Gully Boy(2019) – Asli Hip Hop

Director: Zoya Akhtar

Cast: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Kalki Koechlin, Vijay Raaz.

My Rating: 9.5/10

IMDb Rating: 8.6/10

This movie, directed by Zoya Akhtar is very different from her past works in which she showed us the lives of the upper section of our society. But here she creates a world in which the main characters are from Dharavi, which is one of the largest slums in Asia. This movie is inspired from the lives of Naezy and Divine, who made their journey from rags to celebrated rappers.

Gully Boy is a story about Murad(Ranveer Singh) who lives in Dharavi and his dreams are bigger than his reality. This is a coming-of-age story and is about the discovery of one’s passion. Murad, who along with his friend Moeen(Vijay Verma), is a part time carjacker and also a driver to a rich family. He also writes songs and poetry but never thinks of performing them in front of others. His life changes when he meets a local rapper, MC Sher(Siddhant Chaturvedi) who helps him discover his passion of being a rapper. This film shows Murad’s journey of being a rapper in a very authentic and engaging way.

The casting of this movie is just perfect. Ranveer Singh as Murad is impeccable. He displays the struggles and pain of the character with zeal. A big chunk of his performance plays out on his face in his expressions. This is a performance which will be remembered for a long time. Alia Bhatt as Safeena is a delight to watch. Safeena is a medical student and belongs to a conservative Muslim family, but the director and her co-writer(Reema Kagti) has written such fiery character in Safeena. All the other characters, including Vijay Raaz who plays Murad’s brutal and heartless father; Vijay Verma who plays Murad’s friend Moeen are phenomenal. A standout performance though is by the debutant Siddhant Chaturvedi who plays the character of MC Sher. His portrayal of a rapper is so authentic and real that you crave for his appearance on the screen.

The direction of Zoya Akhtar is simply brilliant. This is her best film till date. But the credit should be given to each and every person associated with the movie, be it the actors or the technical department, all deliver their A-game in this movie. The dialogues by Vijay Maurya are very well written. They provide the much needed authenticity to the movie. But the ultimate winner is the music department. The songs are exceptionally well composed and the lyrics are exceedingly well written.

At the end, I would say that it is one of the best Bollywood movie released in recent years and I would recommend you to watch this amazing piece of cinema.