Sanchita
Runtime:- 1 hour 23 minutes
Cast:- Vinay Pathak, Vedant Chibber, Tillotama Shome, Seema Pahwa, Bisha Chaturvedi
Directed By:- Devanshu Kumar, Satyanshu Singh
Rating:- 3.5/5
Aww what a misleadingly sweet and wholesome title, nai? But no! Produced by our AIB ke bande, Chintu Ka Birthday is about a kid turning Six with A War in the Mix! Birthday Bombs ……quite literally.
Conflict vs Cake Ka Kissa
Our dear Chintu is turning six and is eagerly hoping that ATLEAST THIS TIME he’ll get to celebrate his birthday properly. Because his past Birthday Bashes haven’t exactly been booming.
Set in the war-torn Iraq, post the capture of Saddam Hussein, with US-led Army patrolling the streets – it’s no wonder Poor Chintu hasn’t had his Birthday Frivolity. Stuck in the hell zone, the Tiwari family is one of the last Indian families left behind to be evacuated. Not the ideal Party Location!
Starting off with failure to get cake (What IS even a Birthday without a cake?) due to the bakery being bombed, we can see the family still optimistically try to make the Birthday happen for their disappointed kiddo.
Hard-hitting lines paint a vividly horrifying picture of war – “Baker dead. Bakery damage. Children eat cake over baker’s dead body.”
To make things worse, we have two US Troopers who turn into TOTAL PARTY POOPERS, ruining this little adorable munchkin’s birthday, as they barge right into the Tiwari house in the middle of their celebration.
In the midst of all this hungama, let’s add two school kids, braving all soldiers and bullets – who show up to this Flop Birthday party, JUST so they can eat their share of the promised birthday cake! Such dedication!
They innocently slam the army soldiers who’ve invaded the Tiwari house- “We come for Chintu Birthday Party. Me Best Friend, She Girl Friend. She go to school you destroy this morning!”
Damn, we felt the chills too.
And all our poor kid Chintu wanted was ONE DECENT LITTLE BIRTHDAY with some cake and candles, man!
Cherry on top of this cake – The Characters!
Chintu (Vedant Chibber -What a precious chubby lil cutie) will have you rooting for him to have his cake and eat it too! Tillotama Shome will steal your heart as the sweet, courageous Maa jo apne babua ko cake khilake ke rahegi, no matter what!
Seema Pahwa adds shades to the family dilemma as the well-meaning but justifiably scared Nani. Bisha Chaturvedi convincingly plays the sister willing to do anything to make her bhai ka birthday special and who is not afraid to call out her Nani in an argument.
Khalid Massou as the kind Iraqi landlord Mahdi torn apart by the horrors of abuse and war will make you flash a bittersweet smile.
The soul of the movie – Vinay Pathak as the Best Dad Ever oozes empathy. All he truly wants is for his son to blow the candles on his cake before the light of his childhood is probably snuffed out!
Reginald L Barnes and Nathan Scholz as the invasive Army Soldiers also do a great job at maintaining the awkward, raw, grim tension throughout the movie.
The juxtaposition of sweet humour with the reality of war works really well, because Chintu Ka Birthday doesn’t compromise its heartwarming and wholesome essence. Even in the unfortunate circumstances – the people still cling to their values and the inherent goodness of humanity.
Music Box
We love this sweet song that the Maa and Grandmaa croon in the calm before the shitstorm begins – “Koel ka bachua….dugon jamun giraon” literally translating to “O little koel, my dear bird, please drop a couple of berries.” Well, err…. berries sure are dropped, quite heavy ones at that!
Hit or Miss?
This movie is like a piece of cake filled with slice-of-life goodness that you’ll definitely want to eat. Please go watch and grab some tissues for your aansu. Jo Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham ke honge.
Currently streaming on Zee5, you can watch Chintu ka Birthday here.
