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Just hanging on...

Ugly (Hindi; 2013)
Written and Directed by Anurag Kashyap

A cursory look at modern relationships may suggest that they are held together loosely by threadbare bonds. Everyone seems to be unhappy and cannot wait to be out. They hang on, just barely, on flimsy excuses, just buying time. Looks like everybody is experiencing existential crises and is looking all over the place for the reason of their existence. They say they are trapped. Some feel smothered, unable to express themselves. For some, it is tradition and social norms that bog them down. Others still find their passion in waiting for Prince Charming to sweep off their feet. Amidst all these uncertainties, pops out an offspring to further complicate the relationship. Each party wants to do right yet wish to do the best for themselves in their personal development. Life just gets more complicated. 

Life has a funny sense of humour. Just when everybody thinks that they are high and mighty, life tries to play the game of humility. When siblings do not see eye to eye or cannot stand the sight of each other, it would create an emergency where, like it or not, they have to come together and make it all right. I am thinking of the death of a family member or some kind of medical emergency. The events also bring out how weak our bonds are and how vulnerable human life is.

'Ugly' can be described as a crime thriller. It starts with Rahul losing his preteen daughter during his visitation outing. Rahul's estranged wife, Shalini, is a depressed lady who had big ambitions in life, like appearing on the silver screen, but nothing really materialised. Shalini is now remarried to her college sweetheart, Shoumik, who used to be bullied in school by Rahul, hoping for better times, but zilch.  
The problem is that Shoumik is the Police Chief in charge and has a bone to pick with his old foe. As time ticks and the lost child is nowhere to be found, Rahul and his best friend, Chaitanya, are accused of staging a kidnapping instead. Things get more twisted as everyone tries to outdo and outsmart each other to get the girl first. Then there is another party who is eyeing the ransom money.

It is a fast-paced thriller with real everyday people with all their good, bad and ugly qualities, warts and all. Viewers can really feel the hopelessness felt by the father as the police start looking at him as an aggressor rather than as a victim. 

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Location: Kuala Lumpur, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

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