The brilliant, moving Natrang.

I know, what ever  had to be said about Natarang has already been said, since its release on January 1, 2010. But you know it is special when it merits another perspective, sometimes directing you on a different trajectory, or set on a different bearing, far more higher than what I meant to tell you in the first place. Natarang is an experience, that has to be seen to be believed. Set in the 70’s, Natarang is  the tale of an amateur wrestler (read alpha – male) and a farm laborer Guna ( Atul Kulkarni), who beyond his mundane living, is deeply possessed by the art-form called Tamasha, dreams to play  the King one day.
Apparently leading a mundane life, the artist inside this wrestler keeps on nagging him & seeks an opportunity to manifest himself, straining and tugging even at the bonds of his domesticity. Guna’s life takes a dreary turn with the arrival of machinery in the rural heartland for farming, and he finds himself jobless. Unlike the urban morass, the village simplicity puts forth stark choices, few and strong. Guna, comes up with the oddly  brilliant idea of forming a Tamasha group with the help of his mates who are sailing in the same boat. And yet, the Toli, gang of these spirited men, determines to shape this odd dream of their leader Guna in order to earn their livelihood..
Enter Pandba, an experienced Tamasha artiste who eventually becomes their mentor and  manager of the troupe. Pandba is intelligent, manipulative, ambitious & focused – who with his pivotal vision & and guidance, makes the group overcome all the difficult hazards like finding a female dancer – a heroine, & organizing gigs for the troupe! Guna’s dream is now a reality. There is a wonderful moment  between the two, where,  Guna being the actor, writer & director of Tamasha, is unable to complete the last line of one of the verses and  Pandba enters, he skillfully completes the verse with a mischievous élan. The warmth between these two, is in a way the spirit of Natarang.

Any Tamasha troupe’s uniqueness  spins around  its Nachya (an effeminate  male who dons the part, the source of its double-entendres and the ribald pun and sauciness on stage), whom the group sorely lacks, and Pandba zeroes in on the most perfect and the most unlikely candidate – Guna! Torn between the King and Nachya( the former his dream and the latter the dream’s survival in the real world), Guna  is also worried about the physical and emotional demands of playing the Nachiya, but he gives in.
The alpha-male’s transformation to the effeminate Nachiya is nothing short of extraordinary. Guna’s complete transformation, seen as a reflection has, instead of the  pehelwan – a skinny, tender, feminine face, with tears streaming down and streaking the deep layers of makeup is absolutely riveting and heartbreaking.
Guna’s Tamasha troupe gains the popularity, success and money that he has always dreamt about, but dreams always exacts their price. From navarang, the celluloid canvas now continues the story on a deep, dark, unsettling palette of ochre, grey and pain. Pandba’s greed and downfall, the social stigma of being an ‘once-pehelwan-now-effeminate-actor , trauma, mockery, losing his family,death of his father , his rape by the local politician, even  enduring the rejection by Nayna – his co-artiste, Guna’s pays for his dream with his life.  But his resilient soul has this to say at the end of it all,
“One can not give up. One has to search it there itself where one has lost it!”

Natrang is a complexly interwoven, multi-layered, moving  work of art that leaves you gasping with its range and evocative imagery. Though the narrative stands flawless, there are a few visually compromising balance that sometimes seem to cast a shadow on the veracity of the art form itself.
The svelte and zero figured Lavni dancers seems a far cry from the heavy, earthy yet seductive bodies in real life artistes, and the  playback rendition seems almost synthetic, clinically perfect and at times sterile- unlike the real Lavni singers that is a part of the Marathi rural soul.  Sonalee who plays Nayna possessing  a fragile, almost ethereal countenance is  miles away from the manipulative and  seductive faces of real Lavni Dancers.May be it was meant to be that way. Vibhavari Deshpande, who plays Guna’s wife Darki – a wife who is unable to understand the complexity of the artist in her husband effortlessly glides through, marvelous and powerful.

But the music, as a whole, specially the theme song of the film, curiously, composed in Todi  is deeply haunting. Composed by Ajay-Atul , Natrang’s music is the toast of  Maharashtra now, garnering critical praise and setting commercial benchmarks in equal measure. Guna (Atul Kulkarni) & Pandba (Kishor Kadam) ,veterans in their craft and the lead protagonists of Navarang, are beyond praise. Having been  already honored as best actors in their respective categories, it comes duly deserved.  (Atul Kulkarni  had to gain 20 kgs in 45 days AND  then lose 15 kgs in the next 40 days!) Atul plays Guna by absolute empathy and sheer passion, something rare in these times of commercial confetti.
Veteran Kishor Kadam, casts his magic as  Pandba, the actor in him playing the Tamsha artiste and the shrewd resource manager is brilliant and overwhelming.
A cinematic adaptation of the Marathi novel named Natarang by Dr. Anand Yadav, this directorial debut of Ravi Jadhav transcends the borders of language, culture and countries has succeeded to touch the heart of the world-cinema.
Natrang is a Marathi masterpiece, meant for the world. Period.

Watch the trailer of Natrang here.