R E V I E W – M O V I E
Tanzina Tabassum Nova
Prem Tame is a movie about college days and falling in love for the first time. However, it has failed to make me feel any love. In fact, this Anindya Chatterjee directorial has failed to make me feel almost anything, except pure annoyance at some points.
The trailer gives away much of the story. Pablo (Soumya Mukherjee), the protagonist, falls in love with the first girl (Arshi played by Shweta Mishra), who comes close to him. They get caught by some seniors while attempting to kiss; as a result, Pablo gets suspended and Arshi’s father sends her to her uncle’s house. Meanwhile, Pablo starts liking Rajendrani aka Raji (Susmita Chatterjee). They decide to be in a live-in relationship, so Pablo takes Raji to his home, where he lives with his mother. Raji doesn’t come alone though, she brings her ‘baby’ Khagen, a dog (played by Tommy), with her.
To begin with, the cinematography of the movie is brilliant. The locations help in that respect, as well. It is refreshing to see the beauty of a small town and its surroundings portrayed on screen.
The background narration is quite enjoyable. Anindya Chatterjee, the director, has done a really good job as a narrator.
The background music is okay, though the songs used in the movie feel repetitive.
In terms of acting, Soumya Mukherjee fits in perfectly in the role of the confused and clueless Pablo. However, that can’t be said about the female leads. Both of their acting is average, especially Susmita Chatterjee as Raji, who is not convincing for the most part. Some moments in the movie could have been memorable to the audience, only if she could deliver her dialogues a little better. Chaiti Mitra is also disappointing as Pablo’s mother.
Nevertheless, the one character that truly steals the show is Khagen. His presence in the screen is enough to make anyone smile.
Another point to be criticised here is the dialogues. While the puns used in the dialogues are funny for the first few times, their overuse might bore the audience. Besides, some dialogues feel very pretentious, which can be said about most of the conversations between Pablo and Raji. People don’t talk like that in real life.
The movie also falls short in storytelling and execution. The first half of the movie is okay. This part mostly focuses on the story inside the college where the characters study, and it is pretty funny. Especially, the character of the principal is hilarious. After the story shifts its focus from the college to Pablo and Raji’s live-in relationship, everything begins to go downhill. It is not at all natural in a Bangali society for a son to bring his girlfriend to stay with him in his mother’s home, without even the mother’s prior knowledge. And this is just the beginning of the illogical happenings that follow.
At the end of the story, each of the three lead characters is shown to be transformed, to be more matured than they were at the beginning of the story. However, with the exception of Pablo’s character, not much explanation is given as to why and how this transformation happens to them. For instance, Raji is shown to be an outspoken person, who loves playing sports and is politically active. In the course of the story, we come to know that she is afraid of love, and it is implied that there are some past incidents that trigger this fear. Nonetheless, that still does not justify why she does what she does toward the ending of the story. “She is like that” as told by her friend Karu (Kankana Chakraborty) does not count as a means of explaining.
The movie also subtly tries to protest against moral policing that prevails in the society, but as the point is not well established, it fails to create any impact on the viewers’ mind.
Additionally, the story attempts to differentiate between conditional love and unconditional love, which is related to Pablo’s transformation. This is one of the few good things of the movie.
Overall, Prem Tame could be a one-time watch if you want to experience a mostly lousy movie that has some cute moments and beautiful cinematography. And if you are a dog lover, you can watch it for Khagen.
Tanzina Tabassum Nova is a full-time couch-potato, and a part-time reader, writer, translator, and reciter.