam Bombay by Meera Nair. Yeah,
so we chose this because she is the mom of Zoran
Mandani, who just got the Democratic nomination
for the mayor of New York. He's a Democratic
socialist. He's 33. He's pretty young. And it's
just not talked about often. And I really wasn't
aware either that his mom was a director. And
we kind of looked into it and saw that, you know,
she's actually a pretty big director that's done
American films and Indian films. So we thought
we'd be like kind of topical. And we watched
the first one she's ever done. None of us had
seen it. I didn't know anything about it. Yeah.
I just I just, you know, watched it not knowing
what to expect either. Well, what are your guys's?
So, yeah, tell me. I'm curious. You guys saw
it together. It was so heavy and it felt a bit
drawn out. I mean, it was very raw, great acting,
great, you know, like the storyline and everything.
It feels very real. But yeah, you have to really
digest it. And there's not many happy points,
you know, like just when you think that their
situation cannot get much worse, it somehow does.
And it's a look into the reality of like an experience
that. maybe has not been portrayed so much in
Indian cinema. Maybe that's why it was so popular
at the time. But it was a big hit. She was like,
it was her first film, but it made like $7 million,
which is pretty good for like the tiny, tiny
budget. They, you know, I think their budget
was like less than a hundred thousand. She studied
at Harvard. She like went to university in India
and then studied in Harvard, then went back to
film this. But it was one of two Indian films
to get Oscar nominations. And it was like a big,
big, it got like swept the awards at Cannes and
stuff. I didn't realize this until after watching
it too, but it was a really big international
hit and tuned in a lot of people to what was
going on in Mumbai too at the time. We also found
out that the movie is one of New York Times pick
for best movies of the day. The top 1 ,000 best
movies of all time. It was just in there. That's
huge. Yeah. Do you feel like it belongs? Yeah.
I think, you know, even though we think the movie
is really dark and maybe too real, I think it
does tell a great story. It does open up my view
on, you know, how kids try to survive in a land
that is just not kind to them. I think... i think
like how when you tackle a subject like that
it's a it's a very delicate matter and then how
at the point of how you tackle this subject how
you produce such a film right so um like while
being empathetic this film still uh for me like
kind of borders in the territory of urban middle
class background or a very highly educated person
from an elite sector section of the society coming
and with a very empathetic point of view looking
at these kids it's uh but still does the job
in a very well -mannered way i think they set
up the whole i mean when we talk about the production
process we'll go into that and then uh like they
did the whole workshop with the kids teaching
them how to like do the acting she mentioned
a lot of times it's the most important thing
for them to teach those kids was like how to
concentrate on things because being on street
while growing up on street they cannot focus
on one thing so to do this kind so they just
acted out their reality of their surroundings
right so these films while looking at it from
a outsider point of view it's very um full of
good intention empathetic but there goes the
thing like it's uh it's it doesn't look very
empowering but it is very documenting this the
situation i don't think there were films that
documented this the reality of street kids that
well before this film like in india She said
that she was inspired by this Brazilian film
called Pissot, but where the main character gets
killed later on in real life, like the main actor.
So she was very touched by that. So they started
the foundation as well. Salaam Balak, Balak means
boys. So foundation, which grew a lot. So yeah,
I think this is how, if you want to tackle this
subject. this is this is the most ethical way
i think it's like you can go about it at the
okay it's a different point of view a point of
discussion whether you should make a film like
that or not but that's a different topic people
talk about like you know like if something's
poverty porn or not yeah you know and i think
that's always like kind of dangerous but you
also want to give voices to those people too
you know like i don't want to see just films
about rich people either but it's a super fine
line you know you don't want to be exploitative
You don't want to just do poverty porn. And you
also don't want to make it oriental, right? Like
you don't want to make them seem like you're
like looking at this weird alien subculture or
anything like that. And I think it's hard to
describe, you know, the differences, but it's
just, yeah, purely in the approach and the intention
of the filmmaking. And I think, you know, in
an interview that Kelly turned us on to, the
director said that. She was kind of inspired
by the film when she was around those kids and
saw that they were fighting to be children at
all costs. So like as much as the world was preventing
them, they were going to like fight for their
right to be children, you know? And so I think
she really respects the subjects. I think she
like admires it. And I think you see that through
the filmmaking too. Like at no point is she looking
down on them. It's not judgmental. um it's very
humanistic very empathetic like you said and
it's just looking at kids and the adults just
like living in the world around them that they're
kind of just forced to interact with you you
just have a very three -dimensional view of these
people and i think that's why it's not just like
despair poverty porn and and like it's sad but
there's a lot of good moments too the kids are
happy and like you know they they find pockets
of uh moments where they can like laugh and stuff
I think ethics is a very important conversation
in a movie like this. And, you know, she had
workshops and all for the kids, which we can
talk about later. But I do question the extent
of ethics that were involved in when it comes
to approaching the children. A lot of them are
street children. They don't have any parental
guardianship or anything like that. And to kind
of bring them into a workshop to get their stories,
film them. The question then comes to, did they
benefit from this at all? You know, like what
stories were they fed? Was any of the proceeds,
like the funds that the movie raised, was any
of this eventually passed down to the children?
They started a foundation 10 years later, the
Salam Balak Trust Foundation. At the same time.
No. I think it was 1998. And then another NGO
started from this movie. But, you know, the main
actor, Shafiq Syed, he ends up kind of just going
back to live in the slums. I think he has a rickshaw
company. We also don't really know under what
conditions these children were brought in, how
their stories were told. If they received any
care, a lot of what they were acting out was
also quite traumatic. They were placed in, right,
it's a traumatic plot line. There's a scene where
like the guy kind of like just raises the girl
up in the air, hanging over the balcony and shakes
her. So then there's also a question of was there
any like aftercare that was also provided for
them beyond just treating them like subjects
and making the storyline. I hope that there was.
