The Zoya Factor - Gully Boy
A Youtube video on Zoya Akhtar's interview with SheThePeopleTV reveals that she believes that the film industry is also a part of the patriarchal society that we all live in. As a product of the same industry, Zoya often happens to show glimpses of women oppression and many other social issues which most Bollywood directors may be hesitant to talk about on screen.
A close look at the films that she created, shows the niche, (one that we would like to call ‘The Zoya Factor’) that she has created for herself, in making films on Indian society's harsh realities. In this context, we would be only talking about Gully Boy out of her many other (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Made in Heaven, Dil Dhadakne Do) masterpieces, since each of Zoya's film deserve a special write-up of its own.
Not the ordinary ‘Rags to Riches’ story
A catalyst to an underground Indian hip-hop revolution, a centre-stage for many artists, Gully Boy is a film that sets an example to many ambitious real life Muraad's.
Played by characters that are somehow flawed in their own way, (Alia's possessive nature, Vijay Verma looting cars), Zoya has actually shown the journey of Muraad's (Ranveer Singh) as a product of all those that aided him in his journey to becoming a rapper by the characters played by Siddhant Chaturvedi, Vijay Verma, Kalki & Alia Bhatt.
From Muraad's parents' abusive and troubled relationship to Safeena (Alia)'s educated yet traditional parents imposing restrictions on only going out with women, the film time and again throws light on the patriarchy that exists in the modern society.
One of the best scenes of the film is when Muraad is filling his father's shoes for the work of a driver of an upper class household. That scene where he is dropping the girl back home, with the girl crying in the back-seat, and the song in the background says ''Tumse humdardi bhi nahi kar sakta, ye mere bas ki baat nahi hai, mai ye behte aansu pochu, ye meri aukaat nahi hai''.
Only Zoya Akhtar can pull off a poetic scene like that!
Muraad Se Gully Boy
Ranveer Singh's character evolves not just professionally, but even personally, when he is shown from being this low self-esteemed guy that thinks he cannot do much about his father's vile treatment towards his mother, to finally living separately and giving it back to him. This is beautifully shown in a scene where his father warns him to not take a creative route, because he thinks people belonging to their social status are only destined to low level jobs, reminding him of the traditional log kya kahenge. On which, Muraad confidently says "Ab koi bahar wala mujhe bataayega ki mai kya hai?’ (Will an outsider tell me who I am?)
Gully Boy is all about this change in perception, from a place where he is hesitant to sing his own lyrics out loud to a point where he gathers the courage to leave his desk job to pursue a risky, yet worthy rapper-artist life.
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