Anyone born and raised in India will have learned about the ancient civilizations of Mohenjo-daro and Harappa. We learned in some detail about this industrious and resourceful people who had settled on the banks of the Indus Valley in what is now Northeast Afghanistan, Central Pakistan and a wide swath of the Punjab, Sindh, and Uttar Pradesh of Northwest India. These were a people prolific in the fine arts and had possibly even invented the potter’s wheel, the art of brick-making, and were the earliest agriculturists.
How very fascinating, when you consider that these ancient civilizations are dated to 2100 BC. And the earliest excavations of this great civilization were unearthed as early as the 1920s. Well, it was only a matter of time before someone would make a movie of this, and my only surprise is that it took so long.
Now that I’ve offered a historical preface, what of the movie, you ask? Well, turns out Mohenjo Daro cannot decide if it wants to be a love story, an epic adventure film, or a revenge saga. But when you have the star-power of the likes of Hrithik Roshan, I suppose one needn’t worry one’s pretty head all that much, because wouldn’t you know it – turns out that prehistoric people were more or else just like us. Basic plot went something like this: boy meets girl, girl walks away, boy pursues girl, girl melts and gives in, boy sneaks into girl’s room, boy and girl kiss. And the rest, as they say, is merely history.
I found interesting that there seemed to initially be quite a conscientious effort at depicting the people to be devoid of any religious affiliations, in particular, Hindu or Muslim, the two predominant religions of that geographical area, however, by the end of what seemed like the better part of three hours, the tone was decidedly one that was leaning toward Hindu sensibilities. But even so, this realization is the culmination of an amalgam of customs pertaining to dress, food, and an accoutrement of cultural placeholders that had unmistakable shades of influence from Indo-European and the Far East.
I must admit that much as I’d hoped to, I didn’t get swept off my feet, much to my disappointment. The story just didn’t do much for me: it didn’t grab me; it didn’t move me; and it certainly didn’t knock me down. While the acting and direction was somewhat mediocre, even the cinematography was not particularly exemplary. The musical score was by the famous A.R. Rahman, but even that, I admit, one week later, I cannot seem to remember what the theme tune was like if I were to wish to hum it.
One hopes that if not anything else, perhaps this movie might serve as a precursor to similar period films of this era, and with a little luck, the next one just might be a little more memorable.