There was. I mean, they had therapists. You had
a trust fund for the main actors. So, like, they
were paid, and then they had a trust fund set
up that, like, paid them out over time and then
used proceeds from the movie for other kids in
that situation. One of the kids, she said, like,
ended up living in California. Yeah, he got adopted
by one of the crew members. Yeah, so, like, he
had a totally, completely different life. But,
yeah, the main guy lives in Bangalore and has
an auto rickshaw. But that's, you know, like,
life, too. Like, what? I mean... it's not every
movie's responsibility to make sure every person
gets rich. Like, how much can you possibly, you
know, do? I don't know. The trust was made, built
in the same time. I just checked. It's in 1988,
on 1988. And, yeah, so she had addressed later
on an interview about, like, what happened to
Shafiq Saik. So... actually like he's he's pretty
old he was like older he was like 15 year old
at the point of filming but you can see like
how he looks so small because of the malnutrition
being on the being a street kid so he comes from
a family where like both parents are like alcohol
were alcoholic and he didn't have a nice childhood
so he fled bangalore to bombay he was living
in the street of bombay and after this film like
he did certain roles in started to do in tvc
tv drama and stuff but no one could make him
act because uh they were going in a very point
of point of view of like okay performing acting
right while this film was like workshopped and
they just he just did what his life was and yeah
so the workshop she she said she's very specific
she didn't teach him how to act there was six
week workshops but the main thing was not teaching
them how to act it was teaching him how to not
act like how to be natural on the camera. And
so for six weeks, they're just doing improv games
and stuff to be natural on camera. And that looks
great for this film, but that doesn't translate
into being in other films because they don't
know how to act. They just know how to be natural.
Yeah, I mean, I don't think we have much evidence
or anything of how those events took place at
the time, how the workshops were, if any care
was provided. But I think if a movie like that
was produced today, it would definitely come
a lot more under scrutiny for sensationalizing.
people's trauma like these street kids trauma
and i think there'd be a lot more conversation
around how to support them whether it's ethical
like whether it's trauma -informed the way that
they're approaching these children that conversations
that i don't think were probably so mainstream
yet back then you know and yeah yeah reliving
trauma is right when i listened to an interview
i guess i just felt like i was not convinced
that like they were placed at the center of it
i just felt like it was her storyline, her vision,
and also her trying to make this movie kind of
appeal to the West. And I do see elements of
sensationalizing their trauma. I think it's reality
for sure. And like, you know, there's an element
where she took their stories, their real lived
experiences and put it in the plot. So we can't
say that it's sensationalizing it, but I do feel
like there's a lot of just emphasis on their
sadness and their pain. I guess these days we're
more used to seeing movies made in a more empowering
light. Like we watch the other one, all the lights
that shine. All we imagine as lights. All we
imagine as lights, where it's also a similar
plot, where it takes place in the slums of Bombay.
But we see that painted as more of an empowering
narrative, where they're in control of their
lives. They can control their outcomes. So because
this is around children, it's a lot more of a
stark reality. They can't control. That's the
whole unfortunate point, is like they're in this
situation where they're just reacting to... uh
the hand being dealt with them you know what
i mean it is and it is frustrating like you do
get that watching the film they're they're children
they can't do anything you know and i would kind
of feel robbed if it was just a happy ending
like if it was just like an oliver twist thing
because there aren't a lot of similarities like
oliver twist i got the very like dickensian you
know kids kind of wandering the streets and stuff
and how sometimes like the institutions are worse
than the street um But Oliver Twist has a cop
out ending. We're like, oh, yeah, like a rich
family. You have a good life. OK, bye. And that
just isn't realistic, you know. But I you know,
when the director said it's these kids fighting
to be children at all costs. Like, again, I think
she's not like taking glee and watching them
suffer. It's about finding happiness despite
the suffering you're around. Well, let's get
to the plot. Yeah. I guess I'll just put in a
warning. A little warning. Because it deals with
children, right? Just for our listeners. This
movie is a heavy one. It deals with like prostitution,
child beating, drug use. The whole shebang. The
whole shebang, I guess. Like the themes presented.
But it's a grim reality of things. Our main character
is basically like this 11 -year -old boy. His
name is Krishna. His name is Krishna. There was
one point in the movie where he explains that
he was being bullied by his older brother. And
as retaliation, he just decided to burn his bike.
And then as punishment, his mother took him to
a traveling circus where she told him that he
should make enough money to pay back for the
damages done. She just abandoned him there. How
much? I think it was 500 rupees. Yeah. I want
to take note of this because she mentioned this
in the interview, but that was a brilliant plot
structure of like, we know pretty soon like how
much he needs. And we see him throughout this
time, either like adding or deducting from that
total he needs, which is 500 rupees, which is
like a really, really brilliant way to plot this
kind of loose film with just. Every, every interaction
you see, like every time he drops the cup when
he's selling tea, it hurts you. Cause like, you
know, he just got like shorter away from his
goal. I did the math really quick too. If you
adjust for inflation, uh, 500 rupees now is like
6 ,500 rupees. It's about 80 us dollars. Okay.
So when I first did the math, I did like a bunch
of rupees. It was like $5. I wanted to like break
the TV and just like hand $5 to this kid. I was
like, that's crazy. But it is, it's like $80.
Which is very hard for a kid to make, obviously.
And with this kid, he's like, I guess I'll say
it right now. This kid cannot catch a break.
Throughout the movie, shit just keeps happening
to him. This poor little guy. And the first thing
that happens is that his circus boss told him
to do some errand or something. And then the
guy, he went away. And then the moment he came
back, the entire circus was just gone. It was
like a whole wasteland. And then he has no choice
but to travel to the nearest city, which is Bombay.
He gets his possessions stolen from some of the
street kids. And then he tries to get like a
job through delivering chai. Yeah. And then like,
you know, this guy that employs him, he keeps
like, you know, telling him that you'll make
enough money, you know, if you keep it up. But
like the reality of the situation is that it's
going to take... An eternity. Maybe not even
an eternity. Like forever of his life. If he
had to like go through with delivering chai.
I think he was making two rupees a day. He said.
So the guy's keeping a ledger and he makes two
rupees a day doing this. Yeah. And then so you
have like these street kids and they're like
basically you could call them his friends or
just like compatriots. And we also have this
like drug dealer. Like he's his name goes by
Chillum. Yeah. So it's funny because the other
day, Keeley was just talking to me about chillum.
I don't know what it's called. You call it a
drug? It's a smoking pipe. Chillum is for pot.
Pot. Right. Is it like a slang term in India?
No, no, no. It's a legitimate term. Chillum is
like for smoking weed in that clay. Or then like
terracotta or stone made pot. You see at one
point they were using it. And this guy is like...
He's addicted to this thing called brown sugar.
