..."The  best  journey  you  can  ever  make  is  the  one  that  brings  you  home."  ......The Namesake promo goes like this. It is not just a movie, but an experience, a journey well made for its gift of wisdom and realizations. And one that will linger in your mind and in your heart long after you have left the theatre. Not because the portrayal is stellar, not because the direction is sensitive but because it touches chords  of "loss and displacement" in all of us. For humans are essentially nomads. For we are all immigrants. The film captures it all and more.......

Based on Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel of the same name the film delves into the intricacies and intrigues accompanying the life of immigrants settled in an alien land, a Bengali family in this case. The film starts off with the usual humdrum of an arranged marriage in a Bengali household. The groom 

Ashoke Ganguli( Irfan Khan ),  a PhD student in America and the bride Ashima (Tabu) discover conjugal bliss and learns to adapt to the chilly winters with only each other for company. Time passes as they have a son, Gogol ( Kal Penn), named after the great Russian author Nikolai Gogol and a daughter who does little else than frown and giggle. Growing up the ‘American way’ they fail to appreciate the attachment and nostalgia that their parents share on the issue of traditions and heritage. Gogol is sketched as a character torn between parents who grudgingly approve of his uber liberal ways and his strong wish to stamp his individuality in the ‘Land of opportunities’. The camera moves over to India where the Ganguli family makes a visit to realize their roots and establish a semblance of awe, if not reverence or relation, for their motherland in their children. The scene where Ashoke and Ashima hold hands in front of the Taj Mahal is resonant with quiet drama and interplay of unsaid emotions.


Mira Nair does a splendid job in expressing the dilemma faced by second generation Indian immigrants in tow with the flavor of the original novel. Lahiri’s depiction of a subtle but clear sense of loss and rootless-ness within the Diaspora has been delivered justice under Nair’s direction. The pain of living away from one’s own land and family is palpable throughout the span of the film. Nair in no uncertain terms also puts forth the general dissension in the NRI youth to accept their original traditions in conflict with their ‘American way of living’.

 Life moves on with the Ganguli household as Gogol becomes the subject of the film mid-way. He faces personal challenges and explores relationships in the wake of tragedy and trauma. Coming out of the grief of his father’s loss he makes his stand and assumes responsibilities. Later he marries a girl obsessed with everything that is French who eventually parts ways for a French lover from her past and puts an end to their association. These daily rendezvous with challenges coupled with a slow but firm realization of his father’s ideas and ideals transforms Gogol to a completely different person. The film ends with the start of Gogol’s journey to India and Ashima’s homecoming to the city of her birth, both connoting a new beginning, a fresh import.

A film which encompasses the entire array of emotions from love to despair, from hope to tragedy, and from joy to grief
'The Namesake' makes its mark in the mind of the ‘meaningful cinema’ aficionado. Moreover it leaves a lingering sensation of empathy with the characters which is of essence considering the perfect portrayal of the roles and the impressive delineation of the story-line.

The film becomes a vehicle for display of Tabu’s talents as she steals the screen from everyone else. The script gives her the scope to showcase the nuanced actress in her and Irfan , though subdued and hence impressive in his difficult role as Ashoke Ganguli, plays second fiddle to her.
Kal Penn looks a bit stiff yet he holds promise going by the few difficult scenes he delivered with aplomb. It’s an out an out Mira Nair juggernaut and once on board no actor can fail to reap dividends as The Namesake is sure to turn out to be a success, both intellectually and commercially.