Cut to PVR, Delhi. I am watching the film in a packed cinema hall a month later because my husband had not seen the film. I felt he must watch it because it is such a huge hit and I just could not figure out why. At the end of it, he too shared my Shaftesbury Avenue feelings — this was like a middle-level West End musical which leaves you entertained but does not grip you or allow room for thought. But I have to confess, on second viewing I had completely changed my mind . I discovered that while Farah did not want us to trouble our pretty little heads, she had whipped up a very clever film which touched all the right chords, and insidiously I had been converted into a die-hard OSO fan. It meant a total mental re-orientation and a repudiation of ‘good cinema’ norms — but hey, wasn’t Bollywood meant to offer complete escapism? Besides, what other way can we can get justice in this cruel world than if we all got reincarnated and bashed up the baddies? Thank God — OSO offers hope to the hopeless, and happiness in large doses.

This is feel-good cinema for a resurgent India. No more weepies, or the angry-young-man genre. Now there are only two types of Indians: those who are happy-happy or those who are even more happy-happy. The stock market is booming and the BCCI has flexed its muscle. OSO captures a confident India which can laugh at itself — and its icons. And the amazing thing is that the icons don’t mind being ripped off either! And so instead of raising temperatures it raises spirits — and the film becomes a ‘tribute’. The biggest contribution of OSO is its aura of co-operation — the 31-star song, for example, speaks of a teamwork and celebration, and of a Bollywood which has arrived — it is no longer nervous or faltering and has dumped its crab mentality. Neither Subhash Ghai nor Bimal Roy’s descendants raise Sholay-like objections, and actors such as Abhishek agree to walk-on parts where they spoof themselves. This is a new generation of filmmakers and artistes who follow their dreams and are super-successful — there is no room here for Guru Dutt’s angst.

... contd.