Which according to Keely, I think you said it
was like remnants of like heroin. Yeah. Heroin
production. Yeah, it looks like heroin. Yeah.
And this guy, he's like basically like a drug
dealer in Bombay. And basically he works for
this... I want to call him like the big boss
drug dealer slash pimp. His name is, like, Baba?
Baba. The director calls him Mr. Fix -It, or,
like, the Fix -It guy. That, like, every little
kind of street corner has a Fix -It guy where,
like, yeah, he, like, quote -unquote, tames,
you know, the prostitutes and, like, sells drugs
and just kind of runs the street. And Baba here,
he's, like, he runs, like, this brothel. No,
not... But he does. It's a brothel, yeah. He
doesn't run it. He doesn't run it. He just, like,
has... He's involved with it and kind of, like,
yeah, he's the Fix -It guy. Sometimes they need
his help. And he like gets money from it. So
there's this entire plot of a brothel. And there's
this like matriarch who's like keeping these
women, these young women in line who have no
homes or whatever. And at some point in the movie,
they managed to bring in this beautiful teenage
girl that some people think she's like nicknamed
Sweet 16. Just because she's 16 years old. And
she's really pretty. She's a virgin which makes
it more desirable I guess. And she's being sold
by her uncle. Being sold by her uncle. So that's
her. This woman is like… Gains the attention
of our little guy. Krishna. Krishna, yes. And
let's just mention the girl doesn't speak… Hindi.
Hindi. Do you know what she speaks? No, she never
spoke. She never talked. Yeah. But she doesn't
know… She doesn't understand what people are
saying. And no one… She doesn't speak. Yeah.
And then Baba… Not only is he like the local
boss and everything… He also has a wife. I think
her name is like Rekha or something. Rekha. Yeah.
She's also a prostitute. And she is kind of like
this woman that… Wants to get away from the situation
that they're in. To make matters even more depressing,
I would say, is that both Baba and Rekha have
a daughter named Manju. She's like this little
girl. And this little girl also really gets treated
pretty badly. They make her sleep outside. Her
father doesn't give her any attention. It's kind
of abusive. Even though she's been conditioned
to like love him unconditionally. Well, he's
just like the only stable guy in that area. Yeah.
I think she's an interesting character because
it goes to show that even though she has parents,
her situation is also quite grim. And they show
in parallel to the other street kids that don't
have parents. That's true. And then Manju here,
she's also, you know, she goes along with the
kids and they try to, you know, make ends meet.
So, yeah. So it begins with like, so they live
in this like, railway station which one was it
kiwi it was like a i i don't think they've shown
the railway station name i i i i might have missed
it but it was not that important because uh definitely
they didn't show it again and again maybe in
passing but like yeah it's it's a it's a brothel
area next to a railway station kind of situation
which is very common in mumbai like no train
train is uh one of the core public transport
system there yeah anyway so one thing that i
noticed is that krishna gets like a nickname
of some sort it's like called chaipao yeah i
don't know what it means it might mean in something
in slang in marathi or in bombay street language
i couldn't understand it might be has to do with
that he sells chai so it can be chaipu is like
something a boy who sells tea it can be yeah
So, yeah, like, so that being said, like, Chaipu
has, like, this, like, routine, right? He gets,
like, he gets, like, tea from the vendor and
then delivers it across the street. Meanwhile,
all the while getting beaten up by the other
kids. And, like, you also have Chillum, this
drug dealer, who kind of, like, kind of, like,
I don't know. I wouldn't use the word trick,
but, like, kind of, like, tells the boy to, like,
leave some of the money in this, like, hidden
space of a wall. The brick wall. The brick wall.
There's a loose brick, and he's like, look, if
you pull the brick out, you can hide money behind
it, which is like, hey, I'm going to steal this
from you later, obviously. You know that's a
bad idea. But he frames it in a way where you
can put money away from the other kids where
they won't touch it. But you can tell this kid
is getting taken advantage of, and he has no
clue whatsoever. Imagine how dumb you were at
11. And then, like, you're on the street and,
like, everyone's out to get you. Like, I would
be taking advantage of every second of the day.
Yeah. And so, like, Chillum, like, takes Chaipu
to, like, across the city where they, like, sell
some drugs to foreigners. And I guess, in a way,
we get, like, this scene where they're, like,
they're, like, walking towards, like, a graveyard.
And then they… Like, we get… We're introduced
to Chillum's, like, vices where he's, like, doing
brown sugar and, you know, kind of… Becomes like
I think that scene embodies like this like kind
of he has like this mentorship to Chaipu and
like he tells them like how like Nobody's friends
like we all gotta look out after each other after
your own look out on your own He's like the artful
Dodger You've all seen Oliver Twist. Yeah, he's
like that, but he's a heroin addict Artful Dodger
was not and artful Dodger would had kind of good
intentions. This guy does not he's a heroin addict.
You can't really says And there are other times
like he… When like Chaipu seems to like… Like
him. Because like every time he's in need of
like… When… There are moments in later in the
movie where Chillum is like going through withdrawals.
Because he eventually gets fired from Baba. And
like he would… Like this kid would do anything
for Chillum. Like they would… He would try to
tell them that like… He's sick again and he's
in need of medicine. Yeah. He went… to the other
like other part of this town to a different dealer
to score for him like be for so that like he
can like fight off the because i don't think
like he's also understanding what withdrawal
is like he just know that he needs his fix and
then he's like he even got involved in a like
a small like burglary yeah yeah okay you'll come
to that later yeah yeah we'll get we'll get there
yeah yeah so he does a lot of things for just
you know helping him right uh chillum does mention
during that mentorship scene that he mentions
like the chiller room yeah the chiller room which
is like which you later find out is like a juvie
detention center in the movie and that'll come
into play like a little later but yeah there
are times where like um chaipu goes to visit
manju Yeah. And they play together. Like they're
playmates. And then they're like... You get like
this weird little jealousy bit where like...
Yeah. He often goes to play with Manju. But then
like he's also... This little boy has like this...
