October Movie Review: A Soul-Stirring Tale

Whenever Shoojit Sircar and Juhi Chaturvedi have teamed up, they have delivered great stories and their recent release ‘October’ starring Varun Dhawan and Banita Sandhu, is definitely one of them. But will it work at the box-office? Let’s find out... Set in New Delhi, October revolves around Dan (Dhawan), a hotel management student training with a five-star hotel. Dan is known for being a grouch and constantly cribbing about his life. When a colleague Shiuli falls off the terrace during an office party, Dan gets drawn to her, especially after discovering that she had asked about him seconds before falling off the terrace and ends up jeopardising his social and professional life to spend time with her at the hospital, where she lies in a comatose state. How this affects his life, forms the rest of the plot. Varun is an actor, who never ceases to amaze. Be it subtle roles (Badlapur) or commercial masala (Judwaa 2), Varun is known for giving his best always and October is a treat for fans of the actor, who have never seen him in such a role before. As Dan, Varun will simply win your heart with his earnest and honest performance. His co-star Banita Sandhu, who makes her Bollywood debut with this film, is a great discovery. Shiuli is not an easy role to play and yet, Banita owns it with her conviction and dedication. She doesn’t even have dialogues in many of her scenes, but the young lady has given an impressive performance overall. As for the film is concerned, October is a soul-stirring watch. Though the story is quite tragic, it doesn’t depress you and your soul goes out for the characters in the film. Another thing that stands out is the superb cinematography. Avik Mukhopadhyay's camera work is absolutely magical and will have you enthralled from the first frame onwards. On the flip side, the film moves at a slow pace and I must confess that i got a bit impatient at certain moments. If you are expecting a fun watch like Vicky Donor and Piku, October is certainly not the movie for you. It is evident that Shoojit and Juhi have poured their souls in this visually appealing story, but I fear that it’s slow pace may prove to be its undoing. Nevertheless, October is a great watch for those who want to see something different on the silver screen...