YouTube is a strange place. Here, a video of someone eating a bowl of noodles (mukbang) can get over two million views while a gem of a movie, made using a considerable amount of time, resources and artistry fails to get even a fraction of that attention. Viewership is unpredictable and were it not for its algorithm that leads the user towards videos based on their past preferences, I for one would not be spending as much time on it.

On the long list of works of art that have not gotten the attention they deserve is the 2015 Hindi-language drama “Ankhon Dekhi.” Released on Shemaroo Movies’ official YouTube channel more than a month ago, the film has just over 80,000 followers while the channel itself has over 17.8 million subscribers. So criminally undiscovered.

Written and directed by Rajat Kapoor, who has an amazing filmography of offbeat, unorthodox, low-budget treasures, Ankhon Dekhi is another feather in the cap of the filmmaker as well as its entire cast of talented actors. Unlike most Bollywood movies banking on their lead actors, the film is a team-effort of an ensemble cast who won many awards and accolades for the film when it released.

Rajesh aka Bauji (Sanjay Mishra) is a patriarch of a big, extended family living in congested confines of a small house in old Delhi. An event in his life leads him to decide that from then onwards, he would believe only what he sees. But the figurative “believe only in your own eyes” becomes literal and his new-formed eccentricity starts making life difficult for him and his family.

Bauji takes his family and friends on a new adventure in life with his only-believe-in-what-you-see theory as he starts denouncing God and everything he previously believed in. Basically a summation of comedy of errors, the film has its darker sides and an ending left to the audience’s interpretation.

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Veteran actors Sanjay Mishra, Rajat Kapoor, Seema Pahwa and Saurabh Shukla join a lesser-known ensemble of actors to create magic. The storyline gets absurd and abstract at times but the natural performance of actors and honest storytelling do not let the film lose its realistic shape. Every character is given a specific role and their combined contributions culminate in what has to be one of the finest Hindi movies.

Ankhon Dekhi is not only a film that entertains but also a visual treat that shares an idea with the audience. As a society, we have been so used to taking small bits of information for granted that we do not even question the integrity of the source. For us to believe someone is good or evil, we do not even need to see the person for ourselves. We are fed this information by the people and society around us and nurtured to believe in collective thoughts and opinions. Bauji, our protagonist, tries to break this shackle of mis/information and finds himself in all kinds of troubles, at the same time liberating himself from what he sees as lies he had been believing all his life.

Another factor that adds to the charm of Ankhon Dekhi’s unorthodox storytelling is the music which is melodious yet unique and again, criminally undiscovered. Composed by Saagar Desai, lyrics written by Varun Grover and sung mostly by Kailash Kher, the film’s score is based on Hindustani classical music but with a fusion of modern rhythms. Composer Desai takes the storytelling knack of Rajat Kapoor to create music that co-narrates the story of Ankhon Dekhi. Granted that the songs are not catchy, but they were not meant to be. Not all good music is supposed to be consumed like cookies by the masses and Ankhon Dekhi’s score is a prime example of that.

Who should watch it?

Ankhon Dekhi is a beautiful film that deploys comedy to deal with an existential question. The storytelling, acting, cinematography and music are top notch, and typical of Rajat Kapoor and his team. So for anyone who’s enjoyed Rajat Kapoor’s works, it’s a must-watch. For the unacquainted, you will still thoroughly enjoy the film and go on to explore more of his works.

Ankhon Dekhi

4 stars
On YouTube
Drama
Cast: Sanjay Mishra, Seema Bhargava, Rajat Kapoor
Director: Rajat Kapoor