Crush on the sweet 16. Yeah. Like what Adam is
about to say. He does steal a bird for her. And
then Manju gets like... jealous jealous i wouldn't
say like love jealous it's more like she's so
lonely in a way she just wants attention no one
gives her attention like and they all just want
her to go away because she's in like a brothel
and like it sucks so she just literally wants
like a friend to play with and yeah she she she
also like likes him like you know i think it's
like those childhood crush well i just need a
friend yeah so yeah she looks at him giving all
the attention to the new sweet 16 girl and he
also she also complains about it to her mother
like you know like even chaipu doesn't play with
me anymore all she is like he always wants to
talk to that girl and like giving gift to her
dead girl and then and then yeah then there's
very sweet scene with the mother where the uh
in in there is a power cut and the mother and
daughter plays with the you know hand puppet
shadow oh yeah in front of the candle And then
the light comes back and also with, along with
the light, customer comes back. That was like,
yeah. What I like is that, you know, she does
show them as children. Sometimes they're annoying.
Sometimes they're means to each other. Sometimes,
you know, they make bad decisions. Sometimes
they're super fun. And, you know, like she does
show them like how children act. And I do really
appreciate that. And adding to what Adam says,
like. he decides to burn sweet 16's room to like
escape with her i don't know where he was going
what do you think he was gonna go just run away
they run away for them just run away because
they did they live in streets like where they're
gonna go like they don't have idea of home like
chaipu seems to have a tendency for setting things
on fire yeah because he does that in the brothel
and the reason his mom had kicked him out was
also because he set fire to his brothers Rickshaw
or something? The brother's client's bike. He
was a bike mechanic. He brought a bike from his
client. A little arsonist here. The kid loves
burning things he doesn't like. And anywhere
is better than where they are. So whatever. But
I like that little connection, right? We get
to see that it's in line with what he's capable
of. What he does, right? Because you only ever
get to know about Chaipu's background through
dialogue. And to have us witness him burning
something else. It's like very in line with the
character, right? These kids have agency, you
know, like they're in these situations that are
really harsh and they have to figure out what
to do day by day, but they have agency. Like
he's not helpless. Like he does try to fight
back when he can. He has, you know, a strong
character inside of him that doesn't die. And
that's like, I think the movie, you know, shows
you with each kind of kid, they all have like
a flame inside them still. I like that scene
where before he tries to escape like make the
help the girl escape so he gives this the jealousy
thing the love triangle I was calling it so he
gives Manju a pack of biscuits to hand it over
to the sweet 16 girl and she just goes there
and just divorce the whole pack of biscuits while
crying. And there was like a long ass shot of
it. And then they're just intercutting with the
kid playing with another kid on the street and
waiting for her. And she just like stands in
the corner, divorce the whole pack of biscuits
and comes back like, oh, I have handed it over.
I mean, that was like such a, that was also very
assertive from Manju. She's jealous. She's angry
that her friend is now like after another girl.
So that scene was like really impressionable.
I liked Manju. Manju becomes very close to the
audience heart, I guess. Yeah, she has agency.
And yeah, but you know, as with many things that
happen in the movie, by setting her, Zui Sixteen's
room on fire, his actions have a lot of consequences.
So what happens in that movie? They didn't escape.
They get caught... By this bouncer guy. And...
He gets a beating. Chaipu gets a beating. And...
Sweet 16 gets a visit... From Baba. Who the matriarch
of the brothel... Orders him to... Tame... And
I quote... Tame her. And... I'm gonna say that...
That is like... Just gives me the creeps, man.
Like that whole... Taming thing. Cause like you
have that one scene... Where like... Baba kind
of like breaks the rules a little bit by like
taking out Sweet Sixteen to like a photoshoot.
It was like a couple -y photoshoot. Like he just
goes into full lover boy mode. Full lover boy
mode. And you can tell that she's like not in
on it. Like she tries to avoid his like aggressive
advances. It's just really like… I feel like
that moment was like that. It really gets under
your skin, at least for me. But she falls for
him. She falls for him. And that's how she becomes,
she gets tamed, right? And it's like the oldest
play. So she, she, cause he gives her a little
bit of attention, which is what all these people
are deprived of. He like goes in for like a little
kiss. She has a photo of them, you know, kind
of locking eyes that she keeps under her pillow
now. And she is like totally in love with this
guy. She doesn't, you know, understand what he's
saying. But, you know, he's like promising her
that they'll get out eventually. And you know
that's not going to happen. Which gives you insight
into like his relationship with Rekha as well
and how it probably started. This is probably
kind of what he does. And then you see that play
out later because Rekha does have a scene where
she gets angry and she tells him to go to suite
16. So obviously like she's old enough now where
she's caught on to his tactics. And she knows
that there's no happily ever after. And so you
see like kind of like... Rekha's character next
to Sweet 16's character is also quite an interesting
parallel. That like different stages. Exactly.
But it's the same process. Exactly. Which happens
with Chillum also later on. Yeah. Before we go
back into all that, I'm going to go back to Chillum
a little bit. So Chillum gets, as I mentioned
before, Chillum gets fired from Baba. And there's
like, because of this like weird... I don't want
to use the word weird, but it's, like, a strange
scene where, like, there's this, like, foreign
journalist, like, a female journalist. Like,
she's white. She goes for an interview with Baba
and, like, it results him and Baba in, like,
abusing Chillum, like, beating him up. Well,
Chillum has, like, a bunch of tea and then Baba
takes his belt off and then... Starts like whipping
Chilam's feet. So Chilam has to jump and he's
like holding this hot tea. So like the tea is
like burning his hands, but he's trying to like
not get hit by the bells. So he's just like humiliating
this person because, you know, he can be charming.
We see that with Sweet 16 and he's trying to
be charming with this Western journalist, but
he's trying to impress in a way that like might
impress you if you're on the street, but not
this Western person. He doesn't understand. how
to speak that language and so his way of trying
to impress them just becomes a humiliating mark
on him she walks away and then he realizes like
that he looked like a shithead but then he just
makes him get mad at chill more for like making
him look out to be bad in his eyes yeah yeah
that's that's that's well said and then you know
because of the embarrassment uh baba fires chill
and takes the drugs away from him and throughout
the remainder of the movie, Chillum goes through,
like, ultimate withdrawals and, like, Chaipu
feels sorry for him and he decides to try and
help him out by doing all these, like, like,
burglary. There's, like, one scene where, like,
he and Chaipu and the kids rob an old man's house.
Yeah. Like, just to make ends meet. And because
of all that, because they're trying to get Chillum
some drugs, it costs Chaipu his job as well.
