Saw Omkara today - it is an adaption of Othello, set in a rustic western UP. I did not expect a lot from the movie, but it has turned out to be surprisingly well made, with a lot of attention to detail. Vishal Bhardwaj has managed to capture the thinking of the common man in the northern rural India fairly well. The only aberration are the girls - Kareena Kapoor and Bipasha Basu who do not blend in with the setting. The other problem is the dialect which is rather inconsistent and switches between Haryana and Western UP. Also the explitives are used far less than what you would find in the actual vernacular.
The role of Omkar Shukla / Othello comes naturally to Ajay Devgan and he carries it off effortlessly. The interesting one is Saif as Langda Tyagi / Iago. After having seen his portrayal of a negative character in Ek Hasina Thi, I was pretty sure he would do a good job, but he has done more than a good job - he is brilliant, and may just walk away with all the awards this year. Naseeruddin Shah can carry off the role he was given even in his sleep and does a convincing job as the local chieftain. Vivek Oberoi could not do much in his role, but then the director didn't give him a lot of chance either, and his character is under-developed. In stark contrast is the character of Indu, which again did not have much screen time, but has been brought out very well by Konkona Sen. Kareena, despite all the director's efforts still comes across as being a sophisticate. However, she does manage to convey the innocence and fairness of Dolly Mishra / Desdemona quite well, and when the movie ends you can feel the tragedy from her perspective - she gave everything and got nothing. The other good performance is by the guy who wanted to marry the Dolly Mishra character - not sure who he is, but the actor has done a good job. As for Bipasha Basu, I am not sure why she did the movie in the first place - her character is really sketchy.
The movie is exceptionally good in patches and not bad otherwise. The two Bipasha Basu numbers were really not required and take away from the pace of the movie. Still, it is a great interpretation of the Shakespeare play. Certainly worth a watch as a movie, and a must if you have not read Othello or seen a performance. The tracks and the background score are mostly good - the background music especially so. However, do not watch it if you are looking for a good time - it is a classic Shakespere tragedy and you would feel sad about the way things turned out. The emotional catharisis you have as you exit the theatre would have pleased Aristotle himself!
