Highway
Highway is journey of a captor and a young women suffering from Stockholm Syndrome showcasing beauty of Northern Indian landscape. Kidnapped in strange circumstances, Veera (lead female), after initial days in the kidnapped voyage started developing a strange relationship with the abductor. It shows that travel has a sense of freedom, an absolute disconnection with from routine makes way for carefree spontaneity. There is also issue of child sexual abuse by girl’s uncle and covering this for fake social status.
Overall it depicts the status of society where actual criminals are within the four boundaries of house and the abductor has a great sense of responsibility for a girl he kidnapped. It’s more than a love story . . . It’s a voyage to infinite feelings.
Ali is known for films on travel as before making it into the films, he was a hardcore traveler. Alia Bhatt has proved herself as an actor and finally broke the star image. Randeep Hooda, as expected, spoke through eyes and is really did justice with the character. In Randeep’s gang, the lusty Saharsh Kumar Shukla left an impact in first half. Durgesh Kumar and Pradeep Nagar also defined their characters very naturally.
Director – Imtiaaz Ali
Cinematographer – Anil Mehta
Cast – Alia Bhatt and Randeep Hooda
Into the wild
Yes, a wonderful inspiration for all the hitchhikers out there is Into the Wild. The movie is the true story of Christopher McCandless, a fresh college graduate who gives away his life’s savings to charity and hitchhikes to Alaska. In his completely unpredicted expedition, he meets different kinds of people, each with their own stories, who ultimately helps him to recognize own self and shaping his life. In Alaska, he moves forward into the wilderness to live on his own. This is what travel is all about . . . Experiences . . . good and bad . . . make you who you actually are.
With an accessible character study, Sean Penn has turned the complex work of nonfiction into a complete wild. Christopher, an idealistic dreamer is absolutely opposite to his family, parents and a sister. He keeps journals in which he imagines himself as a heroic loner in the third person, leaving civilization, heading to the embrace the nature. He finds himself not as homeless, but as a man freed from boundaries of home.
Director – Sean Penn
Cinematographer – Eric Gautier
Cast – Emile Hirsch, Catherine Keener, Vince Vaughn, Marcia Gay Harden
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
The literal meaning of ZNMD is ‘You Don’t Get a Second Life’. It’s a film in Hindi language of three best friends who are in different parts of the world. Engagement of one friend calls for a fantasy trip, a trip to Spain instead of that stereotyped Bachelor’s party. One of the three is a corporate slave (Hrithik Roshan), second one is an advertising copyrighter (Farhan Akhtar) and the third one (Abhay Deol) who is going to marry an insecure girl (Kalki Koechlin), who somewhat spoiled the trip by coming in the mid.
Keeping the old promise, the three adventure lovers head to Spain and as pre decided, three of them have to do adventure sport of everyone’s choice TOGETHER. No matter if you fear of water or height. They exactly did what they decided.
Eventually they found their inner self that there is no sense of saving till 40s and enjoy later, what if you don’t live till 40? Immortal, terrific, outstanding, the film is rhythmic (it does not means its musical). It carries the pace swiftly and firmly. The tale of adventurous amigos will sparks the travel lust within you for sure.
Director – Zoya Akhtar
Cinematographer – Carlos Catalán
Cast – Farhan Akhtar, Hrithik Roshan, Abhay Deol, Kalki Koechlin, Naseeruddin Shah, Katrina Kaif
Samsara
Samsara means the cycle of life and death to which life in material world is bound. This ultimate film was shot in 5 continents in a time span of 5 years. It is a documentary which completely changes the common perception of documentary films on travel. Samsara is all about equation of life, it makes one clearly understand the mythological rituals and their beautiful, natural outcomes. Something has turned wrong when life became a manufacturing process.
Words are not enough to describe the film, a watch is demanded. It is a trance which gradually catches its pace, a meditation in which you will be thankful for being on the earth and finally a trip which never ends.
Director – Ron Fricke
Cinematographer – Ron Fricke
Cast – Balinese Tari Legong Dancers, Puti Sri Candra Dewi, Ni Made Megahadi Pratiwi, Putu Dinda Pratika
Before Sunrise
When traveling to a new city, almost all the travelers walk in the streets and find their bearings. Jesse, like every American backpacking traveler went out to chase the places of his dreams. Eventually, he met a gorgeous French lady Celine. First they met and then their minds. It is a 12 hour long love affair in which both of them know they are most likely not going to meet anymore. But, the intensity and depth of emotions, likes, dislikes makes this a must watch film.
This film is free from any sort of hidden agenda, melodrama, betrayal, choreographed sex sequence, violence and anything as such. Everything is predictable yet mesmerizing. In the end you shall definitely feel that there is something which is missing and that’s what the moral of the story is . . . something is missing everywhere and this is what life is all about.
Before Sunrise . . . looks more like a documentary shot with invisible camera filled with mystery and hope (may be love too).