Like... He couldn't make it back in time for
his shift delivering tea. Yeah, so he gets fired
by the tea vendor for doing all the chaos and
everything, whatever. He just needed a reason
because these kids are amply, like there are
enough kids to hire from. And then he just fires
him and then gives him whatever he had earned
by that time, which was like 400 rupee. And he
deducts like 50 rupee. From there, for all the
trouble, quote -unquote trouble, he made for
the vendor. So he just gets 350 rupees. And then
he's like, okay, next morning, I'm going to go
live for my hometown. Instead of 500, it's only
350. It's okay, fine. We understand. And then
what he does, he puts the money in that safe
box. Chill him. introduced him to and then when
we saw it i'm like oh my god no bro please not
there anywhere else and then yeah he leaves the
remainder of the money in the place that chillum
told him thinking that it would be like a bank
or like a you know a safe spot but because chillum
is all like going through withdrawal and he needs
some drugs he ends up stealing the money and
ultimately it kills him he overdoses from the
drugs that he bought with the money stole Yeah.
It's like Sonic getting hit and all his coins
coming out. Yeah. Damn. That's pretty dark. Okay.
Yeah. I don't know. I don't know what it's like,
Keeley. But like can you tell me like… Is that
how… So when someone dies on the street like
that… Do they just like… Carry the corpse through
the street? Is that like… I've seen that. Yeah.
I've actually… Carrying corpse through the street
happens to everyone. Okay. That's the way of
like… carrying the dead body to the end and then
given they are poor they don't have no one has
money maybe like the municipality has some money
for those like you know homeless people's cremation
or something like that so it's just a regular
process of them carrying the like now they have
like cars but back then like it was but even
now no like last time i've been to i went to
india like i saw you know processions i was in
varanasi so yeah yeah but i i do kind of appreciate
like um carrying dead bodies in the streets I
think you should be like reminded of death you
know like as a society I do think it's good I
think it's as an American I was always hidden
from death but I like being in places where like
death is more out in the open and like you see
it you know you're like drinking coffee and you
just see like a dead body go down the street
and it's a good like reminder reminder and we
should I do think people should be reminded of
that occasionally I think you should be near
death and not be afraid of it is that the reason
they do it I don't know but it's a good thing
for society anthropological reading in the theological
reading in the process of cremation and like
carrying the dead body but i think you have to
carry the dead body in certain way so now it
happens uh i mean if you have money it happens
you know like you know the cars that go in like
with the dead body but it's still transparent
the glass is still transparent it's not covered
so everyone can see a dead body i think going
through the going like leaving the land of no
life while being seen by the by everyone that
you are leaving you're departing i think that's
a thing that that can be read into but what's
cool about this shot is that as they're carrying
the body through the streets they're filming
by hidden cameras right and so this is just like
people's normal reaction all the crowds that
we see in that shot they're not stage actors
or anything it's just the public going about
their day and the kids are rushing through with
this corpse along the road and they're filming
through hidden cameras which is quite awesome
we should say like none of this was filmed on
sets right yeah um most of like besides like
the main actors like when he said like it's just
people that are there like she's filming on location
and some of these locations are like crazy like
yeah if they had made it if they like made it
a set it would have been the most elaborate set
right because it's so realistic um ebert said
it's like a documentary eye with a narrative
heart and so yeah like they use hidden cameras
and they would hide the cameras in like tea carts
and stuff and so all all of this amazing footage
you get of like the the orphanage he goes to
later and like uh the brothels and stuff and
the homes that people live in are actual homes
and it's gives it such a I don't know how to
call it. I guess like a documentary feel and
just a very realistic look at everything. Meera
and I are like as a creative person, like when
she started, she's like, she went to, I think,
first as a street theater actor. And then she
moved to the US for Harvard and then studied,
like wanted to study theater. But she is, according
to her, it's like it was not enough impressionable
and like, you know. she wants to reach a wide
audience yeah and also like she wanted to she
I think she comes from that school of thought
that no creative work can change the world like
changing the world via the medium of art and
stuff like that so he didn't find her like that
power in theater so she moved to documentaries
and then she believe she has talked about like
her documentary style being like the fly on the
wall like you know not meddling with the street
uh with the characters much just like observing
being as passive as be just be there with the
camera like she uses the term uh i mean it's
a cinema movement cinema which is like yeah so
she she used to think so i so that that uh like
method of works very well in the narrative, like
fictional setup of this film. The way she described
it was quite cool how she did crowd control,
right? She mentions that she was wearing a salwar
kameez and she just tied a rope around her waist.
And so she would give like one person one rope
at one end and then another person at the other
end. And that would be kind of like the filming
area. And then she would just kind of go and
she compared herself to Indira Gandhi where she's
trying to like beg people and please the people
in order for them to like... work with her because
they only had two or three shots for each scene,
right? They had to do it in a very time controlled
way. So she would really have to like get the
people on her side to believe her and to kind
of behave in the manner that she wanted to for
that shot, which is impressive to do in a crowd
like Bombay. Yeah. And that's why I don't think
it's poverty porn either is because they're not
like making a set and throwing dirt on a kid
and like making it as grim as possible. It's
just realistic places. Like it just that is what
it looks like. And so. because she takes like
a more documentarian approach and it's not a
set. you know she is just showing it for what
it is and uh she's not dressing it up yeah and
also on a time only not only time control this
is like the reminiscence of like you know like
film film making with the film role they were
like limited with the film stock itself so she
was she was mentioning it quite a bit of time
that they didn't have enough film stock to have
like multiple shot of same multiple take of same
shot so only two or three that's why like she
had to get it done He doesn't have much film
stock left. And that's why the kids' concentration
was so vital. Yeah, for sure. If you have like
three shots total and you're working with kids
that have never been in front of a camera before,
it's crazy. And you just have the public around
and anything can happen. That is so hard to do.
Yeah. With a script. Crazy. I still want to know
how they... So Winnie mentioned it earlier in
this episode where... Some of the scenes some
of the shots were pretty harrowing like like
for one the the one where Baba hangs Manju over
the railing Yeah, like he shakes her up like
that See we find out did anyone just real I think
I mean just seems so that's just crazy to me
Yeah, that's just so scary. He was doing a Michael
Jackson. Yeah the Michael. Yeah, I did think
of Michael Jackson Just shaking the baby over
the balcony. Oh Blanket. Oh, yeah, he did that.
