Why "Daddu Zindabad" is the Best Thing I Saw Yesterday at Bandra Film Festival

Hello altbollywood readers! Usually you are seeing my work only in the fonts, colors and page layouts of our magazine. I am not a big professional writer. I am just the designer here.

But yesterday, Kenneth Hopkins (our Founder and EIC) and Vishal Waghela (our Co-founder and Sub editor) dragged me away from my design software. They took me with them to the Bandra Film Festival at Woodside Inn. Kenneth told me, "You watch the films with us and write what you feel." Vishal said the same thing, so what could I do? I became a writer for one day!

We watched three films there, but I have to write this review because one short film totally blew my mind. The film is Daddu Zindabad (Long Live Grandpa). When you are hearing the plot, you will think it is a very sad and serious art film. The story is about a village where caste discrimination is still very strong. The grandfather "Daddu" (played by the amazing Durgesh Kumar) dies. His last wish to his grandson Vishnu (played by Pranjal Pateriya) is that he wants his final cremation to happen in the village's main cremation ground. But the big problem is that ground is strictly controlled by the so called 'upper' castes. So how will a grandson fight the whole old oppressive system to give his Daddu his last respect?

Bro, let me tell you, this is not a crying movie at all. It is a full sharp comedy and satire! The director and writer Samar Jain is having a genius mind. Instead of doing typical rona dhona drama, the grandson decides to do a full rebel move. If you see the movie, they literally bring a loud DJ setup and do a full band baaja baraat dance at the funeral! Vishnu says in one scene, "Today is the last night of slavery, band baaja baraat!" I was laughing so much in my seat, but it hits you very hard inside. They are tackling very heavy topics like casteism, dirty politics, and toxic masculinity through pure comedy. There is this one scene in the trailer where an older uncle is saying very deep things like, "Love doesn't see caste or high low class, it is a meeting of souls," and in the very next second he is threatening, "If you act too much like Shahrukh Khan, I will extract your oil." The dialogue writing is so natural and rustic.

Being a designer, my eyes are always going to the visual framing and colors. The cinematography in the night scenes is so beautiful. The clash of the serious white mourning clothes with the bright, colorful DJ lights creates such a strong visual metaphor. It is a Whistling Woods International production, so the quality of camera and sound is top class.

If you want to see a movie that makes you laugh out loud but also leaves you thinking about how absurd and stupid our society's old rules are, you have to watch Daddu Zindabad. It is a short film, but giving the impact of a full 3 hour blockbuster.

Signing off from the design desk!