That Girl in Yellow Boots

Director and Producer – Anurag Kashyap

Script – Kalki Koechlin and Anurag Kashyap

Music – Naren Chandawarkar and Benedict Taylor

Cast – Kalki Koechlin, Naseeruddin Shah, Prashant Prakash, Gulshan Devaiya, Makrand Deshpande, Mushtaq Khan, Rajat Kapoor

 

         A film with a strange title and woman as the central character is the initial impression of a film lover when he buys a ticket of “That Girl in Yellow Boots”. With its release being just days after Salman’s ‘Bodyguard’ cinema houses as well as viewers turned their back on this film. As such the theatre was visibly empty and low publicity could be another reason for it. However you’re in for a big surprise if you take the risk to see this film.

         The film begins with Ruth (Kalki), a British citizen, reading a letter from her father Arjun Patel. Her parents separated when she was young. (I could recollect a similar scene from the classic ‘Letter from an Unknown Woman’). Ruth is in Mumbai applying for a tourist visa extension. She’s learnt Hindi in due course and is able to bribe people with skill. She works as a masseur and charges thousand bucks per hour (this rate doubles if she gives a handjob). Her sole objective to earn money is to trace her father. She meets several people in the process who could provide a link for the same.

Her drug addict boyfriend Prashant (Prashant Prakash) lands her in trouble when he gets involved with Kannada gangster Chittiyappa Gowda (played brilliantly by Gulshan Devaiya). Chittiyappa forcibly takes away her savings to recover the loss caused by Prashant. She is able to escape with an emotional blackmail of Chittiyappa and resume her search. Ultimately she does find her real father. But here’s the twist. The discovery leaves you dumbstruck and anguished applauding the brilliance of the director.

Kalki Koechlin has matured as an actress (she’s got the lead role after a long gap). The character of Ruth demands an innocent yet powerful display on screen and she’s successful in doing so. Naseeruddin Shah provides a valuable support in his role of Diwakar. You love him in that scene where he is possessive for Ruth. Prashant Prakash and Gulshan Devaiya have just set their foot in Bollywood and it’s too early to speak about them. You can’t control your laughter when you discover the other side of Chittiyappa. Other actors have made special appearances.

Anurag Kashyap, with his wife Kalki, has managed to craft a bold and beautiful script (except the scene where Ruth is shown shaving her armpits. Sick!!). The concept of incest is bravely inserted, considering the type of conservative society we live in. It’s a taboo for many; yet the cases are on the rise. A similar film in Marathi titled ‘Aarambh’ released earlier this year which won critics’ hearts. (It dealt with a mother’s struggle to save her preteen daughter from sexual abuse by her father). ‘That Girl in Yellow Boots’ is made for a mature audience. As such viewer discretion is strictly advised.

The pace of the film is healthy with Kashyap playing with your emotions till the very end. Lights are used perfectly in all locations - be it Ruth’s house, the massage parlour or outdoor. There’s no overdoing of background music. Shweta Venkat Mathew gets full marks for editing. Cinematography by Rajeev Ravi is flawless. You are happy with the way the film progresses and care less for the technical aspects.

For dealing with a mature subject I go with three and a half out of five stars for Anurag Kashyap’s ‘That Girl in Yellow Boots’. I was happy to see an intelligent film with a different subject in the era of Masala films.