Chalti Rahe Zindagi
Introduction
Perhaps the two years of the pandemic will go down as one of the darkest phases of humanity. The amount of destruction caused by the Covid-19 virus is immeasurable with people not only losing their jobs but also lives of their near and dear ones. At a point during the ongoing pandemic, things were too close for comfort even as the death toll began to close walls on all of us. More-so, it is a period that none of us would ever want to recall given the levels of insecurity that were prevalent regarding the future and the vaccine amidst trying to adapt to a new life. Amongst such dark times, there were stories of humanity prevailing wherein the undying spirit of the people rose to the occasion in the form of frontline workers or folks who kept the show running through their actions. In a scene from the new Hindi film Chalti Rahe Zindagi, you see a character essentially selling bread before the pandemic, helping out the members of a society by bringing in their set of essentials as per the requirement. And this is what films depicting the pandemic failed to latch onto, even as they painted the dark and obvious chapter without touching upon the silver-lining of the period. But one thing that instantly works against the film is that it is reminding us of the time that we don’t wish to recall at all(which makes me think that it is atleast a year and a half too late to release). But then, does Chalti Rahe Zindagi which is streaming on Zee5 for free, manage to impress, let’s find out.
Story & Screenplay
Chalti Rahe Zindagi follows the intertwining lives of a handful of characters coping with the issues in their respective lives while also having to deal with the repercussions of the pandemic. The format of the narrative is that of an anthology with each story connected to the other either through its characters, or the indirect impact that they have while the lurking danger of the pandemic takes center-stage. The first demerit of the drama is not so much the writing but its format. The three overlapping tales ensures that the focus on the lives of the characters is divided, without quite allowing you to fully invest in their journeys. Having said that, the characters(most of them) are quite well written and have a distinct trait that contributes to the overall feel-good vibe of the drama. And I say feel-good only in retrospective, given how hard the times were, but despite that there was a silver-lining lacing our lives that we failed to see then. Yes, there was destruction but it also brought families closer. But the dichotomy of the situation lay in the hierarchal differentiation of power with the poor still having to suffer much more, even as the virus remained consistent with its attack without differentiation. All of this is showcased rather well in the narrative spanning about 100 minutes that essentially focuses on the positives and the silver-linings of the pandemic.
The drama is quick to establish the characters even during its fleeting stage early on. So you are just about briefly acquainted with the main characters even as the drama proceeds towards the lockdown phase, wherein everyone was seemingly trapped in their own homes, even as nature began its process of healing. The drama is divided into three tracks with the focus being on each phase with other characters only briefly being present until the POV shifts twice during its course of the narrative. To begin with, you are introduced to two couples with one of the respective spouses having an affair with the other, until the pandemic blows their lid, thereby allowing the other two characters to bond with each other. There is a frivolous mood to the events coupled by a measured sense of complexity that essentially drives the narrative forward. While ideally I would have liked to spend more time with Arjun and Ari, two complex individuals, both whom have been played by their respective spouses, it did account for a philosophical take on a relationship and the perspectives that it brings along, coupled with a philosophical take of looking ahead, much like the uncertain future of the pandemic. The only way ahead was to continue to be positive.
The second act traced two parallel stories of a news anchor working from home, while also highlighting the struggles of the bread sellar. The class divide in this story was evident, but what was important to take note of was the difference in the attitude of the two individuals to begin with. Akash was slightly impatient even while utilizing the services of Krishna, who would often go out of the way to help the members of the society, even at the behest of his own family who were literally on the receiving end of the pandemic, financially speaking. And Krishna wouldn’t fuss one bit, always wearing a smile even while facing the wrath of ignorance by Akash. This until tragedy strikes(almost a commentary on how certain life was, at times due to the financial condition of millions of labourers who were killed on their way home), leading to a transformation on the part of Akash. While the transformation was sudden, it also stuck to the vibe of the drama which was to focus on the positives and create an impact on the lives of others by giving them hope, even after you have left legacy behind. It was indeed heart-touching packaged in a bittersweet turn of events.
