The Ustad Hotel movie review (old one)

First written on 26th May 2013:

I haven't written or shared much in the last 2 weeks. The run has been amazing in terms of the people who've been through my life and the experiences life has gifted me to grow tremendously. I still haven't got around to documenting all those amazing experiences I've had so far. Hope to have them done soon.

Here's sharing one -

Last year on 2nd October I wrote that I was lucky to have been alive to see 'Barfi'.

Today I write the same for this amazing film in the annals of Malayalam and Indian cinema - 'Ustad Hotel'.

I had possibly one of the most unique experience of watching a cinema in a peculiar environment.

I started watching it as my flight took off today afternoon from Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala on its way to Mumbai on my way to Jaipur. And I write this as I wait to board my flight to Jaipur at the Mumbai airport. I started watching it from 30,000 feet above sea level and completed it on coming back to terra firma.

I completed the film at the arrival lounge of the Mumbai domestic airport in a corner chair at the baggage lounge.

The film and the experience it had for me was unique.

I was aware through my peripheral vision of hundreds and hundreds of passengers arriving at the lounge and departing with their luggage. And it was a great, unique, surreal, film-like, hazy, blurred, slow motion experience to see them wander around - half tired, half something else even as the background score in the film kept playing in my ears through my earphones.

I just wished I had my video camera with me to capture the images of people and then add the background score from the film with my voice-over sharing the emotions and feelings I was going through at those times when I looked up from the film to watch the people mill around.

This is one movie I can watch many times over, just like Gandhi and so many of my other favourite films. This is one movie I am going to show my children. This is one film I am going to tell my favourite actor Aamir Khan to watch.

Doesn't matter even if some of the people who read this post don't know Malayalam. Watch it with the English subtitles till the end. It's a movie about coaching, mentoring, reconciliation, resolutions, discovering the sense of purpose and existence in life, about fate, spirituality, love, the process [How] and art [What else] and purpose [Why] of cooking and many more things.

This possibly is my favourite film when it comes to the late Thilakan's acting after the father-son classic - Kireedam. That was a film which I often felt portrayed the relationship I have with my father with Thilakan having an uncanny resemblance to my father's looks as well as mannerisms and behaviour and of his expectations from me. This film is about how he guides and mentors his grandson even as he prays for understanding and reconciliation with his estranged son.

Though one of his last films; Thilakan, I believe has been outstanding for his understated acting and voice modulation. It's also about the beauty of humanity and resolution in real life. This film stars Thilakan with the son of Mammooty with whom he had an estranged relationship in real life in the last few years. Yet, the way he has acted in the film with Dulquar - son of Mammooty in the role of his grandfather is amazing.

I had no qualms allowing tears to flow sitting in the busy Mumbai airport. This film helped me in many ways and I am going to do some interesting things with and for my son as I pass on as well as re-iterate some of the best lessons for him in life.

Just waiting to return to Trivandrum on Tuesday night after my session at DBOI tomorrow.

PS: Since I wrote this piece back in 2013, I did a series of experiments of starting and ending my days with weeping happy tears and see how my day goes. I have also shared that iconic portion of the film in a number of my training sessions across languages and even in Sri Lanka. 7/10 times the audience is able to figure out the contents of the letter without me having to tell them. And the moment the audience figures it out, it has a profound impact on them. Many a times I have seen people break down crying.

In June and July 2013, I went to Akshaya Trust Madurai twice to serve there along with the real life Narayanan Krishnan and I had a miraculous experience there. I have written about it in detail on another post - https://sreekr.blogspot.com/2024/07/some-journeys-are-meant-to-be-taken.html