User reviews

M A S A A N What a satisfyingly great piece of filmmaking.

Super amazing performances by Shweta Tripathi​, Sanjay Mishra, Richa Chadda​ and the newcomer Vicky Kaushal. Neeraj Ghaywan seems to be a very sorted-in-mind kind of a person to be able to make such a sublime film. The cinematography is spotlessly inspiring and to be put simply 'PERFECT'.

It is difficult to believe that we have such fimmakers making such films in India with such good performances by such good actors!

Shweta Tripathi​ is adorably cute and you just to keep looking at her. Vicky Kaushal has the 'boy-next-door' believability and he portrayed his character full of romance initially and angst later with such subtly and smoothness that from the first time you see him, you believe him. He needed some one like Shweta to complement his performance. Actually both of them have complimented each other so perfectly in the film that now I can't imagine any other actors doing their roles.

Richa Chadda plays 'Devi' and her character is so interesting to watch from the very first scene. Her's is a character which cannot be described easily. She lives in a small town, belonging to a rather seemingly conservative family where there is only her father played awesome-awesome-awesome Sanjay Mishra who is a priest-scholar. Devi is an educated young woman who is exploring her sexuality when she gets caught. Rest of the film is about the way she deals this matter with her father, everyone else and herself. Their is a guilt of sorts in her mind that she needs to deal with. She loves her father but their is something in their past that bothers her perhaps. Hers is a very pragmatic character who probably feels bogged down by the small town mentality and sensibilities of the small town that she lives in. Don't want to divulge much, you have to watch the film to try to understand her character.

Sanjay Mishra ji is simply put awesome. He 'acts' so effortlessly that I can't even call him an actor. Cos he just doesn't seem to be acting. He just becomes the character here. And he a delight to watch.

I need to congratulate the casting director of the film for a perfect magical cast. Even actors casted for Deepak's family are perfect and each actor was realistically believable.

Cinematography by Avinash Arun is just awesome. I loved the way he has lit the film. There is no extra, unnecessary lighting which gives the film a realistic look. I loved the shots which would be perhaps termed as under-lit in conventional mindsets. Cinematography was just what it was supposed to be. A great tool to visualize the director's thoughts and it did it wonderfully.

Editing by Nitin Baid was spot on. There is not a single moment in film where the film lags. Its cut crisply yet there is 'thairaav' where required.

Music was like cherries on the cake. Totally sweet! Totally delicious!

'Masaan' is a film that should, would inspire Indian filmmakers to do- away with all the extra glam-sham quotients of the typical Bollywood films. Films are all about story telling and this film does it perfectly. It is based in a very small town where there is nothing over-the-top in any manner. Real locations have been used and they look superb.

The film is full of metaphors and it makes you think. But maybe there isn't much to think, It can be a bit of an abstract film which also works if it doesn't bore you. This film doesn't bore you!

It really engages you!

Definitely worth a watch!

My rating: 8.5/10

Gone are the days when people used to flock to cinemas on hearing about a "Salman Khan will remove his shirt" scene. Gone are the days where you have a 100 people pop out of nowhere and join the actors in an impromptu dance. Gone are the days when a shower of petals across the screen would imply that people are making out. Well, at least, they should be gone.

2015 is turning out to be a breathtaking year for Hindi Cinema. First we had "Margarita, with a Straw", which, simply put, broke all stereotypes. And now we have Masaan, which makes Margarita look small. We have had a few amazingly touching and intense films in regional Indian cinema, with the likes of Ray, Kasaravalli, et al, but this is a whole new territory in Hindi Cinema.

Masaan is devastatingly beautiful. Where do I even start? In the small North Indian town of Varanasi, the lives of a few ordinary people intertwine in two tales of love and loss. Right from the opening scene, we are thrown right into the tragic lives of these people, with an intensity hitherto unseen in Indian cinema, almost Scorsese like. It is so intense, that an air of discomfort fills the theater just 5 minutes from the opening. And that of unjust. Unjust, as we are forced to see the catastrophic consequences of corruption, greed, caste-ism, and people's attitudes towards sexuality. This is no pretty film. There are no scenes of comic relief. It gets into your head real quick, and you are all but mute spectators to their spiraling lives. You feel chained to your seats as you're unable to do anything for them. Now that's the power of good cinema.

