" Stanley Ka Dabba "

Year: 2011
Directed by: Amole Gupte
Verdict: 7/10




The story of Stanley may seem usual if not predictable about the life of a mere child living in India.
From the beginning, the film draws our attention in a classroom full of naughty and noisy kids.
A teacher who loves her job and always made them smile and laugh at their mischievousness or
Another, who's often too strict with a stern face, uninterested in his students and monotonous and
yet another teacher, who never appreciates his students, shuns a poor kid because he
doesn't have a tiffin box, he doesn't care about anything except his stomach, eats his students' lunch, to the point of
expelling a kid from school... talk about gluttony.



The school was run by a catholic and the students were well-off, they all seem to be except for this particular kid.



Stanley -
who was the main character of the film seems to be leading a jovial and youthful life,
but as always, what's seen on the outside was a camouflage of lies and pretensions.
Inside, he's a troubled kid who's confused, lost, exploited and sometimes bullied.
But despite all this, Stanley never give up, with a good heart and a dream of his own.
He strives for a better life and education.



A bit of sublimity and humour in the film.
It has beautiful script and a story that's thought provoking in the end.
I assure you, the last ten minutes can be life altering.
The soundtrack is a sore though, I like some of the soulful sound, but others were a bit too loud for my taste.
This film, clearly shows the harsh reality of life in India, the struggle to alleviate poverty,
esp. the youth where they're mostly exploited and used by adults for their own selfish reasons.
In the eyes of an innocent child, all they ever wanted was to play and be happy.
But the cruelty in his surroundings changes all that and as he gets older,
the once youthful, charming kid isn't the same anymore.



click here for more photos!

and watch the trailer here: