By Neeraj Nanda
MELBOURNE, 10 October: I watched today morning a special preview screening of ‘The Sky Is Pink’ at the Hoyts, Melbourne Central’s cinema No 8. Organised by the distributers, Mind Blowing Films, this is Priyanka Chopra’s return to Hindi cinema after three years. Directed by Shonali Bose (Margarita with a Straw) and co-produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur, Ronnie Screwvala and Priyanka Chopra under the banner of RSVP Movies, Roy Kapur Films and Purple Pebble Pictures, those starring in the movie include, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim, and Rohit Suresh Saraf.
In a nutshell, the film is the story of a couple (Choudhry family) told through the lens of their teen-daughter Aisha Chaudhry, diagnosed with a disease called Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID), which destroys infection-fighting immune cells.
The movie is the Chaudhry couple’s (Priyanka and Farhan) ups and downs in a fast-changing scenario moving towards calamity. The shuttling between Delhi and London which stresses their relationship, the human drama shows it all. In this rather tough moving life situation the expected loss of a child is taken boldly.
Priyanka and Farhan give a towering performance as the nightmare inches ahead. Some light moments including that of the blood samples mix up excels. Though, Priyanka’s heavy make-up in different situations (including early morning) could have been dealt with. Zaira as Aisha acts with the confidence needed for the sensitive subject. This is her last film as she has quit acting.
The melodrama of the movie’s end could have been toned down. In fact, the movie’s narrative speaks for itself. Director Shonali Bose handles the cinematic version of this true story (the end tells about it) skilfully. I wish the movie was not that long (2h 15m).
The Sky Is Pink releases in Australia on 11 October 2019. Check www.mindblowingfilms.com
for cinema listing and session times.
