So much average

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

4/5 Insanely brilliant. Extremely poignant. True to life. These expressions spring up in my mind as I begin to write this review. You see, I am still recovering from the emotional, thrilling and dramatic sledgehammer which is Citylights. To put it plainly, this is the most consistently brilliant Hindi movie I have watched in all of 2014. I was hooked from the first frame and loved the unpredictable turns the script took. The worst and the best of human nature are vividly portrayed throughout the length of Citylights and it makes for some heart rendering and some truly uncomfortable moments. It casts light on the plight of the rural migrant who comes to the city with high hopes. The contrast between the humane behavior of the so called vulgar elements of the society and the coldness, aloofness and predatory nature of the venerated high society is masterfully displayed.The acting is as good as it gets. Raj Kumar is easily the best new actor in Hindi industry. He gives a superlative follow up performance to his class act in Shahid. The debutante Patralekha matches him and even manages to outshine him in some scenes. This has the best kind of music, which propels the story forward rather than acting as an impediment to the story telling. Hansal Mehta, the director, deserves the highest praise for acting on his vision and making his second path breaking film (after Shahid) in two years. This is one of those films which helped me reaffirm my faith in the present of Hindi cinema. I loved it.

City Lights will surprise with the intent it has in itself. It has composure and a severe amount of reality. The story is about Deepak Singh (Raj Kumar Rao) who is a farmer in Rajasthan. He has debt on him. The business doesn't pick up and he finds himself in crisis. He, thus, decides to move to Mumbai to earn money accompanied by his wife and his daughter. Once they reach the city of Mumbai, the movie starts telling its real aim. The kind of money bugs a city contains kind of immoral activities they are able to do without a tinge of shame and fear is what you will find in the movie which is true in real scenario.Starting with direction which is done by Hansal Mehta, the director of Shahid, has again tickled a chord which will echo deep into you. From the very first scene you will get to the very base of what he is trying to show in the movie. There is a certain amount of adhesiveness to the moments where he has shown his class in getting to the core of the feel, which is most of the times of pain, betrayal and helplessness. The simplicity with which he has carried out a sensitive yet common attributes of greed, dissatisfaction and immorality is simply a class of its own. The situations when you can't differentiate a right from a wrong are depicted just perfectly. Amidst all this, he had the courage to inject in few moments which were funny and yet sober. The timing and character of those moments is a tough nut to crack. Overall, he was brilliant again. Coming to characters, the first name is Raj Kumar Rao, who seems to be getting along really well with Hansal Mehta, is doing another seriously awesome work. There is not a single moment in the movie which can make you think that this guy is an actor and not the real character. The innocence of the character was the toughest thing to portray but he did it with so much honesty that you would not be able to hold yourself from applauding him. The fear, the belief, the helplessness and the desperation are just effortlessly portrayed by him. You will love him, feel for him and hope for him. Patralekha also played the role of his wife to a good degree of what was required. You can easily identify her as any common girl which was very important for the character. The character played by Manav Kaul of Vishnu Bhai is going to surprise you. He has done more than justice to the role and yet again after Kai Po Che he has shown the value of his acting skills.The music by Jeet Ganguly is fantastic and it will soothe you. The background score by Raju Singh is appreciable. The movie deals with the reality of people's desperation to earn money in order to survive in the cities. It depicts the actions which people are willing to take irrespective of those being immoral or disgraceful. The bitter truth that is present in the society and yet nothing can be done. It shows how money has become unpleasantly important. Though the movie scores really high on almost every part, I just felt that in two scenes it hasgone a bit too harsh and far. The reaction of Vishnu's wife after his death is not digestible. Her crave for that money box at that particular moment did not fit in. Also, the reaction of Deepak Singh's(Raj Kumar Rao's ) wife when he dies is not what I could connect to. A wife who loved her husband so much cannot have an urge for a box of money exactly when she got to know about his death. Apart from this,the movie is a must watch and it definitely paved a way for many upcoming Bollywood movies.

