So, finally after a long break of seven months I’m back to writing. My pick for today is Shoojit Sircar’s Piku. Shoojit da’s cinematic universe always has a fusion of Delhi and Bengal. Be it Shuili’s name in October or Piku living in Delhi’s CR Park.

In this part of Shoojit Sircar’s cinematic universe we get see the Bengali side of Delhi in the form of CR Park and Piku Banerjee’s world. Piku Banerjee ‘s world seemed OTT to me. Very different from other Delhi based stories which we come across frequently in today’s cinema. She had a father who suffers from constipation and is kind of obsessed with the thought of being unwell. Just like Rana, I do find him weird and irritating at times. But Piku’s caring side comes to the rescue here. Shoojit Sircar perfectly balances the detached and non-sentimental nature of Rana with Piku’s affectionate and caring nature. People like Rana are sometimes misunderstood by the society. The way he defends Piku for the accident shows the caring side of his character.

The Shoojit-Juhi duo makes sure that their characters are more than just the characters moving inside the 4 walls of the frame. There is more to their personality which we get to see as the movie progresses or with the time, as we study them over and over again. In October, we had Dan, Vidya, Manjeet who tend to cross our minds whenever we think of Shoojit Sircar’s cinema. Another thing which I liked about Piku is that Sircar didn’t make the Banerjee household look like a typical 'bengali-household’ with some heavy accent or something.

The scatological humor of the movie is pretty much refreshing. Like discussing literal ‘shit’ everytime that too in a different way every time is quite commendable.

Journeys are said to be full of epiphany, we meet the hidden part of ourselves, lose a part of ourselves and gain one. Rana, Piku and Bhaskor also go through the same process throughout their journey from Delhi to Kolkata. The dialogues also reflect a lot about the same thing. Discussion about death and shit was a pretty nice highlight. Rana telling Bhaskor that getting restless and emotionally blackmailing his own daughter won’t take him anywhere was the turning point of the journey’s narrative.

Despite being an irritating personality Bhashkor never loses a chance to show his protective rather I should say the ‘over-protective’ side of himself as a father. And and and!! At some point in the movie, I do find him progressive and feminist as well. The whole incident of his brother’s wife leaving her job because she earns more than him sounded very idiotic to him.

The whole concept of letting go is so beautifully written by Juhi. The way Piku wants to sell her ancestral home and then stays there for such a long time, extending her leave to stay in Kolkata, roaming around the city with Rana and reminiscing her childhood is the segment which always makes me think about the importance of memories and moments. After Bhaskor’s demise we don’t see her crying rather we her remember him in every good possible way. As Rana says Piku is very special, she is indeed.

I might have sounded very repetitive but this film is something which can’t be articulated in words fully. It needs to be felt and cherished by oneself.

With this the series 'Delhi Through The Eyes of Cinema' comes to an end. I'll try to bring new versions of this series in the future.