July 19, 2005
Naveen Andrews
This movie is so extraordinarily clever, at all levels, that I have watched it twice with undivided attention, and have it playing on background now. It does nothing less than remake US views of India. As I read the full page advertisements in the Washington Post saluting the visit of the Indian Prime Minister, and reading about the White House agreeing to sponsor nuclear information exchanges while India sponsors a second green revolution, I cannot help but think that this movie, in a unique way, captures both the beauty of India, and its arrival as a world power equal to the US.
I spend a lot of time thinking about both reality and perception. The US has blown it when it comes to the billions of poor–not just the Arab fundamentalists, but the non-violent individuals who see us occupying their countries and looting their natural resources. If America could produce a movie like this, one that reflected the best of America, the ideals of the original Republic, it would have more of an impact than the billions of dollars we are spending on a heavy-metal military.
This movie is extraordinary. It is brilliant. It is worth buying, viewing multiple times, and as a gift idea.
