109 Years later, Devdas Still Refuses to Die!

109 Years later, Devdas Still Refuses to Die : My quick take on Tamil movie “DC” (Theatrical Release in Hindi Dub)

Some love stories die. Some become classics. And some simply refuse to retire.

Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay wrote “Devdas” 109 years ago. Since then, Indian cinema seems to have discovered a rather interesting business model: Recycle. Reuse. Refurbish. Repackage. Repeat.😂

From Barua to Bimal Roy to Bhansali, all have presented Devdas as classic, tragic to opulent spectacle, we have seen Devdas in almost every cinematic avatar imaginable.

Then came Anurag Kashyap, who decided that Devdas needed less “sharaab” and more “shararat” and gave us his contemporary Dev.D.

And just when you thought every possible version of this tragic love story had already been made…

Enter Arun Matheswaran.😎

And he seems to have asked:

“What if we take Devdas… remove the traditional melodrama, add guns, gore, gangsterism, a generous dose of violence and Anirudh?”

And thus…

DC is born.

D for Devadas.

C for Chandra, the Chandramukhi connection.

And after watching the film, perhaps DC also stands for:

“Damn… Chaos!”😂

At first glance, you might expect yet another tragic Devdas melodrama, Devdas suffers, Chandra suffers, everybody suffers, and the audience eventually suffers along with them.

But surprise!

Arun takes Sarat Chandra's century-old love story and relocates it into a world of “Guns. Gulab. Gore.”

No, the screenplay isn't faithful to the original novel.

But the characters are.

The essence of Devadas and Chandra remains intact, doomed love, emotional turmoil, obsession, longing and tragedy, even though the world around them has been completely reinvented.

And that, for me, is what makes this adaptation interesting rather than merely another remake.

Arun Matheswaran doesn't really make films.

He paints them… with blood.

Every frame looks like a painting, a gorgeous, dark and very red painting.

At times, I wondered whether his colour palette had only three options:

Black. Red. More Red.😂

The story itself isn't exactly Nobel-worthy, crime, revenge, love, betrayal, violence. Tamil cinema has served this thali many times.

But Arun adds his own masala, turning a familiar Devdas story into a stylish, violent visual feast.

And then comes ‘Lokesh Kanagaraj’ in his acting debut.

Considering the man's directorial CV reads almost like a “Violence Hall of Fame ‘Kaithi, Master, Vikram, Leo, Coolie’ he has spent years making heroes, villains and assorted human beings settle their differences with guns, knives, fists, drugs and an alarming amount of blood. 😂

So perhaps it was only a matter of time before someone told him:

“Why should actors have all the fun?”😎

And surprisingly, Lokesh pulls it off.

As Devadas, he keeps things raw, restrained and understated. No unnecessary heroics. No “Look at me, I am acting!” moments.

Just a man who appears to have taken a ‘lifetime subscription to violence.’

Ironically, the man who spent years directing others to kill finally gets to do some killing himself.

And honestly…

He looks like he belongs there.😂

Wamiqa Gabbi is terrific as Chandra. Thankfully, she isn't merely the romantic accessory waiting around for the hero to finish beating up 47 people before getting her dialogue.

She isn't just ‘the woman in Devadas's story.’

She is part of the story.

And Wamiqa more than holds her ground.

Now we come to the film's other major “character”.

ANIRUDH.

The movie is sold as an “Anirudh Musical.”

At times, though, it becomes an:

“Anirudh Noisi-cle.”😂

At some point, I stopped wondering whether I was watching DC or attending an DJ Anirudh live concert with a 143-minute visual accompaniment.

The BGM doesn't merely accompany the action.

It provokes it.

Hero looks - BGM.

Hero walks - BGM.

Hero punches - BGM.

Hero stares intensely - BGM.

Hero probably blinks - BGM.

I wouldn't be surprised if the theatre exit doors opened with a background score. 😂

Don't get me wrong, when Anirudh gets it right, he absolutely gets it right.

But occasionally the distinction between ‘background score and background assault’ becomes rather thin. 😜

The action is brutal, stylish and unapologetically violent.

So, if your idea of romance involves roses, violins and Switzerland…

Please stay away from DC.

Here, romance comes with “guns, blood, gore and a body count.

Because apparently, in Arun Matheswaran's universe, even Cupid carries a weapon.

My only reservation is the emotional connect.

At times, the film is so busy being “an Arun Matheswaran film” that it forgets to simply be a story.

The visuals are spectacular. The performances are strong. The action is inventive. The music is… well, very present.😂

But the emotional punches don't always land with the same force as the visual and musical fireworks.

Yet cinema doesn't always have to hold your hand.

Sometimes it just needs to grab you by the collar and drag you through 143 minutes of beautifully choreographed chaos.

And DC does exactly that.

If you're looking for logic, carry a torch.

If you're looking for realism, leave it at home.

If you're looking for style, violence, strong performances, gorgeous frames and an Anirudh BGM powerful enough to wake the dead.

And now that we apparently have our very own DC series, the obvious question is:

Can we expect DC2?😜

And if Indian cinema has truly entered the “Devdas Cinematic Universe”, perhaps the next announcements aren't too far away.

Because once filmmakers discover that a “109-year-old tragic love story can be recycled, refurbished and relaunched as a gangster action saga”, why stop now?