15 Park Avenue

'15 Park Avenue'

If you think that it is the name of the latest cologne I am using..
you are wrong! And If others think that its an address where a
B-School passout M&A guy with a foreign posting in New York would
live are even bad at guessing ;-)

'15 Park Avenue' quite unsuspectingly is the name of the latest movie by "Aprana Sen", the ever charming bengali film director and actress. Aparna is known for her distinct cinematic style.. the expression so vividly refelected in her movies like "36 Chowrangee Lane" & "Mr and MrsIyer".

I was looking forward to watch this movie for a long time, ever since I saw its trailer and came to know about its story and the cast. I knew it was going to be another masterstroke from the director. Luckily I got a partner too to enjoy the movie with !

I had my XAT on Sunday 8th Jan and wanted to see the movie after the exam. A day before the exam I was wondering if anyone was free to watch the movie with me, after all the movie I wanted to go for was a "Classes" and not much of a "masses" movie. Talking of friends, all my friends (in Pune) are in IT industry and very few have a "classes" taste. Its more of fun they want to have on the weekends to recharge their cells for the coming week. So initially I was quite sceptical if I could find a partner for the movie.

Call it my luck or fate, an old college friend of mine 'vinita' or 'vini' as we call her had her exams on Saturday and was free on Sunday ! To top it, she also wanted to go for the same movie.... 'eh now thats what I call luck ?

I called her up and fixed the venue as "Inox". The next day... after the exam got over I reached
the theatre which was close to my exam center, gave her a call and got the tickets booked !

Vini reached just in time to allow us to have a quick bite at MacD's before watching the movie.
I had barely eaten anything since morning and was famished like a puppy, we ordered two combo meals and sat down to chat. It was quite some time since I had met her.. so we exchanged a lot of updates.. had the general banter !

OK, now coming back to the movie.. I write this review combining my experiences and the other reviews I read about the movie.

The film begins with two sisters, Anjali (Shabana Azmi) and Mitali 'Mithi' (Konkana Sen Sharma) looking for a place called 15 Park Avenue, that we realise is either inaccessible or doesn't exist.

Audience is then introduced to Mithi's life – a strange world within worlds, some that really exist and some that exist only in her head. This 27-year-old believes she has a husband and five children and they all live at 15 PA. Then, whatever she sees on television or elsewhere e.g. Saddam Hussein, is lovingly incorporated into her imaginary world. Her family, also comprising an ageing mother (Waheeda Rehman) and a maid, try to be patient and not lose their own minds. The distant family relations tolerate Mithi, while the children are cruelly amused.

With the responsibility of Mithi and her mother, it's interesting how Anjali's (a physics professor and writer) life is full of full stops and commas. Divorced but in a relationship, she refuses her lover's (Kanwaljit Singh) offer to take a break and escape with him.



While Anjali copes with her emotional life, her mother must deal with ageing and the loss of
control that comes with it, while the insensitive maid audaciously brings home a tantrik who mercilessly beats Mithi up. Her complaint is believed to be another of her fantastical stories.


But there are moments of endearing clarity. Like once when Anjali explains that she is only imagining things, Mithi throws back the question – 'How would you like it if I told you, you're not a professor, only imagining it?' This thought is further carried on in discussions between characters, exploring what is reality and what differentiates it from delusion.


More about mithi's past life is shown. Its shown that she had found love in the form of Joydeep Roy 'Jojo' (Rahul Bose), who, despite her family's aggressive advice, gets engaged to Mithi.
He thinks he is man enough to deal with her disease and turns out he is not. Some time and a note later, he is gone, and Mithi finds solace in her imaginary world, where her kids are named exactly how she and 'Jojo' had planned.


A chance meeting brings them together after more than a decade and a shameful Joydeep (with a wife and kids, all real) wants to help Mithi find 15 Park Avenue. It must have been daunting to figure out an end to this film, and writer-director Aparna Sen probably thought it was best to leave the film open for individual reading. Since the film's subject is already challenging, this
choice risks leaving the viewer confused instead of pensive.


There are some amazing scenes in the movie, like that of the female beggar playing with bangle pieces, sitting outside Anjali's House. Then there is this scene of Rahul Bose and Shefali Chhaya
in Bed, their conversations about his past life/love.. and the expression on their faces. Then there are those subtle but so real reactions of Kanwaljit (Prof in love with Anjali) in a social gathering on finding Anjali being affable to Mithi's Doc.

The pace is agonisingly gradual at times, and the dialogue heavily repetitive. On the technical front, the film is dubbed, but the calibre of the actors pulls it though magnificently. The use of ambient sounds is lovely and so is the non-intrusive and sometimes breathtaking soaking-in-Bhutan's-beauty photography. The dialogue, exemplary in most parts, is irritatingly bookish in others. Example – 'Shall we have some tea?' 'Yes, let's.' No one says 'Yes, let's', for god's sake! Not unless you're in 16th century England having tea and butter cookies. But that's picking too fine a point.


Shabana Azmi thrives in her role; she looks stunning, acts with her heart, and is a pleasure to watch. Each actor, from Rahul Bose to Waheeda Rehman and Kanwaljeet Singh, puts in a spirited performance. And then there's Konkana Sen Sharma. One falls short of adjectives to describe her performance. I guess the biggest compliment would be to say that no one else could have done this role.
Watch this film to fall in love with her.
Aparna Sen has cemented her credibility as a thinking and engaging filmmaker and has one looking forward to her next film already. Compared to Mr & Mrs Iyer, she is more in command.

There's dry, black humour all over the film, if you care to look for it. There's comedy in the darkest of scenes, if you dare to laugh. As Joydeep himself broods, 'It would have been funny, if it wasn't so sad.'

Watch the film, and forgive the small irregularities and pace. You'll step into another world. Just like our Mithi !

Do let me know how did you find the movie ... And do post your comments one the review.

~shm