Unpaused is an anthology film consisting five different segments of different stories.
The first one, Glitch, set in the future where the world has transformed owing to Covid-19 and its variations like Covid-22/Covid-30 (referring to the year of the new virus’ inception). It tries to imagine what the world could be like if this dreaded virus stays with us for a long time. It primarily focuses on two young adults trying to kindle their relationship in this new AR/VR world. Ahan (Gulshan Devaiah) is paranoid & fearful or hypo (possibly meaning hypochondriac) as people like him are referred to. On the contrary Alizah (Saiyami Kher) is a brave and bold women. Initially puzzled by how they were matched by the dating app dislike each other, but with time a love story follows. Unlike the old times, religion/family/society type of issues are not hindrances that stop the romantic ‘happy ending’ for the couple, but new type of challenges that ensue with evolution of a technology & Covid driven world.
The second segment is The Apartment in which Devika (Richa Chadda), who runs a successful magazine, finds herself being lonely in the current locked down world, and is depressed with issues that have come in her personal life due to her husband Sahil (Sumeet Vyas). Devika ready to give up, is continuously troubled by Chirag (Ishwak Singh) her new neighbour from downstairs, or so she was told.
The following segment, Rat-a-tat showcases a grumpy widowed retired singer Archana (Lillete Dubey), who is not liked by many, and Priyanka (Rinku Rajguru) a production assistant struggling in these Covid times. It shows how the two women befriend & help each other out, in an emotional yet entertaining manner.
Vishanu, the fourth segment, portrays the hardships & the brutal truths faced by the not so fortunate section of a society in a developing nation like India. Manish (Abhishek Banerjee) a daily worker, with his family is finding it hard to survive with rare work opportunities and no place to live. He finds a short term fix for his sheltering his family, but with meagre savings to live on wishes to return back to his village, but faces the million dollar question as many people did, how?
The concluding segment Chand Mubarak follows the story of an old spinster Uma’s (Ratna Pathak Shah) unconventional bond with auto rickshaw driver Rafique (Shardul Bharadwaj), after she befriends him on a spontaneous trip to the medical store late one night, in the abnormally quiet streets of Mumbai.
The distinctive stories are amazingly well thought of and brilliantly portrayed by the individual directors. What makes it an emotional and heart-warming watch, is the precision with which the brutal and almost accurate realities faced by the people in these hard times. The pace of all stories is excruciatingly slow, which most certainly works in the favour of the film. All actors are casted fittingly and act out their individual parts in an entreating fashion. With very few successful or even very few anthology movies created in India, this is a very bold & unique step, rightly taken by Amazon Prime Video.
The movie has a bigger than usual soundtrack, one would expect from a movie consisting five different stories. Songs may not have been need in some of the scenes, where the soundtrack has been fit into. The order of the segments could have been arranged in a better way, seeing as to the first one is set in the future and the ones preceding it are set in the current period. Omission of this segment altogether could also have worked as it felt too distant with the other four stories.
In conclusion, even with its idiosyncrasies the movie is a spectacular watch. It is relatable to the totally of the population, as each & everyone went through that torrid period. By the end of the film one feels a sense of pride and gratitude, reminiscing how we all got through that period. It is a must-watch for everyone.
Acting- 9
Casting- 9.5
Cinematography- 8.5
Dialogue- 7
Directing- 9
Editing & Effects- 8
Sound & Music- 7.5
Story- 8.5
Storytelling- 10
Rating- 9.5
Available on: Amazon
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