The acting is almost perfect. Richa Chadda, as Devi, the bold woman caught up in sexual crime and corruption, is the star of the show. She pulls off the small town girl next door role with elegance and beauty, which only increases with her fearlessness as the film progresses. All the other actors, though not as good, are extremely believable in their respective casts. The direction is impeccable, with every small shot, be it romance or crime, captured with equal ferocity. But where the film truly stands out is in its cinematography. Avinash Arun Dhaware does in incredible job in capturing the holy city of Benaras in both its highs and lows. He sure is an expert in glorifying tragedy. The shots of the cremation at the ghats, the boat rides at night, and the train on the bridge are so hauntingly beautiful that they would remain etched on to my memory for quite some time.

Masaan is a film that exposes you to the kinds of lives people elsewhere live, and gives you an opportunity to evaluate yours. It makes you ponder over issues, though a tad exaggerated, that people in certain parts of our country surely still face. It might also teach you a thing or two on love, loss and moving on. Although I haven't seen a lot of Hindi cinema, this might just about be the best that I have.

Unfortunately, most people would still prefer a topless Salman Khan than a gem like this.

Masaan is a story set in real Benaras which is better known as Kashi. Why did I mention real Benaras? This film makes you meet the other side of Kashi which is more active in the night than the day, the cremation Ghats where the dead bodies are burnt as per Hindu rituals. The cremation Ghats of Kashi has been mostly portrayed in films and serials as a mystic place but here the director, a débutant Neeraj Ghyawan and co-writer Varun Grover portrays the cremation Ghats as a usual business place where the bodies are burnt after dying. But, the film has a hidden treasure beyond the burning of the bodies in the cremation ghats. It's the burning of people griefs and the courage to let go their guilt to celebrate a new life.

The urge of arriving in life is portrayed by each central character of the film – Richa Chadha as Devi, Sanjay Mishra as Devi's father and Vicky Kaushal as Deepak. While Devi wants to get out of the narrow mindedness of the city and attain more liberty in the form of experiencing love and pleasure, the other character Deepak wants to break his shackles of being a pyre burning lower caste youth of becoming a civil engineer and dreams of marrying his upper caster girlfriend.

Sanjay Mishra runs a small shop at the cremation ghat and is trying to rejuvenate the cold relationship with his daughter and in order to protect her from a scandal; he breaches his own moral principles when he forces a child who works in his shop to take part in the dangerous game of collecting coins from the Ganges. The story brings twist in the each character's lives when they are forced to do a soul searching. Their soul searching brings dark moments in the film when you feel sad about their lives. But wait, there is light after the dawn and no grief is permanent. The films at the end leaves you with a message that Masaan is not only about burning the physical bodies but also about letting go your grief and making your soul guilt free.

The film is beautifully written with a strong message and a good débutant director attempt towards the serious sensible storytelling cinema. The music by Indian Ocean gels with the characters lives and the city's backdrop. The lyrics and music of the songs 'Tu Kisi Rail si gujarti hai' based on Dushyant Kumar's poetry and Man Kasturi re' are simply magical and has lifetime music value. All credits to the Director Neeraj Ghyawan who has been trained under Anurag Kashyap and the co-writer Varun Grover for such a beautiful story. Both the seasoned and the débutant actors have worked hard on their characters and that is evident from their acting.

I want to end this review for Masaan with these few lines in Hindi.. Jo Man ko Chu Jaye Use khubsurat ahsas kehte hai, Jo Atma ko Chu Jaye Use Masaan Kehte hai !

Masaan was felicitated at the Cannes Film Festival with standing ovation from the audiences. True to its hype, Masaan lives up to the reputation and gives you hard-hitting drama with realistic views on life.

Masaan, means "crematorium", tells two parallel story in the holy city of Varanasi.

From the writer Varun Grover( lyricist to some good films like Gangs Of Wasseypur, Ankhon Dekhi, Dumb Laga Ke Haisha) and direction by Neeraj Ghaywan ( 2nd Unit director to Gangs Of Wasseypur and Ugly), Masaan tells you the ugly side of life – The cremation scenes at the ghat of Ganges, the coin-collecting game and police extortion deep- dives into simple life and thinking of Varanasi people, caste system and police pressure. The hitting drama is hair-raising and it will be difficult to gulp down few scenes. Kudos to Neeraj Ghaywan for daring to be different. It takes nerve of steel to tell the not-so- happy ending stories. Art direction is brilliant. Cinematography is astounding with eye-catching scenes of beautiful banks of Varanasi. Dialogues are witty. Background score by Indian Ocean is tuneful. I was expecting the climax to be engaging but was slightly disappointed. Coming to the performances, Masaan has four protagonist and each of them gets into the character. Richa Chadha is brilliant and gives a staggering performance. She is undoubtedly gem of a actor playing various characters ( Nagma Khatoon in Gangs Of Wasseypur, Bholi Punjabin in Fukrey) with ease. Sanjay Mishra just gets better with each role. He is electrifying as usual. Newbie actors Vicky Kaushal and Shweta Tripathi shines and are promising.