I found the third story to be the strongest in terms of the writing and the relatability factor, that shifted focus on a family struggling to cope with what the future has in store for them, mostly related to the pandemic. So you have a hyper-pessimistic aged woman who reminds her family of her age being 70 years old and how her future looks dark and bleak with a possibility of passing away during the pandemic. At the opposite end of the spectrum was her grand-daughter, who was very practical in her outlook and mostly disagreeing with every argument of her gramdmother. To balance things out, there was the character of Naina who found herself in the middle of the firing zone, with ‘shots’ fired from each end. The thing to note also is that, not only was Naina in the middle of the spectrum in terms of her outlook, but also in terms of age that briefly made her sway towards the paranoia of her mother-in-law. The psychological angle explored through her characters, triggered mostly due to the panic and chaos around her, and eventually raising the stakes in terms of the level of stress was a phenomena that was definitely present at my place(and I am pretty sure it would resonate with most folks). The characters were so well written that it blurred the boundaries between right and wrong while ending with a sense of hope even as things began to crawl back to normalcy. The screenplay is well written and makes for a solid watch.
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues are conversational but also more importantly grounded to reality that gave the lines an authentic overlook to life in general. The music here is also used as a tool of hope while taking into account the bleak situation that yhe characters find themselves in, and it works quite well with the mood of the drama. The BGM is sparingly used while mostly allowing the rawness of the drama to take centerstage. The cinematography is pretty good often offering tight close-ups(or even mid-level shots) that help the viewers to take a peek into the psyche of the various characters. The editing is decent but the nature of the drama was such that it would invariably be fragmented to an extent.
Director Aarti S Bagdi does a pretty good job in focusing on the positive angle of the pandemic, in a world where there is still hope alive through the characters of the drama that are pretty well written. Yes, ideally I would have loved to spend a little more time with the characters to paint a holistic picture, the intended message originating through every character was conveyed pretty well. The director also did shift the POVs effortlessly which was a tricky proposition on paper, and given how India Lockdown, another similar sort of a film had failed in that regard. The intertwined lives weren’tva distraction here wherein the director controlled the proceedings quite well.
Performances
The performances are pretty good by the ensemble cast. Vaibhav Anand manages to shine as Dr. Junaid who is shown to be a symbol of hope. I really loved the understated nature that Trimala Adhikari brought to her character Champa. She was quite and resilient even as she preferred to be a silent spectator to all the troubles endured by her husband even while grappling with the finances at her place. Flora Jacob as Sushma, the nosy neighbour and Priyal Pandorwala as Ankita are excellent additions to the cast, both of whom represent the opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of generational ideologues. While Sushma finds it hard to while away her time, Ankita has slightly more frivolous concerns with respect to her mobile that has broken off, while she is stuck at home. The demographic age different was nicely highlighted through these characters.
Indraneil Sengupta as Arjun and Barkha Bisht as Aru have contrasting arcs that meet at the same point. While Aru is slightly bitter about her relationship status, Arjun is more hopeful of how everything happens for a reason, and that something good will transpire from it. This was in line with the pandemic wherein uncertainty was in full swing. And both were solid performers that really tapped into some intrinsic and complex emotions. Rohit Khandelwal as Akash and Siddhant Kapoor as Krishna had similar arcs as well, although in a different capacity. Akash was slightly impatient despite having a range of luxuries that Krishna could only dream of, yet Krishna was the happier and hopeful person out of the two. While Siddhant’s dialect could further have been crude to depict his background, he was just so sincere and earnest with his act. Rohit did have a good screen presence and did a solid job too.
Anaya Shivan as Siya definitely had her moments to shine while having a slightly more practical outlook in a character that did know to differentiate between right and wrong at a very young age. Manjari Fadnnis as Naina was a complex character who not only acted as a bridge between the two folks belonging to different generations, but also having her own insecurities to deal with. The minimalistic approach towards her character is what grounded her performance in reality, and added a relatability factor to the proceedings. She focused on the nuances of her character by utilizing her body language and facial expressions so well, and also using dance as a tool for hope. She was exceptional as always here.
Seema Biswas is such an incredible actor who gets into the skin of her character so well. As Leela, her character was symbolic of her prowess as a performer. The character could so easily have been a nagging and irritating character, but Seema added subtle bouts of humour while doing just enough to showcase her vulnerability. This was a double-edged sword and too much of either side could have all but gone south for her. But the balance that she brought to her character was just incredibly good to witness. Her performance gracing my review was the best thing that I could ever have asked for!
Conclusion
Boasting of wonderful performances, Chalti Rahe Zindagi is a bittersweet account of intertwining chronicles during the pandemic, packaged in a feel-good drama that makes for a solid watch. Available on Zee5 for free.