Michael Jackson did a blanket I don't remember
that. I was thinking of Lion King. No, no, no.
It was... That's a totally different vibe right
there. Yeah, Rafiki was such a dick to that baby.
Just hanging it over the rock. Like shaking it.
It was so rude to the new king like that. Do
you want to like put the circle of life over
the part where Baba puts Manju over? Rafiki like
hits prostitutes with a stick. He's like the
pimp of the town. I think we should just end
up going further. I'm so scared to make any jokes.
Alright, so what happens next? Okay. So okay.
Chillum steals the drugs. The money. Chillum
steals the money to get the drugs. He dies. And
he dies. And Chaipu goes back to zero. No money.
Video game symbol. Zero over his head. Start
from the beginning. Start from the beginning.
And then you know they had to do a few more odd
jobs. And then like there's a significant part
where the kids are all working for this rich
family's Indian wedding. It's like a rich Indian
wedding, basically. And the kids were like serving
the food. And in between this, during this whole
time, Chaipu was like stealing samosas, like
putting them under his shirt. And we get this
scene where the kids are like having their break.
And Manju gives him, Manju has her own savings,
which she gives to Chaipu. I think she gives
her part of the wage to Chaipu. To Chaipu. Yeah.
That was like a hint of hope. As we would say.
Yeah. These kids help each other when they can.
They're not evil. But then you know. As with
all things in this movie. You know. That comes
to a 180. Where the kids are like making their
way back home. On a highway. I think it was like
on a highway at night. And the police was like
coming up behind them. The other kids managed
to run away. The police caught up to both Chaipu
and Manju. And what happens is that, like, they
found the samosas that Chaipu was hiding. Right?
And then they decided to, like, send both Chaipu
and Manju to the... to separate detention centers.
Like an orphanage, right? Yeah, Manju goes to
a kind of... Yeah, I think one... Chaipu goes
to Juvji as a... He did crime. Because he also
finds the money. on chaipu and he the police
uh with all his brutality thinks that like it's
uh stolen money so sends chaipu to detain like
juvi and then sends manchu they send manchu to
uh orphanage i guess yeah yeah and uh yeah it's
uh he goes back to zero again like it was pretty
such a doubter, you know, at that moment. But,
you know, with all things said, all the things
said, like, Chaipu makes his time in the juvie
center. He fucking makes himself, like, king,
you know, dude of the playground. He, like, punches
the first guy, like, you know, the first prison
rule of, like, not being a bitch and, like, punching
the top guy. He does that. He kicks the bully
in the nuts. He meets this other kid who, like,
who gives him, like, another, like, saying where,
like, all these kids have been around. For many
years. Like, some of them. For five years, yeah.
The ones who, like, live over five years, they're
forgotten. Yeah. Which is pretty depressing to
think about. Forgotten? What are they in for?
Yeah, he forgot, like, the kid forgot what crime
he even did if he did one. Some kid was in there
for urinating in public. Yeah. As minor as that.
Yeah. And, like, the system's not there to help
them. Chaipu looks at his little name tag and
it says that he has a hearing in, like, six months
from now. No one's even told him this. He has
no idea, like, what's going on. Yeah. And then,
you know, you are presented with like, yeah,
we have these institutions there to help people.
But then why are they happier on the street?
And that is the thing, like as bad as the street
can be, like at least these kids have themselves
or some weird support network or, you know, an
agency and a family a bit, you know, something,
some social network. And then in these institutions,
they're stripped of that and their agency. And
so. you know, it's not safe. And as dangerous
as the street can be, yeah, at least they have
their dignity in that. They tried to get Manju
out of the orphanage center, right? And the orphanage
tells Rekha that they're not allowing her to
do that because she's a prostitute. I also think
they didn't try. Baba was very happy that the
kid is out of the way. And it was the mother
because she has only one person in the world
who's close to her is her kid. And she's stamped
with this stigma and is now separated with her
kid forever. again, the street was at least better.
At least she could be with her kid. And it kind
of shows the stigma against prostitutes in India
as well because they took her child away solely
on the basis that she is a prostitute. They don't
know the treatment or anything that she was receiving.
Yeah, they're not going to save her. They're
not going to do anything about it. They're just
punishing her more and giving her less options
and more despair. And also, Medley... Wait, Kelly's
dying. Give him a... carry the body out it's
good for people to see dead chill him chill him
he needs it fixed he's withdrawing ultimately
that's the last we see of Manju yeah that's sad
and she was not talking at all so like from being
a very talkative child like when they met her
at the orphanage she did not say a single word
that was heartbreaking and that's kind of like
her innocence shattering you know she Because
she was like a very talkative person. She played
a lot. You know, yeah. She was a kind of forceful
personality and just drained of it all and not
talking. That was quite sad. Yeah. Yeah. No,
no. Okay. What a bummer. Going back to… I was
going to say chill. He's dead. Going back to
Chaipu. Going back to Chaipu. So he finds out
that there's like a… He finds out from the kid
that befriended him that there's like a specific
part in the juvie center where he can make his
escape. Which is like going up to the roof and
then jumping through the barbed wire. They even
have to climb a ladder. Which is crazy. They
shoot it. And again, this is all real. So there's
like real children's steps like tiptoeing on
this barbed wire ladder. Wait, no. Keely had
a theory that it's probably just plastic or rubber.
Because no way those kids were put in danger
like that. The barbed wire. Yeah, I think it
has to be. I don't know. Or else that would be
like endangering a child. One wrong step. There's
a tiny spot of wood right there. I can see it.
Do it. Two shots. We don't have time for this
bullshit. Use your little tiny children toes
and step on this thing. Now jump from the building.
Yeah, I think it was fake. Jump into the truck.
Yeah, no. There were some really awesome shots.
He like jumped to the fence and then he jumped
down the truck. It is him doing it. He finds
out that there's a new chillum in town. A new
chillum in town. No, I know. With the same brick
bank. Yeah, it was super dark. So that means
like the guy chillum. So how Chaipu... It's not
his real name. His real name was Krishna. And
there was a letter writing scene. We can refer
to that later. So where he says that like no
one calls him Krishna anymore. Everyone calls
him Chaipu. So they're all, these people are
robbed of their name. They're known by their
job. Chaipu, I think, I think I'm pretty sure
it's because he's a boy, tea selling boy, Chaipu.
