The lovers in Anurag Basu's engagingly odd “Barfi!†- he's deaf and mute, she's autistic - are a particularly pure expression of a cherished Bollywood theme: love is the supreme goal. (Cue the songs: the movie does.) Stripped of conventional social expectations, Barfii (Ranbir Kapoor) and Jhilmil (a deglamorized Priyanka Chopra) have nothing to follow but their hearts, and nothing to battle but kidnappings, death and venality.
“Barfi!†is billed as a romantic comedy, and there are several nods to Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. The deaf Barfii - his own contortion of his real name, Murphy - plays the silent clown, and Mr. Kapoor, who gets better as the movie goes along, often seems to be channeling his grandfather Raj Kapoor, who incorporated aspects of Chaplin's Tramp in his screen persona.
The comedy registers mostly as pathos, but the silent-movie influence remains strong. “Barfi!†has long sequences with minimal or no dialogue, putting the emphasis on the visuals. In one scene Barfii blows bubbles that enclose fireflies, mesmerizing Jhilmil. The two sometimes communicate with light, bouncing its reflection off mirror shards. (Ravi Varman did the movie-lush cinematography.)
Bollywood isn't afraid to be mawkish. “Barfi!†is at times, though not noticeably more so than most Hindi movies, despite its premise of special lovers with a special lesson to teach. And at 150 minutes, it may try your patience. Or it may wear you down (another Hindi movie specialty) as it builds its emotional slow burn. Against your will, you may even shed a tear.
