Daayen Ya Baayen

aayen Ya Baayen’s biggest strength is in its delineation of characters. It captures the Uttarakhandi people at their straight, simple and eccentric best. While there are established actors like Deepak Dobriyal and Manav Kaul delivering pitch-perfect performances, Bela Negi shoots on location and ropes in the local population in small roles to create just the right picture of the dull, dreary yet dreamy life in the hills. The film is marked by an authenticity of atmosphere and experience. It has a fable-like quality; the plot is whimsical, built around a trifle. Dobriyal plays an artiste who returns to his sleepy village from frantic Mumbai and decides to stay on, much to the unhappiness of his wife and mother. He teaches in the village school but the eventual aim is to establish a cultural centre. Things come to a head when he wins a big, red car as an award in a jingle-writing competition. It’s a car both he and his quirky village can’t have enough of and yet, want to eventually do away with. The resolution does get a bit protracted, awkward and moralistic but Daayen Ya Baayen eventually wins the day as a sweet and simple, fresh and felt tale.