PS: This is not a review. This is only a heartfelt note by the author about her experience of watching ‘The Sky Is Pink’.
It had been a while since I last watched a film at the theatres. I think Avengers Endgame was the latest one. Perhaps the endless array of streaming apps and the endless content available on them have spoiled me a little. But when I received the invite for the press show (a screening held for the journalists and film critics) of The Sky Is Pink, I readily decided to end my hibernation and head to the cinemas to catch this slice-of-life tale. The trailer of the movie was cute. Plus, I had loved Farhan Akhtar and Priyanka Chopra‘s chemistry in Dil Dhadakne Do, even though they had a very little screen time together. So I had no reason not to be excited. I was also mentally prepared to shed a tear or two towards the end.
But the whirlpool of emotions that hit me within the first hour of the film – boy, I wasn’t ready for it. Based on a real-life story of a family, spanning 25 years, this beautiful Shonali Bose offering will make you feel things that you haven’t felt in a long time. Right from Hollywood romances like A Walk To Remember, P.S. I Love You and The Fault In Our Stars to Bollywood movies like Kal Ho Na Ho, Piku and October – I’ve previously watched several films which are also about love, loss and everything in between. I’ve laughed and cried while watching them too.
However, The Sky Is Pink is different. The movie shattered me and soothed me like no movie ever has. Maybe it’s because of the way it’s written by Shonali, Juhi Chaturvedi, and Nilesh Maniyar. Or maybe because it traces the lives of four very real people from a very real family. Or maybe because it beautifully showcases the big things and the little things – all at the same time. Or maybe because of all of these things and more. I can’t seem to pinpoint what makes this one so different. But to me, it sure is different. And special.
Farhan and Priyanka flawlessly don the roles of Niren and Aditi Chaudhary – parents of Aisha Chaudhary (played by Zaira Wasim), the voice of this narrative. Playing a teenager who’s aware that she’s going to die of a terminal illness but has an undying zest to live life happily, couldn’t have been easy. But Zaira makes it looks that way. Rohit Saraf is seen as Aisha’s brother, Ishan Chaudhary and he is as convincing and endearing as the rest of the lead cast.
While each of them has delivered incredible performances, I cannot emphasize how good PC is. She slays as Ishan and Aisha’s ferociously protective mother throughout the film. But there’s one particular scene that stuck with me. It’s the one where she tells her son that his sky belongs to him and he can colour it however he wants to, the scene that explains why the film’s name is what it is. It’s a priceless message that a parent gives to her child but with such simplicity. It reminded me of an interview where Priyanka had shared how her father had added her name on their nameplate as ‘Priyanka Mimi Chopra, Jr. KG’, when she had asked him why her name isn’t mentioned at their home’s entrance. Such a simple gesture by a parent yet so empowering to a child. During her recent interview with Rajeev Masand, PC admitted to missing her dad a lot during the filming of TSIP and I can imagine why.
The director and co-writer of the film, Shonali has also witnessed the loss of a loved one, her own son whose name coincidentally happens to be Ishan. It’s understandable why she has dealt with this project with the utmost care and given it the treatment that it deserved. Niren and Aditi Chaudhary picked her to be their storyteller because they knew she’d do it right. There’s no melodrama, no hamming, no awkwardness while talking about death in the film. And that’s how it usually is in real life. Much like the popular series, This Is Us, TSIP takes you through various stages of grief and holds your hand in this journey. Having lost my own elder brother when I was 12, I was triggered in more ways than one while watching this movie. It brought back memories that I don’t revisit that often. But it did so in a strangely comforting manner. I wept a lot, and it was therapeutic. Everyone who’s witnessed the loss of a loved one will feel those feelings. Everyone who’s afraid of losing a loved one will vicariously feel them too.
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Lastly, I cannot not mention the beautiful compositions by Pritam, especially Dil Hi Toh Hai (I’ve been listening to it on loop since last night) and the background score by Mikey McCleary. The music is neither too upbeat nor too morose and perfectly compliments the mood of the film.
Thank you, Shonali for making this movie. And thank you, Niren, Aditi and Ishan for choosing to share your story with the world. I am sure wherever Aisha is now, the sky is pink there.