One of the finest films of the year.

Grade: A-

Rocket Singh – Salesman of the Year

Indian Release Date: 11/12/09
CBFC Classification: U/A
Running Length: 2 Hours 28 Minutes

Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Gauhar Khan, Shazahn Padamsee, D Santosh, Mukesh Bhatt, Prem Chopra, Naveen Kaushik
Director: Shimit Amin
Screenplay: Jaideep Sahni
Cinematography: Vikesh Nowlakha Anshum
Music: Salim – Sulaiman

The director-writer team of Shimit Amin & Jaideep Sahni who previously gave us ‘Chak De India’ have knocked one straight out of the ballpark with their latest effort, ‘Rocket Singh – Salesman of the Year’ (it’s surprisingly from the Yash Raj camp!!!) . This gem of a movie is easily one of the most refreshing Hindi movies I’ve seen all year, infact easily the best slice-of-life comedy since ‘Khosla Ka Ghosla’ which too was written by Jaideep Sahni.

Harpeet Singh Bedi (Ranbir Kapoor) has just barely managed to scrape through in his university graduation exams. With such low scores his future academic options are severely limited so he decides to take up a job as a salesman since he believes he has the right stuff to make it big. During his interview his never-say-die attitude serves him well & he’s hired as a trainee at the computer sales & service firm, AYS (At Your Service). On the first day he’s overjoyed like a little kid by the sight of his personalized visiting cards & other stationary plus a guided tour in the dos & don’ts of salesmanship by an experienced & wily senior, Nitin (Naveen Kaushik) gets Harpeet pumped up for the job even more. However a botched sales pitch due to his naïve & idealistic behavior not only earns him the wrath of his superiors & colleagues but puts a huge dent in his confidence too. How he goes about proving his worth as a salesman cum businessman & teaching his superiors a thing or two about doing business keeping their ethics intact constitutes the rest of the movie.

The biggest strength of Rocket Singh lies in its screenplay. It’s taut & focused for most of the movie’s running length except for a superfluous segment involving the obligatory love story. The dialogues bring a certain gravitas to every situation, be it the witty/sarcastic banter amongst Harpeet & his co-workers or the idealistic yet not preachy talks he has with various people. They never feel unnaturally forced & the actors deliver them with utter conviction.

Keeping the office setup realistic (rather than a usual Bollywood style escapist abomination) serves the movie immensely in building a credible rapport with the audience such that they can easily identify with similar situations from their own life & putting the central character as an underdog in those unfriendly circumstances is assured to create a hell lot of sympathy for him from the audience. In a lot of ways I could see the writers trying to channel the basic themes of good & evil much in the vein of most of Frank Capra’s work or even Raj Kapoor’s ‘Anari’ (1959).   

Though aspects of corporate life aren’t exactly glossed over they are kind of overtly simplified for easier audience consumption but thankfully there isn’t any Madhur Bhandarkar style “gritty” sensationalist crap being dished out here. The blinding obsession to rake in as much money as possible at the cost of ideals & people corporations have is a concept as old as the hills in cinema but it’s laid out in a straight forward matter-of-fact, no frills manner. While on the other hand certain parts like the constant harassment which Harpeet has to face at the hands of his colleagues feels little overdone simply because all of them are salesmen (& women) so what the hell are they doing sitting around in office all day making paper planes/rockets to throw at trainees, don’t they have huge sales targets to meet? Some of the aspects of making sales & securing deals are far too simplified but maybe I’m just nitpicking here because this isn’t a documentary about salesmen.

The characters seem authentic because they look & act like actual human beings. No over-the-top shenanigans or preachy monologues for these guys. Not all of them have their moral compass pointing in the right direction at all times but they do make the most of situations presented to them by life, learn their lessons & keep moving ahead, isn’t that how most people are?  

The acting by nearly everyone involved is a huge asset the movie possesses. Ranbir Kapoor might look like he’s in a variation of his ‘Wake Up Sid’ role but this is a far more nuanced performance. He displays such heartfelt earnestness that you’d root for him instantly. It’s a performance which should go a long way in establishing him as a genuine actor & not just a performer though I have to say he’s not the best actor in the movie. The real standout is Naveen Kaushik as Nitin. The guy convinces you from the word go that he’s the real deal, a ruthless salesman with years of experience under his belt who’d sell ice to an Eskimo with alarming ease. Gauhar Khan as the ambitious receptionist, B Santosh as the lecherous technician, the guy who plays the owner of AYS & Mukesh Bhatt as the peon, are all more than believable in their roles.. Special mention should also go to Prem Chopra who’s impressive (after eons) in a small role as Harpeet’s honest-to-god grandfather. Shazahn Padamsee in her debut feature is the only one who doesn’t measure up, infact she might remind you of Tara Sharma with her uneven chirpy dialogue delivery & stiff posture.

Harpeet tells his boss that business isn’t about numbers but rather about people & that’s exactly what makes Rocket Singh tick too. It’s the characters & their interactions which really make the movie delectable rather than the simplified tale about corporate nepotism. This is an admirably written & more than competently acted movie filled with enough humor, drama & a restrained morality lesson to make you still believe that there’s still enough talent in Bollywood to surprise the socks off you when you least expect it.   

Final Verdict: One of the best feel-good films of the year.

Grade: A-   

 

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