Masaan is gritty and realistic cinema which should be lauded for its sheer effort. Excellent 4/5

Now we know how long it took for Bollywood to come up with 2015's first best film: 7 months.

One should be prepared to give multiple chills to their spine as he/she goes on about watching and completing this compelling drama consisting of two parallel stories talking about life, love, and death. A young careless daughter (Chadda) of an aging professor (Mishra) from the highly conservative city of Varanasi finds herself committing a mistake while bridging the gap between love and lust, after having fallen for one of her coaching class students, which pushes the father-daughter duo into a horrible mess involving a corrupt policeman and his greedy, two-holed belly. The first five minutes of this story is enough to entice a normal person, and if you are a film fanatic, you'll throw away the popcorn for you want to concentrate.

The second tale, about adolescent love, is as charming as its two main characters. The most valid setting for an interior village in the holy city is perhaps what best describes one of the protagonists here: an Engineering student (Kaushal) who is the hope of a family whose generation-old work background has everything to do with the celebrated, open crematorium (translating to masaan in Hindi) that happens in the banks of the Ganges river in Varanasi. His transition from a sincere student into a bereaving mass of wreck is triggered when a girl (Tripathi) innocently enters his life. They fall in love, and watching this love unfold is a real treat. Sweet pleasure treat.

And if one feels unfinished with these stories, then there is great doses of poignancy to it. It is absolutely heartbreaking to watch the fate of these characters as they embrace dynamic equilibrium in their hopeless lives, just to move forward. The stories as a single entity reek of realism to the fact that such things still happen in this modern world where on one side of the globe people are talking about shifting to Moon or Mars. The whole idea is haunting and let us not go down the anachronism road, not that it is prevalent in the film.

Cast performance is brilliant. The way they act out the well-written characters shows how the makers have paid attention to details and have done good homework about the theme. Mishra, as original as ever in his typecast character, rules the frame whenever he appears. The newcomers also add panache (wrong word, I know) to the screen, especially Tripathi. Music and lyrics are supportive, too.

BOTTOM LINE: With a fantastic conclusion, Masaan is a heart- wrenching tale of people trapped in a conundrum we all call life.

VERDICT: 8 stars out of 10. Highly recommended!

Can be watched with a typical Indian family? YES

Sex/Profanity: Mild

Thanks to Bollywood for making such kind of movie. An abstract, artistic and full of emotions which portrays real life of Banaras. Film touches delicate issues of life and depicts how expression of those emotions could be dangerous especially in a small town in India. Story revolves around two youths when their life gets changed by death of someone close. But at the end, they understand the cycle of life and death and just tries to move on their life (which I suppose happened, because there's no proper ending of this movie and it was intentional!) Dialogues and songs are completely resonate with the theme of movie. Overall one of the epic movie of recent times with realistic story which leaves viewers to think about the ending and life!! A must watch non commercial realistic movie!

