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I have never been a fan of the horror genre—in both books and movies. I know friends and YouTubers who love reading/watching horror. They have always made it sound so fascinating. There is a booktuber (@paperbackdreams) whose fondness for horror is particularly palpable. She gets visibly excited and happy while taking about the horror books she has enjoyed. I love watching her videos and hearing her talk about all these scary stories. But somehow being scared, with goosebumps up my arms, wasn’t a state of being I was comfortable with.

That changed when I started watching movies based on Stephen King’s novels on Netflix during the lockdown. The movies were creepy and made me cover my eyes and ears at least a dozen times during our weekly movie night—but I was hooked. Now, I seek horror recommendations and I’m determined to discover writers other than King who will make my skin crawl. Turns out, that ‘goosebumps up your spine’ is a pretty fun feeling.

I’ve also kind of made it my mission to devour King’s books; the endings of many of his movies, I hear, are quite different from how the books conclude. Not satisfied with how some movies have ended, I figured I’d read ‘The Shining’ and ‘Pet Sematary’ to get some closure. But, unfortunately, I couldn’t find the books at any of the bookstores in Kathmandu and the only one I could lay my hands on was ‘Elevation’. 

Elevation is a tale of Scott Carey and how he ends up uniting his town folks, while dealing with a baffling personal issue and his own prejudices as well as those of his community. It’s a story of an ordinary man, in extraordinary circumstances, who chooses to rise above hatred and value the people in his life.

Scott is suffering from a mysterious ailment. He is losing weight but doesn’t look any different. Every day he is getting lighter and lighter while taking up the same amount of space he always did. He doesn’t know what will happen if he steadily keeps losing weight. Scott also has another problem. He is engaged in a low-key battle with one of his neighbors, who happen to be a lesbian couple—Deidre McComb and Missy Donaldson. He is sure Deidre’s dog is doing its business on his lawn. She refuses to believe it and so he is fixated in proving her wrong.

Generally, King’s books can be used as doorstoppers. Not that we should use books for that but you get the drift. Elevation, on the other hand, is a novella. And it’s not horror. As disappointing as that was when I read the blurb, the book is now one of my favorites. It’s unlike King’s regular style but he is a skillful storyteller and, turns out, he doesn’t need the help of horror to grip your heart.

Elevation is a charming tale of the way our biases run deep, why it’s important to get over our narrow-mindedness, and how we can find friendship and love in the unlikeliest of places.

Fiction

Elevation

Stephen King

Published: 2019

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Language: English

Pages: 132, Paperback

“Murder a man, and you feel responsible for his life—possessive, even. You know more about him than his father and mother; they knew his fetus, but you know his purpose. Only you can complete the story of his life.”

I first read these lines in Aravind Adiga’s 2008 novel “The White Tiger”, back in 2015. I was shocked by the amount of brutality the book offered, in the simplest ways possible. I knew then and there that this Man Booker Prize winning novel would be adapted into a movie. I knew the possibilities would be huge and if the said movie carried even half the book’s intensity, it would be a hit.

Little did I expect that a newcomer in Bollywood would get the most important role of Balram Halwai aka Munna, the protagonist. In the movie “The White Tiger”, 26-year-old actor Adarsh Gourav gets his debut lead role and to justify his casting, gives the performance of a lifetime.

Balram, born among the underclass in rural Laxmangarh, is told as a child that he is a white tiger—someone who comes only once in a generation. A bright student, Balram’s dream of completing his education is cut short when he is forced to work at the village teahouse to clear his family debt.

But the ambitious Balram will not give up. He will not be caged in the ‘chicken coop’ forever, unlike his father and brother and rest of the family. He will break the shackles of poverty to cross to the brighter side of India— from the utter darkness his people currently inhabit.

To realize his ambitions, Balram decides to be a driver for Ashok (Rajkummar Rao) and Pinky (Priyanka Chopra Jonas), an America-returned couple. Ashok is also the son of Laxmangarh’s notorious landlord ‘The Stork’ (Mahesh Manjrekar), to whom Balram’s family is indebted. A cunning Balram connives his way into Ashok’s house and then into his life, tying his master’s faith with himself.

Told in flashbacks, the film’s narration tells the harrowing tale of Balram and his road to entrepreneurship. The path for a ‘servant’ to become a ‘master’ is not as clean and straight as shown in orthodox Bollywood movies. In The White Tiger, the audience sees what the struggle of crossing over means for those from the subclass. While doing so, the morality of almost every character in the film is questioned, leaving no one unscathed. This way, the film explores the dark sides of human nature.

Directed and adapted for the screen with some improvisations by Ramin Bahrani, the film relies heavily on writer Adiga’s wordplay. Adiga’s storytelling is dark, unapologetic and unforgiving. The same essence has been captured in the film, including through the cinematography, which catches the throbbing pulse of the story and never leaves it. Looking at the 2hrs 5mins run time, one might think the film is lengthy but this is one of those gritty slow-burners that will keep you entertained through and through.

