There are anticipated movies that are expected to take the movie world by storm and rake in millions at the box office. Fans eagerly await their arrival, and OTT platforms scramble to get rights. Then, some movies come quietly to the theaters and leave without making much noise. They are not spoken about until a year or two later when cinephiles discover these movies online and consider them unexplored gems. 8 AM Metro falls into the latter category.
Thanks to OTT platforms, movies like 8 AM Metro make their presence felt. In a world where people can judge you based on the kind of movies you watch, it feels nice to catch a simple, light, and quiet film mostly about everyday conversations. This is something acutely missing in modern societies. Come to think of it, even our movies have moved towards digital or social media-borne love stories or plot arcs. The inherent simplicity of 8 AM Metro made cine buffs gravitate towards it, and of course, social media stories and posts (yes, they do play a role in bringing such stories to our attention) did the rest of the PR for the film.
Directed by Raj Rachakonda, 8 AM Metro explores the gap between a man-woman relationship. In a society obsessed with romantic and heterosexual relationships, the characters in 8 AM Metro find a deeper connection, one that’s human and not bound by gender, marital status, or social class.
Throughout the movie, the conversations between the two titular characters emphasize listening and knowing without judgment. Whether it’s the sexually evolved culture of tribes around the world or their dilemmas, the characters stress the importance of being less judgmental, even with oneself.
The plot is quite a common one. Ira (Saiyami Kher), a homemaker, has to rush to her sister Riya’s (Nimisha Nair) aid when she experiences a pregnancy complication. Ira is scared to travel by train because it brings back a childhood trauma. However, the traffic in a city like Hyderabad offers fewer money-saving options than the metro.
On one such metro journey, Ira encounters Preetam (Gulshan Devaiah). He notices her sweating and breathing heavily and later goes to a library to read more about this condition. He finds out these are called panic attacks. They meet again the next day, and he informs her about panic attacks. Since they must travel by the same metro daily, they strike a friendship. Thus begins a soulful journey into understanding the human psyche, unexplored dreams, and chaotic relationships.
Laced with poetry and soulful songs adding to the narrative (thanks to Gulzar and Kausar Munir’s lyrics), 8 AM Metro demands a peaceful and tranquil watch. This is not a film meant for a quick, half-watch-half-do-something-else. It requires patience and the ability to sit with the characters on their exploratory journey. This quality makes 8 AM Metro a treat, visually and story-wise.
Moreover, unlike Bollywood’s same-old love stories about best friends of the opposite sex, 8 AM Metro keeps the man-woman friendship and throws the romantic arc out the window. Ira and Preetam talk about their spouses and common interests while admiring their gifts – reading and understanding deep human emotions, expanding their horizons through the written word. Exploring books and human dilemmas brings them closer, and there’s no hint of a romantic or sexual angle anywhere.
There is, however, an underlying mystery about the nature of their marriages. While Preetam seems to have an understanding wife and a near-perfect family life, Ira appears to be battling some unfulfilled desire to be heard by her husband, Umesh (Umesh Kamat). He is too busy even to wish her a happy birthday. Like most homemakers, Ira feels neglected. But Umesh isn’t a bad husband. She admits he supported Ira when she expressed her desire to light her father’s funeral pyre. And yet, something is missing, which Ira seems to find with Preetam.
It’s precisely at this point where the whole judgment angle in the movie begins to reveal itself. Ira has never met Mridula (Kalpika Ganesh), Preetam’s wife. The one time they go to his place, his family is not at home. Ira’s sister, caught in a marital trauma herself, warns Ira of the dangerous waters she’s treading into. However, before it’s too late, Ira is jolted back to reality, and soon she discovers who Preetam is.
Turns out, even in a positive way, Ira judged Preetam based on whatever she could see. In a heartwarming scene, both Ira and Preetam visit a crematorium where they witness a child being buried (as per Hindu customs, children are buried and not cremated). He breaks down, holding the ashes of what he calls his ‘4 friends’ who died in an accident. It’s only later on that this myth is busted and Ira discovers it quite painfully, as does Preetam. The make-believe world falls, and reality is laid bare, which both find hard to accept.
8 AM Metro forces you to look at grief, not only of the dead, but also of the living. The weight of unfulfilled relationships, parental trauma, and the refusal to reconcile or be present with loved ones while they are alive is crushing Ira and Preetam every day of their lives. Both the characters experience frustration over their guilt and grief of losing their loved ones when they were living. Thankfully, despite its elongated climax, the movie touches upon all aspects of grief, loss, and mental health.
Themes of suicide and anxiety are discussed as well as the importance of moving on. The audience is surprised by this twist. As an audience, you would expect adultery, extramarital affair, or a serial killer angle at this point in the story. But none of that happens. It’s complex emotions and mental health struggles to cope that are laid bare.
By the movie’s end, you understand why 8 AM Metro found a resurgence on social media; it explores inherent human loneliness so pervasive yet often brushed under the carpet, especially in the digital age.
Scores of people travel in metro trains/subways/tubes all over the world. While people stare at phones or shut the outside world with earphones, genuine human connections simply pass by them. They lose the chance to connect with other humans who exist all around them and travel with them every day. Yet, everyone is lonely because everyone chooses to live in their make-believe world, unaware of how easily it can all come crashing down if you don’t let fellow humans help you, advertently or inadvertently.
Review Courtesy of Neha Jha
Feature Image Credit to Studio99 via SensCritique