Some
ideas
translate
into
interesting,
2-hour
films.
But
some
ideas,
though
translated
on
screen,
make
you
feel
that
they're
best
suited
for
television.
That's
what
you
experience
when
you
watch
Via
Darjeeling.
It's
pretty
okay
to
be
different,
but
when
you're
looking
at
the
Indian
audiences
and
the
kind
of
cinema
they
tilt
towards,
you
cannot
be
too
experimental.
In
that
sense,
Via
Darjeeling
holds
appeal
for
a
tiny
segment
of
moviegoers
here.
It's
more
for
discussions
amongst
friends
or
those
sitting
in
a
coffee
shop
or
at
a
friend's
place
on
a
rainy
night
[exactly
what
the
characters
do
in
Via
Darjeeling].
The
story
revolves
around
Ankur
[Kay
Kay
Menon]
and
Rimli
[Sonali
Kulkarni],
a
newly-wed
couple
on
their
honeymoon
in
Darjeeling.
The
story
takes
a
turn
when
Ankur
disappears
on
the
eve
of
their
departure.
The
cop,
Robin
Datt
[Vinay
Pathak],
tries
to
trace
Ankur,
but
can't.
The
suspects
are
a
taxi
driver
Ankur
had
fought
with
and
a
mysterious
looking
man
Bonny
[Parvin
Dabas],
whom
Rimli
thought
was
following
her
throughout
their
trip
in
Darjeeling.
Two
years
later,
Inspector
Datt
relates
this
story
to
a
few
friends
[Rajat
Kapoor,
Simone
Singh,
Proshanth
Narayanan,
Sandhya
Mridul]
on
a
rainy
night;
they
are
intrigued
by
this
story
and
question
him
about
the
outcome.
But
he
has
no
answers.
Fascinated
by
this
story,
they
start
a
tale
about
the
possible
outcome
and
all
take
part
to
give
their
own
versions
where
personalities
and
motif
change.
Via
Darjeeling
follows
the
format
of
one
story,
but
multiple
versions/endings.
The
problem
here
is
that
the
main
story
[as
narrated
by
Vinay
Pathak]
is
incomplete,
so
all
assumptions
and
interpretations
don't
look
convincing
or
cut
ice
with
the
viewer.
Had
the
director
[Arindam
Nandy]
or
writers
[Ranjan
Das,
Arindam
Nandy]
made
Pathak
reveal
the
outcome
to
the
main
story
in
the
end,
after
various
versions
are
told,
perhaps,
it
might've
appealed
then.
Yet,
one
of
the
versions
--
narrated
by
Rajat
Kapoor
--
holds
your
interest,
but
the
versions
narrated
by
Simone
Singh
and
Proshanth
Narayanan
get
monotonous.
Director
Arindam
Nandy's
choice
of
the
subject
may
not
hold
universal
appeal,
but
it
does
hold
your
attention
at
times.
The
songs
are
well
woven
in
the
narrative.
Cinematography
is
alright,
but
the
beauty
of
Darjeeling
hasn't
been
captured
to
the
optimum
on
celluloid.
Dialogues
[Atul
Sabharwal]
are
in
sync
with
the
mood
of
the
film.
The
performances
are
neat.
Kay
Kay
is,
as
always,
perfect.
Sonali
Kulkarni
is
the
scene
stealer
here.
Parvin
Dabas
looks
right
for
the
part.
Vinay
Pathak
is
frst-rate.
Simone
Singh
and
Rajat
Kapoor,
both
handle
their
parts
with
precision.
Proshanth
Narayanan
is
topnotch.
Sandhya
Mridul
is
fiery.
On
the
whole,
Via
Darjeeling
is
more
of
an
experiment.
At
the
box-office,
it's
a
dud!