Udaan (2010)

This is about the same length as my previous viewing, which makes it quite short as Indian movies go. It's also about as dramatic as my previous Indian viewing. Only afterward did I learn that the title means "Flight" in Hindi.

Upon expulsion from a boarding school, Rohan (Rajar Barmecha), 17, returns to widowed father Bhairav (Ronit Roy), whom he hasn't seen in eight years. Bhairav's minimalist annual letters had failed to mention his second marriage, the subsequent divorce, or Rohan's six-year-old half-brother, Arjun (Aayan Boradia). Rohan is jealously hostile to Arjun at first, but they bond in the shared crisis of their father's nastiness.

Now, Bhairav isn't all bad. He has many valid points, as when Rohan asks why they don't hire a cook (more common under the caste system?). He does want his sons to succeed in life, and the morning races he insists on probably do Rohan well. But he is never affectionate, and he demands that they do everything his way, including giving up on poetry. His disapproval often translates to verbal or physical abuse of both boys. When called on hypocrisy, he's more defensive than introspective.

We get a slight relief in the form of Uncle Jimmy (Ram Kapoor), who's much more familial than his brother. Too bad he's also younger, so Bhairav disregards his wisdom. Unsurprisingly, Rohan wants to move in with Jimmy, but that would be tough to arrange.

For his part, Rohan starts with rather immature coping mechanisms. He wasn't expelled for anything all that serious to my mind, but he takes to smoking tobacco and drinking with slightly older men instead of studying. He even drives drunk, leaving me disappointed when nothing comes of it. He does adopt a better approach to resistance in the end, but it's only so promising.

Udaan makes for a credible story. I just wish it were shorter still, because Rohan tolerates Bhairav longer than I would.