s omewhere on paper, sonali cable might have
been a solid idea.
the basic concept -- of an enterprising girl selling
broadband internet connections, making sure her
customers are ever loyal and never offline -- is
both naturally intriguing and certainly timely, like
an updated version of the ronnie screwvala
origin story.
but unlike the utv founder's amazing tale, that of
providing cable tv connections with illegal but
curated content, here sonali is already up and
running with three thousand connections under
her belt.
but hark, a reliance-like megacorporation is
ruthlessly shutting down these neighbourhood
cable-guys. it's a classic david and goliath
showdown.
except it isn't.
sonali cable disconnects itself from the point of
the film incredibly fast, littering itself with one-
note characters stuck in cinematic cliches.
leading lady rhea chakraborty (who we last saw
in the very amusing mere dad ki maruti is
suitably bright and cheerful, and while she throws
out marathi phrases with much glee, her hindi the
rest of the time is as delhi as it gets, free of any
maharashtrian strains.
but the girl, i assure you, is the good part.
she has a few good moments, a few fine lines.
the rest of the film -- made by debutant
charudutt acharya -- is almost entirely
disappointing, nosediving into maudlin drama in
the second half to the point where the dramatic
climax just sounds laughable.
the film's first jarring note is hit by anupam kher,
playing the evil magnate and hamming it up so
dreadfully the film immediately becomes a
cartoon.
then there's sonali's right-hand-kid, a freshly
plucked version of vivek mushran who ends up
unbearably annoying.
add to that a mix of drunken fathers, evil
politicians, wicked mothers, goondas, friendly
sikh grandparents, and snivelling necktie-wearers
(who are, for some reason, awestruck by the
mention of phoenix university).
the very point of the film, of david and goliath, of
an entrepreneurial young lady who takes on a
capitalist dictator, is lost in this unnecessary
drivel.
this could well have been a film like band
baajaa baaraat or rocket singh , films where
we saw the lead characters innovate against the
odds and do something their bigger rivals
couldn't.
that jugaadu ingenuity made us respect the
characters.
here, the closest thing to a hero just nods his
head reproachfully while things go from bad to
catastrophic.
it is refreshing, of course, to have the girl in the
driving seat, pushing the action forward.
i just wish sonali had been given more to actually
do rather than rely on every 'good' person in the
film to show up for the climax and lend their
(very insignificant) hands.
one of the reasons i walked in hoping this'd be a
great film was because i have a broadband-guy
at home, not any of the usual big service
providers, and he does a bang-up job. with
customised service, help whenever i need it, and a
fair bit of out-of-the-box (or out-of-the-router)
thinking whenever he needs it.
he finds out just what his clients wants and
tailors the plans so intuitively that the big boys,
looking only at each other's numbers, can never
measure up.
he does, of course, play as fast and loose with
the truth as the situation demands, but there is
something to be said for his unflappability.
is he worth a movie? hell yeah.
just a better one.
View all reviews on Sonali Cable 
Updated on Sunday, November 16, 2014 | 6:48:47 PM
