Dobhi Ghat

First of all, its "Dobhi GHAT" not gat. I was told this repeatedly before seeing the movie. But who cares, I am tamil! Its dobi gaat.

I thought the movie was caught between a documentary and a real movie with characters. The documentary part was great, did what the characters failed to. To me, someone who was never a mumbaiite other than just a visitor, the movie was soulful. I saw immigrants in India, how the city was built, whose existence I had not paid much attention to. The husband next to me kept asking, "So whats the point of this movie?" continuously. Well, I thought Kiran Rao was caught between trying to explain a story and romanticizing Mumbai. The latter, she did a very good job at. The layers of economy in India. These, a visual treat to the foreigner was not enough for the Indian in me. I expected to see that more, given the name of the movie. I wanted to see more of life in Dobhi Ghat, not a camera snap shot.

A friend told me it was a beautiful poem, another said the movie was like a painting. But to my unartistic head, I felt the movie lacked direction and it could have been great if there was only one purpose, either to tell a story or to capture the shades of Mumbai. The colours were beautiful. Mumbai, was pictured really well. I feel I would have had more appreciation for the movie without the three main characters in it. But to me, a person who loves places, likes to know the history of a city, it was a get away to Mumbai.