Gunesi Gordum/I Saw The Sun

' If I die, I'll be a terrorist
If you die, you'll be a martyr '

I Saw The Sun...and it was brilliant...Gunesi Gordum is a Turkish movie directed by Mahsun Kirmizigul. So what does the phrase ' I Saw The Sun ' mean? Does it literally mean seeing the sun come out of a blanket of clouds? Or does it mean waking up to a new world, a new dawn.

The story revolves around the Altun family and Davut Bey's family, who live in the villages in the mountains, stuck between the guerrillas, referred to as the terrorists, and the army, who keep urging the families to evacuate the village. Things change when one of Davut Bey's son, Serhat, a guerrilla, dies in an anti-insurgency operation. Ramo, the eldest son of the Altun family decides to settle in Istanbul with the family and Davut Bey decides to go further to Norway with his family.

Their ignorance to modern times lands the Altun family into a sea of troubles. First, Ramo's wife, Havar, is diagnosed for a gynaecological problem. Then, the youngest brother Kadri or Kado, who realises that he is a homosexual and finds himself among others, soon starts working as one. The machine's fault, an accident which kills Ramo's only son and finally, Mamo killing Kado, because of his condition, unacceptable to the family. Meanwhile, Davut Bey's, who already lost a son, faces immigration problems in Norway.

The story depicts the journey of the families through choices, between love and hatred and between war and peace, a journey which leads them back home. I Saw The Sun could mean how Ramo moves back to his homeland, the village, or how Davut Bey settles his immigration issues and starts to live a comfortable life in Norway. Or it could just explain the concept of Berfin, as told by Kado. The director leaves the interpretation to you.

Mahsun Kirmizigul, with an ingenious depiction of love, helplessness and loss, leaves you on the verge of tears. The cinematography was average and so was the editing. But the concept, an excellent story, soulful background score and the power packed performances by Ramo and Davut Bey make Gunesi Gordum a must watch, one of the better stories told on the silver screen.

1...2...3...idiots!

Pehla...doosra...teesra...those idiots stole the show and our hearts as they appeared on screen. The emergency landing, the pyjama-less freak and finally, the solenoidal, shocking apparatus, assured me that Bhaiya, aal izz going to be well .

The concept of the Imperial College of Engineering was very familiar. From the competitive selection ratio speech given by the crazy looking Director Virus (Boman Irani), who will remind you of Albert Einstien at once, to the corridors bustling with students running around with submissions and projects. The jahaanpanaas who kabooled tohfas and the pantless freshers are straight out of the traditional first night rituals of hostel life.

Farhan (Madhavan) raised the curtains with a well done heart attack. A passionate photographer, one can notice his SLR camera in the movie a few times. Madhavan is good as a middle class boy who acknowledges all the troubles his family has taken to make sure that he gets the best education. The fear of wasting his father's sacrifices brings him to ICE, the best engineering college in the country. Raju Rastogi, a character similar to Sukhi of Rang De Basanti, whose family lives in a poverty struck black and white household, has the same drunken adventures and the similar knack of getting into trouble for almost everything that even others do. Again, Sharman Joshi was the man. An equally important character, perhaps, was Chatur. Mr Chatur Ramalingam, a South Indian, is a student who is on the roll call list of every engineering or medical college. He has two motives in college. Suck up to the faculty and top the exams. The result would definitely be a successful life.

The person who makes a difference in the lives of every face in the movie is Ranchordas Shyamaldas Chachad. Rancho, played by Aamir, comes to college with the aim of being well educated and not well trained. His funda,

"Chase Excellence and Success will follow"

With his 'love for machines', tremendous wit, out of the box thinking and a certain likeability to his character, Rancho becomes an instant hit with his batchmates. Kareena Kapoor, well, she was fresh.

Hirani has done a wonderful job with the direction. The locations, casting, music, aal was perfect. The youthful humour sans vulgarity was pleasing. And just like Hirani's Munnabhai and Aamir's Taare Zameen Par, the duo manage to get across a social message. A somewhat predictable plot, does not take anything away from the movie, all credit to some fine story telling by them. Dramatisation floods in half hour before the end. The complicated child birth made easy by some applied physics was over the board, but i guess that आम जनता, as Bollywood fans, would not settle for a bland presentation. Personally, I would appreciate if the film-makers show a little more respect for the audience's intelligence.

As the rains settle, our hearts and faces are filled with laughter once again, with the unusual sequence of Kareena eloping with Aamir's friends. The final drive to the ingenious school in Leh, at some level we always knew that Rancho is actually Phunsuk Wangdu, the inventor seeked by Chatur. The little children running around shearing sheep and grinding gram innovatively, setting up contraptions and finally putting together a yet another 'solenoidal shocker' brings about a very creative, satisfying and a believable ending.

The music by Shantanu Moitra and Swanand Kirkire's lyrics connect well. The background score fits perfectly and the energetic playback by Sonu Nigam have once again managed to top the season's charts.

If this is how we define idiots, then go, be one. It's totally worth it.