Aatmapamphlet (2023) :
Movie Review -
Ashish Bende has his stamp all over Aatmapamphlet. The protagonist is named after him, and that's the only realistic thing about the film. Aatmapamphlet carries a humour that has all chances to go bouncer over the heads of Marathi audiences. This kind of peculiar humour hasn't been attempted in Marathi cinema, or, for that matter, in Indian cinema. The best I can remember is Italian cinema and British capers, and the most universally known example is Amelie (2001) in French cinema. Aatmapamphlet is one step ahead because it has out-of-the-world theories and is very poignant about lifestyle and social commentary. There's nothing so cinematically attractive in the film, and that's why you relate to it very quickly. Numerically, you'll have about 45-50 laughs in 90 minutes. Believe me, this average is too high for any comedy you remember from recent times.
Aatmapamphlet is a narration of the biopic of our hero, Ashish Bende (Om Bendkhale). He is not a famous person; his story can't be called a biographical, autobiography, or anything of that sort, so he gives it a new, unique name, "Aatmapamphlet". The film is about his childhood as he falls in love at first "hand'' with his girlfriend, Srishti (Pranjalii Shrikan). Ashish gets support from his friend Borya and his classmates to approach Srishti and set things up. The film is all about their conversions, how they look at society and its norms, social events, and the nation's current affairs, including every big thing that happened in our country. Then there is a climax, about which I'll speak later.
Aatmapamphlet has a weird title, and somewhere it helps you understand what kind of sky-level humour it is going to serve you. I am not exaggerating, but this is the only adjective I could have thought of: "Aatmapamphlet has a God-level humour!" That's it. That's the headline. I have been through thousands of films and many Marathi movies, but I haven't been able to relate to such humour in a children-oriented film like this. Even Woody Allen needed sexual comments and female sex appeal to explore his weird comedies. The last memories are almost a decade old now with Balak Palak, Timepass, and Killa. Aatmapamphlet overtakes them because it is damn intelligent and intellectual. Like the protagonist says, "It's getting symbolic". I say it's metaphorical too. There are dozens of moments where I was like, "Waah.. wahh.. kadakk.." I don't remember when the last time I had so much laughter was, and that also put my brain to work. Paresh Mokashi is a humorous version of Satyajit Ray. That's not an exaggeration or a paid statement; that's the truth. Ray made many intense and dark films, but with Hirak Deshe, he went wild and crazy, and Mokashi's thoughts always take me back to those days. We may or may not get a creative force like him again who can generate a product that's massy, classy, and ahead of time. So better value him right now. I don't need to explain his previous works here because you are all aware of them. He is just getting better with different genres. Aatmapamphlet is the craziest comedy with the uttermost sensible context ever written in Marathi cinema, while most of the great comedies are illogical and brainless. Hail Mokashi and Bende for that.
Manas Tondwalkar and Om Bendkhale play Aashish Bende with the most honesty, and it couldn't have gotten better than them. The older version has a limited time frame, but that's okay. Shrishti, played by Khushi Hajare and Pranjali Shrikant, is mostly silent but extremely gorgeous. That's natural beauty, marriage material, a pure girl, or whatever you want to term it. Chetan Wagh as Borya is hilarious, as Bhimrao Mude, Ketaki Saraf, and others add good support.
Satyajeet Shobha Shriram's cinematography is fine, the editing is super edgy, and the production value is top-class considering the budget. Aatmapamphlet has everything to make you crazy: go clapping, go wild, go hysterical, and scream. It lacks only one thing, and that's a good "climax". In 90 minutes, we have 85 minutes built so high that those 5 minutes in climax and pre-climax of boring and soapy 'happy ending'. Remove those 10 minutes, and this would have been a modern classic for ages. It just missed it due to the regular climax, which isn't suitable for an irregularly classy film like this. Ashish Bende should be proud of himself for getting things done the way he wanted. Of course, you need a genius like Mokashi close to you, but how about creating another genius? If he can continue in the same vein with his next film, then Bende could be the next big thing for me. I should call him the "Woody Allen" of Marathi cinema. As a whole, Aatmapamphlet is a brainstorming comedy that you have been dreaming of being made in Marathi cinema. Go and enjoy, and make sure you go with your gang and create a hysteria inside the cinema hall.
RATING - 6/10*
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