Cinema has come a long way in the last decade, and Tollywood (the Bengali film industry) is not far behind. Today, we do have good cinema. The recent addition to the list is Baba Baby O, directed by Aritra Mukherjee and produced by the famous duo Shiboprosad Mukherjee and Nandita Roy. Yes, the title is unusual, but it is evident from the title that the movie has a lot to do with fatherhood and, by extension, marriage, and parenthood.
So, the premise goes like this. Megh Roddur Chatterjee (Jisshu Sengupta), whose quirky nickname is Haloom, is a 40 something, professionally successful man who is not married and opts to become a single father through surrogacy. The film starts with Megh’s decision of becoming a single father and moves through how his parents and everyone around react, gradually paving the way for a romantic story, evoking 90s Bollywood as Megh and his friend Raja (Mainak Banerjee) frequently recall their love for the Shah Rukh- Kajol movies.
The storyline is simple, and frankly, there is not much scope for any theatrics. However, apart from being a complete family entertainer, not to mention the cute babies on screen are a delight to watch, the film touches on many stereotypes and societal norms and conventions effortlessly and subtly. They are not brought forth strikingly enough to make it a movie about social issues but put forward in a rather matter-of-fact manner, and this is precisely what makes it worthy of being reviewed for how progressive it is.
First, the story is about a single father. So, while women are supposed to develop their motherly instinct once they attain a certain age and should ideally be the primary parent, a straight man not willing to marry, unable to find the right companion, and yet, wants to become a father is, I would say, exemplary. Megh beautifully balances his personal and professional life. He creates a routine for the babies; is an expert in checking the temperature of the milk before feeding it to the babies, and can put them to sleep, too, often staying awake at night when the little ones are not in the best of their mood. How often do we associate all these with a father, especially a single father without a wife!!
On the other hand, a woman does not always have to like babies nor be willing to become a mother. Brishti (Solanki Roy) is not fond of kids, and this is also normalized. The film, in no way, intends Brishti to be judged.
Without going into the story much or the climax, I will touch upon a few impressive points about the film. Megh’s parents (Rajat Ganguly and Reshmi Sen) are what parents are for, always being by their son’s side. They are apprehensive and a bit awkward at times, but they stand by all his decisions and are ever so straightforward about everything in front of their friends and relatives. Suspecting that their son is gay, the father orders a copy of Karan Johar’s An Unsuitable Boy to understand his son’s psychology. Every day, he asks him at breakfast if he has anything to share with his father, which makes up for a comic sequence in the movie.
There is another notion that is being heavily challenged. It is again put forward in a matter-of-fact way that a marriage is meant for seeking companionship, for being with a person with whom one can share their happiness, success, failure, and sorrows. Eventually, the couple can choose (or choose not to) welcome a baby but extending a family should not be the sole purpose of a marriage. Megh had once told his ex-girlfriend that he does not want to marry because he wants kids and because he loves kids, he can have babies even if he does not marry. Doesn’t it ring a bell for many of us?
Baba Baby O has certain flaws in depicting a few characters and is a bit stretched. The climax could have been better portrayed too. The song, ‘Ei Mayabi Chander Rate’ (composed by Chamok Hasan) is soul-stirring and adds to the beauty of the film.
Baba Baby O is a Bengali movie that turns out to be brave enough to address stereotypical social issues and normalize the concept of choice. Fatherhood is just an emotion like any other, and it shows the importance of people who neither ask nor judge, but are just there for you!
By Sumana Ganguly Chakraborty
Sumana Ganguly is a professional content writer, working for agencies and independent clients. A Master’s in English Literature, she has always been passionate about writing. Watching movies and analyzing them is one of her favorite hobbies apart from reading books and listening to music. You can contact her at sumanaganguly88@gmail.com.
Facebook Comments