http://moviereviewsbybinduc.blogspot.in/2014/06/citilights.htmlCityLights is a film with intense human drama. Hansal Mehta (Director) and Rajkummar Rao (Actor), duo of Shahid fame, have once again collaborated together to contribute a brilliant piece of art to the Bollywood. It is so painful to see how the innocence of an ordinary villager and his family gets exploited in the citylights of metro. Hansal Mehta has wonderfully and very realistically encapsulated the challenges faced by a destitute family in the metro. Various adversities faced by the family viz. loss of business in the village, rural migration, extreme poverty, exploitation by the city etc. are well captured in the movie. The movie left me with tears in eyes, rather actually broke my heart. Kudos to Hansal Mehta for making this movie so realistic, profoundly moving, tangible and believable and at the same time 'minus melodrama'.Deepak Singh (Rajkummar Rao) moves to Mumbai after losing his Saree shop (in a village in Rajasthan) to the debtors along with wife Rakhi (Patralekha) and daughter Mahi. Great moments of family togetherness, love between Deepak and Rakhi are shown while in village, which probably gave them confidence to move to the unknown Mumbai and try for a better living. Deepak's friend Omkar, who was supposed to pick them up from the Mumbai railway station, did not turn up. Deepak is cheated and happens to lose whatever money he had. Life turns out to be really challenging for them with not having roof over their heads. Then starts their desperate efforts to survive. Deepak manages to get a job in Active Security Bureau, a group of security force, with his background as an ex-army driver, but his job is kind of life-threatening. Life takes a mysterious turn from there with his partner / boss in job Vishnu (Manav Kaul). It is difficult to understand his intentions. One kept wondering whether Vishnu is good or bad. Rakhi lands up as a bar-dancer, although very very reluctantly.Does life improve for Deepak and family? What all events unfold in their journey to survive in the metro Mumbai ? Who all partner with them in their journey of survival and how? Do Deepak and Rakhi lose their rustic innocence in the citylights? Are Deepak and family able to re-establish the once-happy-family image? Are they able to manage to keep going against the inimical forces that surround them? Is there any flash of light at the end of the tunnel?There are certain heart-wrenching scenes: the manner in which Deepak sits in front of the Saree shop in the village while realizing that he has lost the same; their migration to Mumbai with hope in the eyes, but losing the same the moment they land up in Mumbai; desperate attempts by Deepak and Rakhi to seek job / accommodation; helpless / embarrassed Rakhi standing in front of the Bar-Manager who tries to scan her whole body and the last one to mention is the tragic and shocking climax.Both Rajkummar Rao and Patralekha (his real-life girlfriend) have added so much value to the roles of Deepak and Rakhi through their effortless performances. Manav Kaul as Vishnu has also given an exceptionally well performance. The music by Jeet Ganguli is absolutely soulful and as per the genre of the movie. The songs 'Muskurane' and 'Ek Chirraiya' are very good.

Do you remember the line 'Yeh Bambai Hai Mere Bhai....'? It was the crux of Raj Kapoor's evergreen classic Shree 420. Mumbai is a city of dreams; where several dreams come true and many more are broken. Though acknowledged as a remake of a BAFTA nominated film, Hansal Mehta has managed to create his own magic in City Lights.An ex-army Jawan decides to relocate to Mumbai with his family upon losing his source of livelihood due to indebtedness. The villager and his wife have no idea about what is in store for them. But, one thing is certain - the adjustment to a new life in a new city will be a tough learning process.Previously, Mehta's directorial association with a Mumbai-centric theme failed when his film 'Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar' bombed at the box office. This time he has managed to correct his flaws. The film moves at a rapid pace and does not have even a single subplot. However, there could have been a limit on the number of songs. Additionally, certain scenes desperately needed background music.Banking on the success of Shahid, Rajkumar Rao delivers a fine performance. His command on the Marwadi dialect is terrific (Is he really a Delhiite?) Patralekha too, is charming as his supportive wife. The couple's chemistry reminds you of Amol Palekar and Zarina Wahab in 'Gharonda' which also had a similar theme.I am going with three and a half stars out of five for City Lights. Watch it to know more of life in the Maximum City.