Hand-painted tribute to Bombay

Bombay Rose’ captures the lingering charm of a chaotic city.

Mumbai is not a city but an emotion for many. Here, Gitanjali Rao pours the sights and sounds of the metro into a 2D platter. The result is a visually stunning animated feature which almost bursts out of the canvas with its aesthetic brilliance.

In terms of storytelling, the movie may come across as another boy-meets-girl trapped in a Hindu-Muslim trope. Kamala and Salim are separated by religion but united by poverty. She sells garlands by her roadside shanty. He sells flowers across the street. Love blossoms, but she has to look after her school-going sister... and he has to shake off the memories of a bullet-ridden past. Salim is from Kashmir, after all.

But then, Mumbai the magnet doesn’t distinguish. It takes in people of all tongues and troubles.

Take away the Bollywood prism and ‘Bombay Rose’ blooms through rich frames that add dreamy dimensions to its characters. Kamala, once sold off as a child bride, escapes the drudgeries of the day by imagining herself as a princess taking flight to a Mughal wonderland. Salim morphs into her hero on horseback, fighting off predatory pimps.

The romantic imagery is vast and vivid, but the most touching track belongs to Ms D’Souza — the elderly English tutor who refuses to let go of her movie-star past. As D’Souza walks down memory lane, Mumbai turns into idyllic black and white, complete with Guru Dutt oldies wafting through the air.

Here’s to Bombay, hand-painted with love.