The storyline is good, the tension build-up is great, the performances are perfectly balanced. The message the makers are giving out is another plus point of Chintu Ka Birthday. The only drawback is that it’s a slow-paced movie.
What I loved about Chintu ka Birthday? No gory, no vulgarity, no violence, even when there was scope for it, even when the makers could have justified it, all thanks to its storyline. But the makers have consciously avoided bringing in any element that would be disturbing for its audience. Since it was about a little kid’s birthday, they wanted the film to be for everyone, including kids, and they have done an excellent job in making a film that can be watched by everyone.
With web series, the first question that we Indians ask these days is, ‘Can we watch it with the family? The answer is, absolutely YES. The plot is scary though but the treatment given to the film makes it a kids-friendly film. In the beginning, when Chintu narrates the story of why his family migrated to Iraq, you get to see animation as well, something children would absolutely love watching.
If the way this film is promoted makes you feel that it is meant only for kids, then that is not the truth. It is very much for the adults, or should I say, mainly for the adults. The little boy’s birthday is just a backdrop which helped the storyteller give out the exact message to the audience effectively. Chintu’s birthday is just an element that makes this story more impactful.
When kids get involved in the insanity born out of the adults’ mind, at least then the man would realize that he has damaged the world beyond repair and might eventually look within to regain sanity. That’s the main purpose behind revolving this story around Chintu and his birthday. If we can’t give the next gen even the simple joys of life, we don’t deserve this life. The kind of life we are creating for them – one full of hatred, uncertainty, cruelty is something they absolutely don’t deserve.
Having said that, Chintu ka Birthday does a fantastic job of giving its audience, ‘HOPE’ and a different perspective altogether. A hope that no matter how worse it gets, it will get better over time. The wars will end, and everyone will return home at the end of it. And the war doesn’t have to be necessarily between the countries or between the government and its people; it is the war between humans and their minds, between what they know and what they do, between humans and humanity. Someday, we, the humans will regain our sanity, and every war will end, and all of us will live happily ever after.
And if you think that these messages of hope look good only in the films then don’t miss out the end of Chintu ka Birthday. The story that nani tells chintu will once again make you feel ‘hopeful.’
After all is said and done, I am still wondering how Chintu’s friends manage to reach his house for the birthday party in a war zone?
P.S: Watch it with the subtitles.
Where to Watch? Zee5