"Julie"bold but average

It seems that Bollywood is set to explore something different. It can choose good themes or some socially relevant issues. But what ruins the game is that it fails to give these themes a realistic touch.

“Julie” starts on a bold note with the heroine, Julie, (Neha Dhupia) declaring in a TV studio that she is a call girl. Sadly the boldness is limited to only body exposure. The script does not deal with the issue forthrightly.

In a flashback, Julie is a simple girl brought up lovingly by her baker father in beautiful environs of Goa. She loves cycling and playing at beaches and has no high ambition. She goes to church praying that she wants to make food for husband and kids.

She comes to Mumbai for a job and had bad experience with two men. After that she suddenly walks into a hotel room to ‘entertain’ a customer. Thoroughly unbelievable.

A beautiful story of a grateful Buddhist nun is twisted and narrated totally out of context. It is used to convince Julie that she should be thankful for getting a chance to make easy money. Some real imagination.

Neha Dhupia performs reasonably well. She gets almost all reel length to expose the body but a few to emote. The Mihir -Julie track is supposedly highly emotional but there is no corresponding display of such expressions.

Priyanshu Chatterjee as Mihir Shandilya, a decent multi-millionaire bachelor, who loves Julie is quite suited for the role .Dialogues are okay. Music is average. Title song “Julie” is quite soft and rhythmic. The scene of Julie’s reunion with her father is touching. But overall the movie hardly leaves an impression.

After an overdose of skin display, we are treated to some philosophical lecture on social concern. Some balancing act indeed.

What does the message go with the masses?A woman has no identity of her own.She gets respect only if she gets acceptance from man. If rejected, she is disgraced. Society views her from a man’s eye.

Bollywood desperately needs to change its perspective on such issues. If properly worked upon there are many chances that these would be liked by masses.