Can a single film give us all so many messages, some so universal that it touches all of us as Human beings?Death is as certain as our birth.All of us of whatever culture or faith we are born or bred in know that basic fact.It does not need a thinker or great education. But a film and its audio visual story telling has such an impact that few film like this one can reveal to you all about living even as One faces death all the time or suddenly at any time unexpected.How like flow of river Ganga which begins as many rivers but merges at a geographical place in India the characters of the film begin far apart from each other.The stage is set all along the river and camera captures it in pain, suffering, will to live on and beauty it shares with those who resides along her banks. The spasm of a growing up youth beyond genders and culture or geography is well captured by first part of the film.Two different approaches to Courtship and eventual beginning of a unit of civilization-The family is revealed.One is daring and experimental walking the talk till its unexpected turn and the Other soft and smooth slowly inter twining relationship which too faces its test.Suddenness of turn of events in both stories shake you up and tests the will power of the protagonists.How they climb the uphill climb challenge that the life suddenly throws against them leaves us with immense faith in the flow of time ,life and ability of the Human beings to live on despite it all.The river along is the perfect analogy that any one can relate it all with.The ghats and life of the most ancient city in the world-Kashi,Benares ,Varanasi is captured with caring camera work.Despite the stage where last rites by Fire are performed as a routine occupation by few of its actors the life of courtship ,education, finding job, friendship between genders and within themselves all blossom in front of you.How friends are add ons to the family helping one in many ways during all times is what we all can relate to.How one has to walk out of it all as life moves on too we all know.Barriers of age,culture,ethos,caste and economic difficulties are multiplied by by gross inhuman injustice of corruption and exploitation from those who are our protectors.How in our utopia we all dream of fair-play justice, freedom to be oneself and power to explore all aspects of life as we want!The central characters have acted so well with such finis in direction of each frames and scenes that we all feel the ups and downs in their lives as if our own for 109 minutes we share with them till screen is lit.What else is life but certainty of death looming large silently unseen over it.Still we all live ,enjoy its each moment,and have ability to heal the wounds and learn to live on as a river does.Film will reinforce a belief that Life will help you ,the world will conspire to help you if you help yourself and continue the journey called Life.Walk On despite it all..

FIPRESCI, Un Certain Regard and standing ovation at Cannes, standing ovation in Ahmadabad and now a standing ovation in Bangalore, Neeraj Ghaywan's Masaan is a film that deserves high accolades for its exceptionally well written screenplay and execution. This year has been good for Indian cinema with some of the best films like "Court", "Killa" and "Kaaka Mottai" hitting the screens. Masaan joins this list of elite films. These films do not have big stars, big investments but the honesty in film-making and the content that they carry is something that Indian cinema has not attempted before, even attempted not this subtle. "More subtle, more the impact" seems to be the mantra of these films. From larger than life narratives these films bring in the shift to depict stories of ordinary people in mundane situations and their reactions. There is a kind of honesty and faith in the film which one can easily get engaged to. This not only brings the freshness breaking the stereotypical norms also gives out thoughts through the different layers the narrative has. The stories that narrate the connect of human emotions need to be explored more. "Masaan" deals with the connects of relationship in a very mature and subtle way. It keeps away from the usual melodrama. It thrives of modernism though tied with traditional values. "Its a bold film with values rather than bold visuals".. Each one of the characters has a story with real life turmoils. Some of the scenes are brilliant. Thanks to the film-making brilliance. Such experiments have an overwhelming and everlasting impact on the audience. You realize how cinema can be used as a powerful medium. You train yourself to care about good cinema watching films like "Masaan"and i think this is something such kind of films do beyond what they are normally expected to. The joy of having watched a satisfactory film is one of the best feelings any film-lover will want to have. It has become a rare phenomenon in Indian cinema. Commercial cinema has really cared about reaching the 100 Crore mark rather than providing satisfactory cinema. On one end we have the high grosser films and the other we have films like "Masaan" which mainly get tagged as "festival" films and in between films like "Piku" which is good cinema with a commercial appeal. I feel its time to get these festival films a commercial space. Its wrong for a good film to be bound only by festivals, it needs support from the theaters and mainly from the audience to thrive commercially. This would definitely help bring in a change of sense of cinema and help Indian Cinema grow.

It is a well done movie all around. The acting is superb and away from your typical Bollywood singing stuff. The cinematography is also good and the colors realistic.

I have to say I am surprise at the whole movie, especially the actors. I think they did a wonderful job and shows that India does have good actors away from the, again, typically singing, drama, funny types. It is hard to explain, it's different from Slumdog and Marigold Hotel. If anything I would say it's because of the directing.

It is a shame that the culture and traditions are what they are. It is always an interesting mix when you see modern technology mixed in with the still arcane way of life. It is the same with our people as well. However, it is a realistic movie and one should appreciate the setting as much as the story.

Enjoy the movie.

‎Masaan‬ means a place, where dead bodies are cremated. If you can stand the sight of actual dead bodies being burnt, right after a cute scene of an excited 21 year old guy, whose Facebook friend request has been accepted by his crush; then yes, definitely watch this one.

Its a dark, complex, hard hitting movie, which is set across the enchanting Banaras and the majestic Ganges; revolving around the life of simple human beings.

