Yuva: A misguided effort

Of the many problematic elements in Mani Ratnam's Yuva, there is none more distressing than the characterisation of Michael Mukherjee, Ajay Devgan's character.

That one man can be a physics genius, charismatic student leader, charming romantic, politically savvy thinker, and deadly street fighter becomes one of the most devastatingly tedious devices of this otherwise interesting and intermittently ingenious film.

All about Yuva: The Rediff Special

In fact, the Michael character represents the exact opposite of what makes Mani Ratnam's characters and films so special. Ratnam's greatest trait is that he juxtaposes the external beauty of the world of the characters against the inner turmoil of the characters themselves.

His characters in Mouna Ragam, Roja, Kannathil Muthamittal and, most of all, in Iruvar are open wounds filled with the most important of all dramatic characteristics — the need and potential to change and grow. Because Ratnam usually never fears exposing the faults of his characters, in Yuva it seems that his inexplicable decision to cleanse Michael of any and all evils is precisely what makes him and his entire storyline the least compelling of the three stories in Yuva.

It is not surprising, then, that the most interesting character (and story) in this film is one that is most amoral and psychologically troubled. No points for guessing that it is Abhishek Bachchan's Lallan who grabs us by the throat and resonates in our memory. Lallan is a nasty piece of work who we both hate and root for in different situations. The reason for this is that Lallan is a multi-faceted character. On the one hand, he is a violent, furious animal who will take anyone to pieces — including his wife — if his mood swings the wrong way. But in another light, he is extremely charming, funny, and, in the end, a man who simply wants to change his life — even if he often travels the wrong road to get where he needs to be.

Similarly, Arjun, played by Vivek Oberoi, is an affluent young man who is unsure about the road he wants to travel. Literally. After meeting the woman of his dreams, Arjun grows confused about his previous, set-in-stone plans to fly off to America and live in wealth and comfort.

Subsequently, when he has a life-changing experience involving Michael and Lallan, Arjun realises his true calling in life and also cements the relationship he began with Kareena Kapoor's character, Mira. While Dave Kehr of The New York Times said the film flagged only when the romances took over, this is only true of Michael's story line. Ajay Devgan and Esha Deol prove to be among the most incredulous and boring screen couples in recent Indian cinema.

But the way Sasi (Rani Mukherjee) and Mira try to change their men and nurture the potential that Lallan and Arjun show behind their respective facades provides the film with its most compelling, insightful, and often hilarious moments. This is what the film is really about. This is what Ratnam apparently lost sight of.

This story is truly about Lallan and Arjun and their personal relationships. These two men are the ones who have the most capacity to change. Here we have characters who exemplify the two polar opposites of Indian youth in the social and economic sense. But they are not so different. They are both confused and flawed people. They both don't know what they want. They both have people in their lives who love and root for them.

I will go so far as to say that Michael's story is dismissable. It is not Devgan who is misplaced (although he is not the best choice for this role), but the character. This perfect character has no reason to exist in such a troubled world. I am certain that Ratnam's need for a Michael was the result of searching for a middle ground between the extremely rich and the extremely poor in modern India. But in doing so, the director has created a tedious symbol, not a complete character.

In the end, no matter what Michael's agenda is, it is not politics that shapes either Lallan or Arjun's fate, but their own personal need to change their lives. Politics should have taken a back seat to their personal struggles. And Mani Ratnam should not have veered from the humanity in his characters.

This is a character film and not one driven by plot. Fine. That said, the fact that Ratnam gives a depressingly hasty and mournful resolution for Lallan and a clunky one for Arjun (watching Oberoi in his Diesel jeans and stylish post-Masti haircut in an assembly hall is a riot) is the biggest letdown.

As for Michael, his ending doesn't matter to us because he doesn't change. Nothing happens to this utterly disposable character. In the end, he's still Mr Perfect. We have little doubt that he'll take over the universe. But do we care?

Yuva is still far ahead of the vast majority of popular Hindi cinema. It is a passionate, intriguingly structured movie by our generation's finest purveyor of popular cinema. But it is also a big, brawling and misguided effort that falls short of the usual Ratnam mastery.