Gulabjaam

"Gulabjaam", a Marathi movie - 2017

Watched "Gulabjaam", a Marathi movie on 15th Feb 2018 directed by Sachin Kundalkar, starring Sonali Kulkarni and Siddharth Chandekar. I watched it with Aditi, Jayant, Sucheeta, Sameer, Pooja, Rucha and Mihika.

A young man having a very good job in London, is passionate about cooking and wants to learn to cook authentic Marathi cuisine. Here he meets a whimsical lady whose food has amazing taste. Initially she rejects him but relents eventually and agrees to be his guru. As their friendship develops, an unexpected story comes to the fore.

Why is she so difficult? What is behind the facade? Can the young man fulfil his dream?

The movie has two assets. One is the powerful acting by the protagonists. Sonali is amazing as usual. She carries the transformations with ease. Siddharth plays the Indian foreigner with passion for cooking perfectly.

Other is direction and directors attention to details. His touch is evident in some noteworthy scenes like the beggar choosing only one note from the purse or the old man getting up from chair for the first time in the movie when the rain comes. He handles the story with utmost care and subtlety. The story is on slower side, but director ensures that audience remains interested.

It must be a low budget movie. However, audience gets to see numerous authentic Marathi dishes that are not only very eye pleasing but also mouth watering. Here director does not spare any expense.

Finally why name it Gulabjaam?  Well it's the dish that introduces the protagonists. That's all. It could have been Amti, Alu wadi or any such name.

A good movie. Recommend watching.