'Man kastoori re' by Indian Ocean, can be the sole reason for a music lover to buy a movie ticket. At Cannes, this movie by debut director Neeraj Ghaywan won 2 awards; and it is said that very few Asian movies have received 5 minutes of standing ovation during its screening.

The movie has flaws (the absence of that scent of regional tone in the dialogues was the most disappointing part), but the mindblowing performance by Sanjay Mishra & the strong, heavyweight performance from Richa Chadda will make it up.

If you support such good cinema, and want more 'daring' film-makers, then don't miss it.

It is a nice simple movie which tugs at your heart. A girl follows her heart and goes with her lover for pre marital romp in a seedy hotel of Varanasi. Police raid and boy suicide. Blackmail of her father by ruthless corrupt cop.

On other hand a SC boy of Chandal family falls in love with an upper caste (so called) girl. He is pursuing Civil Engineering degree. The girl dies and he goes in to depression. Chandals does the work of last rites of dead bodies on Manikarnika Ghat of Varanasi. It is said that if you are creamted at Varanasi you go to Heaven and if in Maghar then you go to hell. Kabir mocked this belief and insisted that his last rites to be done at Maghar. Thus Chalndals are at the lowest of the most unjust system of world. This film mocks the inhumanity of caste system. Symbolism of Kashi is too good to be missed.

This is a story of triumph of human spirit. How both refuse to bow down to small mentality of a backward small town and society. They don't give up and come out triumphant.

Music by Indian Ocean is another high point. They have set to tune a poem of famous poet Dyushyant Kumar (Tu kisi rail si gujarti hai; Main kisi pull se thar tharata hu).

Acting of Richa Chadha and Sudhir Mishra is superb. New comers and others are also good.

Must watch for the fans of realistic, intelligent movie which has strong story line and touches your heart.

But it will be mocked by low IQ, rigid, holier than thou and prudish mentality persons and they should better stay away.

Its a waste of time. Not worth the rating..nor the reviews...nothing in it. Bakwaaas. Truly a disaster kind of movie... wats there in it thats worth 8 !!! Its dull n boring and top of it... nude and sex scene to start the movie??? Really?? Unnecessary.. wat a disaster is the climax too... wat is actually left in d movie to giv it a 8 rating and call it really underrated??!!! For the 4 rating i hav given is for the actual scenes at the ghat shown and dat budda fellows emotions with daughter. The child with the budda is perfect with his role. So.. don't get carried away to see this movie under the list of underrated movies and its rating and jump in to watch.. A big NOOOO.

I don't have to explain why you should watch this movie.

There are so many aspect of this movie which will touch you. Reality, true cinematography, story acting.

People from Banaras, Allahabad, UP will feel more touched due to so many reality scene shot on true spots.

For some people it may be a little sad and heart touching movie, but rest assure, it will leave a mark in your memories.

Perfect and right actors choose, like super Sanjay Mishra, Richa Chadda etc. To really enjoy this movie, watch it undisturbed, end to end, without chit chat, I am saying this because you need to connect to the move and very light emotional plots, which you will miss in small chit chat.

Masaan means crematorium. This movie is centred around the banks of river ganga where funerals are conducted. The story takes 2 tracks, one is richa chadda's track - an educated smart girl, trapped in a society that doesn't want to match her pace, instead wants to just pull her down by trying to shove sexist prejudices down her throat. The second track is around Vicky Kaushal - a boy whose ancestral tree has been in the funeral work, but he is smart and completing a good education, falls head over heels in love, young, innocent college love and then loses that love in the most shattering way. Both tracks take us through a series of emotions that the main characters experience. First love, desire.. then regret, pain .. then longing for closure.. all around the banks of Ganga where the ultimate closure is done. I might run out of words to describe this film. It has so many layers. It is so very moving and thought inducing. It is just brilliant in all possible departments - acting, writing, film setting, screenplay. Just superb. If there is a list of 100 movies one must-watch in a lifetime, Masaan will be in that list.

This is among the top 5 best Indian cinemas I have watched of all time. A movie with an extremely powerful message and strong emotions. I was glued the entire time. A definite watch.

Apart from the usual escapist romantic cinema of Bollywood, I found "Masaan" a truly honest love story set in "actual" India showing all the hypocrisy of India and also the healing "going on" attitude of the society which is essential for the evolution of any society and the truth of Human life. The two love stories, though set apart, reveal the various layers of hypocrisy in Indian society and where one story starts with death of love one the other ends with death, the eternal truth. In the end the positive going on attitude releases the agony built in the plot. The movie is a true representation of today's Indian cinema.

