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By Joginder Tuteja, October 5, 2009 - 13:59 IST
MOVIE DETAILS
Cast: Ruslaan Mumtaz, Sheena Shahabadi, Satish Kaushik, Sushmita Mukherjee, Rajat Kapoor, Neena Gupta, Anupam Kher
Director: Satish Kaushik
Producer: Bharat Shah, Anupam Kher, Satish Kaushik, Manoj Mittal
Music: Sachin-Jigar, Bappi Lahiri, Anu Malik
Lyrics: Sameer, Virag Mishra
THE FILM
In the dozen odd films that Satish Kaushik has made ever since he made his debut as a director with Roop Ki Raani Choron Ka Raja, a section of media has
accused him of making regressive films. Even though he consistently saw box office success coming his way in the form of Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai, Hum Aapke Dil
Mein Rehte Hain, Hamaara Dil Aapke Paas Hai and Tere Naam, he was being labeled as someone who belonged to old school.
All of this changes with Teree Sang, the film which is his most progressive film till date. Not that he hasn't made young films before. After all Mujhe Kucch Kehna
Hai is a testimony of that. However, Teree Sang gets it's edge from the very fact that the lead protagonists here are teenagers.
First things first - it's the choice of actors for the main leads in the film that works most for Teree Sang. Frankly, you can't imagine any established star/actor from the
current generation to be suiting the parts that Ruslaan Mumtaz and Sheena Shahabadi play in the film. Both of them are easily the stars of the show and one has to credit them for the bravura act that they come up with which makes Teree Sang believable.
For Sheena, what works most is the author backed role that she gets in the film. As a 15 year old girl who is looking at exploring life to the fullest, it is not about falling in
love for the first time. It's about finding a true friend, so much so that there is not even a single exchange of 'I Love You' till the very end of the film. She meets Ruslaan,
spends time with him, urges him to make love to her (as an experiment), doesn't regret it and is happy to be spending time with him till he eventually realizes that he loved her.
As for Ruslaan, it is an even more challenging role to do as an actor. Reason being that he has to drop his cool dude attitude and instead get into the skin of the character - that of a lower middle class 17 year old boy. He is shy, apprehensive of what he is doing, is in awe of the wealth of the girl, doesn't quite know if his friendship is actually turning into love, is about to be a dad at an age of 18, doesn't have a job, has to face opposition from parents of both sides, is slightly guilt ridden and eventually has to make life work for both him and his girl. In that aspect, he gets it just perfect even though his role doesn't allow him to play a 'hero' even once!
Other two heroes of the film are music directors Sachin and Jigar. They come up with fabulous tunes with each of the songs adding value to the narrative. Their 'More
Saiyaan' is easily the backbone of the film, something that makes the interval sequence really exciting. In fact it is this very sequence (when Sheena elopes with Ruslaan) that brings the film to an all time high.
First half of the film is excellent with number of light hearted sequences making sure that there is a constant smile throughout. The dramatic portions are embellished well
into the narrative as well with some of the highlights being:
- Rajat Kapooor catching Sheena, Ruslaan and their friends partying at their home
- Love making between Sheena and Ruslaan
- Sheena realizing that she is pregnant and Rajat's confrontation thereafter
- Satish Kaushik's outburst at Ruslaan
The second half starts off well too with Rajat Kapoor storming into Satish Kaushik's house and the sequence of events that lead to the police station. Meanwhile, Teree Sang continues to flow smoothly as Ruslaan and Sheena try to rebuild their life all on their own. However, at times the pace of the film becomes uneven and the story appears to be getting into a familiar terrain. Even the pre-climax scene when Satish Kaushik comes to Rajat Kapoor's house with a request is a tad too filmy. The songs keep the show on though and while it appears that Teree Sang would eventually meet a clichéd climax, the court judgment that comes in the end brings in a twist in the tale.
PACKAGING
DVD of Teree Sang comes in a regular plastic case. In one of the rarest scenarios, the film's synopsis on the DVD cover is written in Hindi instead of English.
DURATION
The film's duration is 132 minutes
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Making of the Film
The 'making' segment mainly repeats the oft stated story behind the casting of the lead pair in the film; something that one has read and heard about a zillion times already. Other than the usual 'it was great working with so and so actor/director' conversations, there are routine talks about how the film is different from routine love stories. There isn't much footage from behind the scenes or on location shoot as well, hence making this segment a quick skip.
TECHNICAL DETAILS
- 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation
- Subtitles in English
- Dolby Digital 5.1 and Stereo
PRICE
Rs. 199/=
CONCLUSION
Satish Kaushik takes a balanced approach towards a sensitive subject like teen pregnancy and never allows it to get frivolous. Also he doesn't take sides and neither
propagates teen sex nor goes against it. He brings out the difference between committing a mistake and a crime which forms the underlining theme of the film.
Eventually Teree Sang turns out to be a film which is entertaining and yet delivers a message without shoving it down the audience's throat. Moreover, even though the film revolves around sex and teen pregnancy, the makers have shown respect towards the subject and have stayed away from nudity, hence making it a clean family outing that should ideally have been made tax free.
 
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