And then Chilam is also pushing drugs and his
name is Chilam. And so. definitely the the previous
chillum guy is also just it's just his role in
that small uh society that we are looking at
and then he passed away and then the new person
who took off his role is also chillum so there
he's also and we get it's the same it's a very
similar parallel to like what we see between
rekha and the sweet 16 like it's just like cycle
of the same thing happening to say the different
set of people again and again. Yeah. That's a
good point. And then he goes to the and then
Chaipu goes to the brothel and then finds out
that as we've mentioned before that Sweet 16
has been tamed and that she is about to be sold
out to her first client. Yeah. So she's gonna
lose her virginity to this guy and she keeps
the image of Baba under her pillow. Yeah. And
she's like looking at Baba like outside the window
of the car. She's like driving away with this
guy. And she's tamed because Chaipu kind of offers
her a way out, right? He offers to run away with
her and she doesn't budge this time. So you can
also see kind of like that fire going out a little
bit and becoming complacent. That's two downers
now in under five minutes. And then the third
downer I would say is that Rekha being fed up
with not being able to get her child back decides
and knowing that Sweet16 is into baba decides
to leave baba yeah right and they get to they
get into this little fight where he's about to
like where he's about to abuse her physically
abuse her and then uh he threatens he like taunts
her into like killing killing him with a knife
but then uh reka basically just throws the knife
away and before anything gets a lot worse like
at that very moment uh Chaipu was just there.
Yeah. I guess maybe to look for Manchu. Yeah.
Probably. Yeah, of course. But he grabs the knife
and manages to like stab Baba in the back. Yeah.
And as he's dying as he's on his dying breath
Chaipu manages to grab Rekha and just they just
run out of their home and basically like we get
to this scene where like they run into this parade
that was giving it's like a tribute to ganesh
yeah so ganapati festival is like a pretty big
in bombay so this was like the procession where
they immerse the idol to the sea so after like
few days in the the puja and all the festival
going on it's a procession where from the temporary
spot where the idol is kept They carry it to
the sea to immerse the idol. And that's where
the huge procession. This is like as crowded
as you see. And this is a real footage. Again,
it's not like with extras and everything. So
it's like a real footage of Ganapati Festival.
The filmmakers waited for that day to shoot those
scenes. She had the time filming production exactly
right to be able to film that scene. Yeah. Yeah,
and through that parade, they both, Rekha and
Chaipu, manage to lose each other in the crowd.
They get separated. And ultimately, when Chaipu
manages to break free from that crowd, we just
get this long -ass shot. We just get this long
shot of Chaipu just looking so defeated, so broken,
that, you know, that's it. Yeah, he just killed
a man. He got separated from a mother figure
again. He's just lost in a sea of people. And
as the director said, this is the moment where
he becomes a man. And he's letting go of his
childhood that he was fighting so much to have
and just accepting his new role as adulthood
who has to be responsible for himself and sees
the kind of scenario he's in isn't lying to himself
anymore. He's alone now. See, as the director
talked about also, he was holding to the top
that he carried from the first scene. when he
ran away from the they're not ran away like he
came to the bombay first he had this top so he's
holding the top at the last scene and the director
according to the director they couldn't film
that like she she wanted her him to play with
the top and shoot the top as well as the final
scene they couldn't do it because they didn't
have a limited i mean uh they didn't have enough
film role left for that shot but they didn't
want to take the chance because like if he fucked
it up they didn't have enough takes to do it
again so They were just like worried that he
was going to like ruin the take. So they just
didn't have him spin the top. But so here, like
how film exists out of director's vision. I mean,
when he did. So I was also like expecting him
to spin the top. Like when I was seeing him,
like just rounding the wear around the top and
just looking at distance while his childhood
is like leaving him. He just murdered a guy.
I was expecting him to spin the top, but he didn't.
I kind of read it because I didn't know what
happened behind the scenes. I kind of read it
like that signifies the childhood leaving him.
He's not playing with the only toy that he always
carried with him. So he's not playing with that
anymore. So it became like an allegory of the
whole thing in my head. But that's how the medium
works anyway. Much like the characters are completely
influenced by their material conditions. Bingo.
um the movie is too like the director talked
about possibly having a happy ending or maybe
he goes home or something but because they had
no money they couldn't film that they couldn't
even go there so like just like the characters
were constrained by money so are these people
in this i know that's the ultimate uh lesson
from all of this and uh but then we get you know
again it's all empathetic i i saw it i loved
it i did not it's depressing but the the The
film was so fantastic that... I don't know. I
didn't get sad. It was just so well done, I thought.
I mean, it was sad. But I also appreciate those
stories trying to tell. There was nothing wrong
with it. It's just like... I don't think... I
think there was a moment where we were checking
how much time there is left. And there was like
20 minutes left. And we were like, there is no
way. This is going to get any better. It's not
going to be... We're not going to get a happy
ending. At least we got Baba dying. Yeah, but
that was a semi... positive i want to talk about
baba i loved this character like he's not a good
character but the acting and the and his character
was so fascinating i i really liked it like i
think he has like a presence and i think the
actor somehow shows in his eyes like everything
he's seen and what he likes to do and what he
doesn't like to do just like everyone's filling
a role everyone needs a fix it right And for
him to just not be on the street as like another
heroin addict, you know, he kind of did what
he had to do to be in as good a position as he
ended up being in. I don't think he willingly
do this in another scenario. I don't think he
like gets off on like abusing people. It's just
some, I think, I think some people have to do
that to get. higher up but yeah you see some
moments of empathy especially when sweet 16 is
being driven away you kind of see her see him
look at her and you get this moment where like
it's clear that he has enough self -awareness
to know that what he's doing is wrong and to
kind of recognize it but also that's just part
of his job that's just part of the identity that
he has built in the streets to gain the respect
and the privilege that he does have And compared
to all people around him, it's in a better that
puts him in a better position. So, yeah, he's
just going to keep doing what he has to do. I
think that's a good point. You can see the guilt.
You can't like he does what he has to do, but
you can see that he feels guilty at times. And
I like that the movie shows that. But then you
also you can also see that he does not have much
self -control, that he has this maybe a temper
issue, an anger issue or something where the
moment he's triggered or his authority is put
into question, that will come into play. And
we see that with the scene where he's like. You
know, throwing his balcony. Raising his balcony.