Neeraj Ghaywan's debut movie Masaan evokes a whole gamut of emotions ranging from fear, redemption, hope, love to transformation. The movie's themes of entropy, destruction and resurrection are signalled by the title, which means crematorium, and the location. Masaan looks for love, meaning, redemption and transformation which it victoriously portrays through its lead characters, characters which swirl in their own eddies but forging ahead with determination.

Set in the backdrops of rustic yet idyllic Ganga ghats of Varanasi, the movie showcases two parallel stories.Two journeys are twinned, one beginning in despair and the other in hope. One is of Devi, whose sexual rendezvous with a recently acquired boyfriend goes horribly wrong, putting Devi and her father at the mercy of a corrupt police officer. The other is of the star-crossed romance between Shalu and Deepak, she from an upper caste and he a member of the Dalit Dom community that cremates bodies at the Varanasi ghats. The scenes between Deepak and Shaalu offer innocence and charm and offset the sadness that overtakes Devi and Pathak, neither of whom is equipped to deal with their changed circumstances.

Ghaywan's periodic drama also digs and lucidly put forwards the brutal truths of Indian society- sexual repression, the caste divide, financial hardship, limited mobility – through individual philosophical journeys. We are stifled by our growth and age-cultural traditions that have led to relative morality. The whole patriarchal system allows us to take the moral high ground – how a small city girl cannot have sex before marriage, for instance. Though brutal but these traditional truths encapsulate the inherent Indian-ness and allows the viewers to be more attached the displayed theme. Ghaywan's narrative is fluid and rich with confidence and sensitivity and the Indian-ness in his writing and shooting does allow its protagonists savor the characterization. Masaan perfectly captures the journey of two tragedy-struck souls from decay to renewal. It all comes to the beautiful concluding scene, which suggests that sometimes, redemption can begin at a point that is not too far away.

This parallel story on 2 people living on the banks of river Ganges is a metaphor of life. The cast is limited but the performances are top notch which makes this movie an engaging watch. One of the finest films that has captured the lifestyle and emotions of people realistic!!

This is not just a movie .It is some stories. Stories of life . Life that normal people like us leads with some dreams. Dreams get broken. Hearts get broken but life goes on. we all forget what happened to us with time. People goes away.Things go away.But the pain stays.Stays forever.This is a movie which will force you to remember those pains. May be for a moment but it will bring back your memories.Trust me it will.

Indeed, the socio-political reality in Masaan is impossibly frustrating. Directed with heart by Neeraj Ghaywan, the film chronicles two separate accounts of two heartbroken souls and explores the most difficult themes at the heart of India's socially and culturally underdeveloped and often regressive areas, including class prejudice, poverty, misogyny, and systemic corruption. The last of these, as manifest in one of its stories through blatant police corruption, is enraging. The helplessness of simple citizens before a corrupt system and the inability to seek any guidance or justice against the most immoral of people as well as the narrow mentality of their own society, makes for a rather troubling watch.

But not everything is this dark, as just in life, there's always a ray of hope and a way out. Life goes on, and this film shows it. Amidst the devastating reality that this film presents and its critical commentary on its many important issues, a true portrait of optimism, resilience and hope turns out right underway. And it emerges rather naturally through the strong sense of life that drives the film's wonderful characters, all of whom choose to move on and win. Masaan is beautifully shot, with even the most unpleasant places looking quite exotic. It is nowhere near a mainstream film but the realism blended in some wonderful romantic portions make for nice moments of relief.

The acting is spot on, with Sanjay Mishra leading the cast with a heartfelt and touching performance. Richa Chadda is excellent in an understated performance; she smiles not once and wears a permanent frown on her face, but clearly holds in so much. Vicky Kaushal, though a little self-conscious at points, does exceedingly well in a movingly natural debut performance. His simplicity and everyman quality helps a lot, and indeed, his romantic scenes with the lovely and pretty Shweta Tripathi are quite cute. Masaan is not a film for everyone but many curious viewers might find an insight of a world far removed from their consciousness in this fine, heart-touching film.

One of the slowest movies with no conclusion. What was the intent behind creating this movie?

Powerful film with master writing. Two simple stories running with the same pace on either banks of ganga river and shows the social stigmas present in both upper castes and lower castes. All the actors did justice to their characters. Unique music very different from the movies of mainstream.