Finding Poetry in the Margins: A Review of Anamika Haksar’s ‘Taking the Horse to Eat Jalebis’

In a cinematic landscape often dominated by glossy aesthetics and predictable narratives, true experimentation is a rarity. This makes Anamika Haksar’s debut feature film, Taking the Horse to Eat Jalebis (Ghode Ko Jalebi Khilane Le Ja Riya Hoon), not just a breath of fresh air, but an absolute necessity.

The film captures the beauty, chaos, and contradictions of life on the margins, serving as a perfect cinematic detox for those suffering from "brain-rot" mainstream Bollywood formulas. Through its surreal imagery and theatrical storytelling, it finds profound poetry in the ordinary and humanity in the lives we often overlook.

Here is why Haksar’s 2018 masterwork deserves your complete attention.

A Mass Self-Portrait of Old Delhi

Taking the Horse to Eat Jalebis is a unique beast: a creative non-fiction film that beautifully fuses documentary techniques with magical realism and surrealism.

The film is the result of seven rigorous years of research and documentation, focusing on the street people of Old Delhi (Shahjahanabad)—pickpockets, beggars, loaders, small-scale factory workers, street singers, and vendors. However, Haksar, an esteemed theater director, does not simply point a camera at their suffering. Instead, she delves deep into their psyche, asking: What do they dream about? What are their aspirations?

The narrative structurally defies conventional screenwriting, moving like a homeless migrant from one event to another, constantly oscillating in the twilight zone between harsh reality and dreamscapes. It is a film that, as one review noted, makes us feel "so close that we can smell the labouring body - too close for comfort".

The Unique Title

The film's incredibly unique title—Ghode Ko Jalebi Khilane Le Ja Riya Hoon—stems from a real-life anecdote. Over 35 years ago, Haksar’s aunt hailed a tonga (horse-drawn carriage). The tonga wallah refused the ride with an emaciated horse, telling her, "I am taking the horse to eat jalebis". The dark humor and surrealism of that phrase perfectly encapsulate the tone of the entire film.

Cast and Aesthetic

The film features a brilliant ensemble cast, blending seasoned actors with real-life folks to create its authentic atmosphere.

• Raghuvir Yadav stars as Chhadami.

• Ravindra Sahu plays Patru (a pickpocket).

• Gopalan as Lal Bihari.

• Lokesh Jain as Akash Jain.

Aesthetically, the film is a triumph. To maintain authenticity, sound designer Gautam Nair utilized only ambient sound, completely avoiding studio dubbing. Production designer Archana Shastri wove folk-inspired paintings and animation directly into the live-action frames, enhancing the film's hallucinatory and surrealist qualities.

Critical Acclaim and Global Reach

Haksar financed the film independently, even selling her Delhi house and organizing crowdfunding to complete the project. The immense effort paid off.

• It became the only Indian film selected for the prestigious 'New Frontier' section at the Sundance Film Festival in 2019.

• It won the Fipresci International Critics Award.

• It was screened at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York as part of the "Making Waves" series.
  

The Verdict

Taking the Horse to Eat Jalebis is not an easy watch; it is designed to rattle your bones and challenge your comfort. Yet, in its honest, deeply engaging portrayal of the subaltern, it reminds us that sometimes life itself is stranger, more brutal, and infinitely more beautiful than fiction.