His daughter off the balcony railing. And then
the moment when Rekha's trying to leave as well.
And you know for a fact that he's not going to
let that happen. That it's going to get aggressive.
And that's the moment that Chaipu comes in and
stabs him. So it's a very nuanced character.
But he's a well -renowned actor. He's a very
famous actor in Bollywood. A bit controversial
too. Maybe Kimmy wants to speak about this a
bit. you know he got metooed uh by one one of
the actor she's like they had like a kind of
a item number dance like no like a sexy dance
and then he was asking her to do certain moves
and she was not comfortable he was pressurizing
her and like there are other other story i am
not going into detail but like method acting
to play back yeah so So he had that allegation
from her. But he's too powerful. I don't think
many people came in support with her. In her.
So whatever. I mean regardless of like that.
I mean that sucks that that's the case. But as
an actor. I thought he was just phenomenal. Yeah.
He's a good actor. All of them were. Like Krishna
as well. Like the kid Chaipu. I feel like for
someone who doesn't come from an acting background.
Or anything like that. And maybe it's because
he's also playing some of his lived experiences.
So it's more performative acting. Like you guys
pointed out. That final scene when he just breaks
down crying. There's so much power in that in
the sense that you see his emotions evolve throughout
the film as well. From survival mode to a child
to adult. This is the first time he cries, right?
That's the first time. And you know, throughout
the film, he's very emotionally put together,
right? He's a street kid. He's learned how to
survive. He knows how to navigate people. Like
there is a level of tolerance that he has probably
built. But that end scene, I think, is so powerful
just because you kind of see all of that facade
come crashing down. And behind it is just an
innocent little kid who never got to experience
childhood. Should we talk about the letter writing?
Yeah. What letter writing? When he wants to send
the letter to his mom. Oh, that's the scene with
Irfan Khan? Yeah. So Irfan Khan was brought into
the project. He was working with the kids in
the acting workshop. And he was supposed to be
in the film. But his role was dropped because
he was supposed to be one of the street kids
who grew up and was living around there. Irfan
was a street kid? No, no, no. His character would
have been like a street kid who grew up. But
the director said that he was like almost six
feet tall. And these people were all like standard
development. I mean, a street kid with the malnutrition
they grew up in, they cannot reach the height
of six feet. So his role was kind of canceled.
And at that point, he was not an on -screen actor.
This was his first on -screen appearance. But
like we know later on, like what a huge, amazing
actor he turns out to be in Bollywood. And even
he went on in Hollywood, worked in Life of Pi.
And stuff like that. So he's, he did that. That
was the scene. And then he's writing later. Yeah.
Yeah. I mean, basically Krishna goes to this
guy. He wants to send a letter home. He's never
talked to home since he's left. He just wants
to say like, Hey, I'm alive and I'm going to
come back with the money soon. I left the circus.
A couple of things that are just, the scene was
super profound for me because a couple of things
was like, number one, just the system of like
how to communicate back home. Yeah. I didn't
even think about that. Like the kid can't. read
he can't write so yeah you have to pay someone
to like transcribe your message and they ask
for his address and he has no idea he has no
idea like where his city is like or what the
number of his address is and so they kind of
just junk the letter because they're like this
there's no point it's not going to go anywhere
and then the other the real heart -wrenching
thing was he wanted to add a line that said like
i love you and i still miss you yeah but it was
going to cost like two you know half a cent more
yeah and he couldn't afford it it's again like
just constantly running into material conditions
where he can't even like communicate because
he just doesn't have the money and there is just
no way to get it and just how constrained you
are and then it's just so like sad because that
yeah the letter gets tossed it goes nowhere and
you just see like the hopelessness of the situation
and and it's very like it was very profound for
me yeah that scene was like really like when
he's like almost on verge of tears i still miss
you mom when i go back to sleep and then this
guy is like it's like you have to pay extra for
that like and then he's like okay no let's go
yeah i was like oh that was very sad this movie
is kind of compared a lot to slumdog millionaire
which i think is a good comparison because it
is the direct opposite It was like a film for
Western audiences. It's kind of about the slums.
There is a happy ending. They give you all that.
And that is way more poverty poor than this movie
is. And I think it takes way more advantage of
that situation for its own movie telling point.
And I think if you have any complaints about
this movie, you kind of look at Slumdog Millionaire
as its opposite. And I'd much prefer this type
of film than Slumdog. When we were watching the
interview, that Kelly showed us, and I'll link
to it actually in the description. She says in
the crowd, she says the actor that played Krishna
was 15 years old, the same age as her son, watching
the interview. So Zoran Mamdani was in the crowd
in that interview at 15. And I think that that
is a nice little tie -in to like, why do you
make these movies? Is because, well, what do
you do with that information after the fact?
And if she's able to produce people, you know,
like her son or other people that then want to
go and make material changes to those realities
because they feel sympathy or empathy for those
in that situation, that is great. That is the
point. That's what she wanted to do. And she
did it with her own son. I think that's really
cool. Like she sees how bad these conditions
can be. And so did her son. And he's doing something
about it. And I think that's quite cool that
that. type of political action can come from
that art like literally yeah yeah cool uh yeah
i loved it i don't know uh i highly recommend
it i thought it was just fantastic uh i don't
think it's too much of a bummer but definitely
you know prepare yourself yeah yeah i don't think
the heavy film we were very well we were going
to watch the film we're very light -hearted and
like you know having fun and like you know like
and then like yeah talking about like things
and so suddenly and then went in and didn't know
like how grave the film was and then like we're
taken aback by the seriousness what keeps you
off the instant he gets hit by the circus manager
in the first one minute of the film yeah it's
totally like go get beans or something like yeah
it starts off like pretty grim the drugs they
don't drugs like yeah I don't think we can really
use our scale for this movie. It does not really
follow any of the Bollywood norms that we've
become accustomed to. No dance numbers or anything
of that sort. There is dance numbers. Well, yeah.
Formally around the children having fun. Regional
heat check. One hundo. I thought the movie was
pretty real. Family feud. Yeah, of course. Yeah,
plenty. Warm throughout. I highly recommend.
And yeah. Thank you, Kelly, actually, for turning
us on to this film. This was great. So yeah,
I'll see you guys later, physically. Bye! Bye
-bye.