Chintu Ka Birthday Review: Vinay Pathak-Tillotama Shome's film is a whiff of optimism in testing times

Chintu Ka Birthday portrays the essence of life, that it waits for none and one must live to the fullest under the direst of circumstances.

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Chintu Ka Birthday Review: Vinay Pathak-Tillotama Shome's film is a whiff of optimism in testing times
Chintu Ka Birthday stars Vinay Pathak, Tillotama Shome and Vedant Raj Chibber in pivotal roles.

Birthdays are always special. Especially when you are six years old, getting excited about balloons, birthday cake and inviting friends to your party has a different charm. But what if you are stuck in a foreign land amid bomb blasts and killings? Well, Chintu has no option but celebrate his birthday like that.

Directed by Devanshu Kumar and Satyanshu Singh, Chintu Ka Birthday is a story of optimism and humanity in the time of adversity. The film tries to evoke the feeling of love for one's family and brotherhood in general.

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The film is set in 2004, at the peak of the Iraq War, just after when Saddam Hussein was killed by American troops on the instructions of their President George W Bush. Madan Tiwary (played by Vinay Pathak), who sells water purifiers, migrates to Baghdad illegally with his family of five, including wife Sudha Tiwary (Tillotama Shome), mother-in-law (Seema Pahwa), daughter Lakshmi (Bisha Chaturvedi) and son Chintu (Vedant Raj Chibber). While they are trying to get out of the war-torn country, the Indian government can't fetch them back as they don't possess Indian passports.

But are they broken or have lost hope? No. Madan Tiwary is still hopeful that he will go back to his country and soon celebrate Holi and Diwali in his motherland with his countrymen. Even in the difficult times, he wants to fulfil his family's every need. His son, Chintu, is turning six and wants to have a birthday party with a cake and invite his friends. But, no cake shops are open and most of his friends have fled the country.

Despite all this, Madan is adamant to throw a party for Chintu. He invites his Iraqi landlord Madhi (Khalid Massou) to the party. Chintu's sister and mother bake a cake for him and everything is set for the party when another blast disrupts their celebration. Two US Army soldiers enter their home in search of people who are responsible for the blast and the party is spoilt. But Madan defies all of this to keep his promise to his son.

Watch the trailer of Chintu Ka Birthday here:

In the confines of a single house, with a handful of actors, the directors try to draw a world of reality which exists but is hard to believe. Through different characters, they succeed in portraying the essence of life, that it waits for none and one must live to the fullest under the direst of circumstances.

While Vedant's Chintu is an innocent boy who just wants to have a simple birthday party without troubling his family, another appealing character is that of his friend Waheed, who finds good in everything bad that has happened to him. From idolising Saddam Hussein and circulating DVDs about Iraqi insurgency operations killing American soldiers to providing porn to the US troops, the young boy does it all with a smiling face. He befriends one of the soldiers and cheers them on as they chase after one of his own countrymen, and shouts, "Go, go America! Yalla, Yalla!".

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Vinay Pathak is effortless as Madan, as he introduces himself as the God of sex to the American soldiers. He is never short of laughing at himself and manages to make his family members smile even in a calamity. Like every Indian dad, Madan is Chintu's hero. He can count on him no matter what. Tillotama Shome didn't have much to do, but she shines bright in the small screen time she has been given. She is a typical Indian middle-class migrant woman who struggles to communicate with the locals in her broken English. She is a strong wife and mother, who is always there to support her family.

Chintu's sister Lakshmi, played by Bisha Chaturvedi, adds an element of great depth and insight into the scenes. There are times when she has no dialogues but her facial expressions tell how helpless she feels for not being able to do anything for his brother's birthday. Her tender age doesn't become an impediment for a spectacular performance.

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The two American soldiers that cause tension in that small birthday party, struggle with the dilemma of whether to perform their duty or act on the basis of humanity. Even though they represent the great nation of the United States, they are ultimately common human beings with families back home.

Chintu Ka Birthday is a beautifully written story but sometimes struggles with its pace. For those who find it hard to concentrate if the screenplay is slow, it might be a challenge. But the rest, who like human stories, will fall in love with this birthday party. While the events leading up to the situation are not entirely convincing, the film connects with the viewer at so many levels. It definitely leaves you with a feeling of optimism, especially in these testing times we are living in.

You can watch Chintu Ka Birthday on Zee5.

Three out of five stars.

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