Yes, the screenplay, cinematography, and direction are exceptional. But in all fairness, no one deserves as much accolade as the actor Adarsh Gourav. His character of Balram has so many layers of personalities, embodying him is itself a challenge. And to do that while you put some of the most experienced actors in the backseat, both literally and figuratively, is no small feat. Gourav embraces Balram’s life as his own and grows with him on his journey from a servant to an entrepreneur.

Who should watch it?

The White Tiger, as a standalone movie, is a brilliant piece of work. But honestly, if you’ve read the book, you might find it still does not match the intensity. Not to take away anything from the movie though. Adiga’s book is a masterpiece that comes once in a generation. So if you have not read the book, chances are that you will pit The White Tiger against some of the best movies you’ve watched. And even if you read it, the cinematic representation is thoroughly enjoyable as well.

Rating: 4 stars

Genre: Crime/Drama

Cast: Adarsh Gourav, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Rajkummar Rao

Director: Ramin Bahrani

Run time: 2hrs 5mins

In the past few years, we have definitely made some progress on LGBT issues, with many countries legalizing same-sex marriage and guaranteeing them equal rights. But it’s one thing to have laws and mandates in paper and quite another to have them followed. In conservative societies, people’s attitude to gays and lesbians isn’t going to change just because homosexuality isn’t a punishable offense anymore.

This is where stories can help. Fiction, I believe, makes us empathetic. It exposes us to a horde of characters and experiences that we otherwise wouldn’t have come across. A good story can put things in perspective and instigate change. ‘A Very, Very Bad Thing’ by Jeffery Self is, in that regard, an important book. The YA novel is short, has a simple premise and forces us to confront our hidden biases.

Marley, the 17-year-old protagonist, introduces himself as a “snarky gay kid from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, watching life through the disconnected Instagram filter of my generation and judging every minute of it.” With supportive parents and an equally snarky and cynical best friend, Audrey, he seems to be getting on just fine. Then Marley meets Christopher and it’s love at first sight—for both of them. 

But Christopher’s father is the famed televangelist Reverend Jim Anderson who is actually tied to a movement called “pray-the-gay-away”. He and his wife have tried everything to “fix” Christopher and they aren’t ever going to give up. There is no question of accepting Christopher for who he is.

The story is basically about these two gay boys trying to be themselves and enjoy life a little in a hostile environment. It's also an apt depiction of how societal constraints can sometimes lead to mistakes and mishaps that can never be set right.

Ever since I read A Very, Very Bad Thing, I’ve been wanting to recommend it to everyone I meet—avid readers, occasional readers, and even those who have to be coaxed or challenged into reading. Stories like these are imperative to make us understand that every person has a preference that isn’t necessarily governed by how they were born, and that every person should be allowed to live the life they want.

When I was at the bookstore, I randomly picked up A Very, Very Bad Thing and read the blurb out loud. A staff who had come to chat with me made a disgusted face and told me I’d be better off not reading “things like that”. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that her reaction is still how majority of public feel about LGBT in Nepal. Many will behave like they understand and accept homosexuality but it’s just a façade. It’s important to change people’s mindset for real so that the world becomes a safer, more loving space for our children. A Very, Very Bad Thing and stories like that are crucial in bringing about the radical transformation we desperately need.   

Fiction

A Very, Very Bad Thing

Jeffery Self

Published: 2017

Publisher: Push, an imprint of Scholastic Inc. Publishers

Language: English

Pages: 225, Hardcover

What aspects of a movie draw your attention from the very beginning? The casting? The opening scene? Cinematography? Acting? The introduction of characters? Have you ever had an instance when around 15 minutes down the line, you realize the film’s background score is so good that you re-watch from the beginning again just to pay more attention to it? Oh the perks of modern technology.

Although background scores and non-choreographed original sound tracks (OSTs) have a major hand in making what’s playing on the screen relevant, most of the time they are barely noticed unless they really stand out. The 2018 Tamil language crime-thriller “Vanjagar Ulagam” (“World of crafty people”) was a surprise though. It came as a random suggestion and became one of the best movies I have watched this year, mostly because of its music. In fact, it was not even on my review list initially but replaced a major Bollywood star’s release in this column. Thanks mostly to its music.

Vangajar Ulagam’s story revolves around Shanmugam alias Shaam (Ciby Bhuvana Chandran), who one day wakes up from a drunk stupor to find that he is accused of murdering his neighbor, Mythili (Chandini Tamilarasan). Shaam has no alibi and nothing to establish his whereabouts on the murder night. But his co-worker, investigative journalist Vishagan (Vishagan Vanangamudi), believes that the murder has a bigger backstory and is the ploy of a sinister criminal called Sampath/Durai Raj (Guru Somasundaram), who is also wanted by cops for multiple crimes. Thus begins the cat-and-mouse story of journalists, police officers and criminals all chasing each other throughout the film.

The plot of Vangajar Ulagam is relatively new, well-written and the screenplay holds the film together till the end. Writer/director Manoj Beedha uses a relatively unknown cast in lead roles and yet manages to create a cult classic-like vibe with the unsophisticated proceedings. Without the infamous, larger-than-life actors with “star” in their prefixes, the film relies on acting talents of the cast and the elegantly simple filmmaking instead of gaudy gimmicks.

Now coming back to the movie’s best part, the music by Sam C.S. literally stands out. With only three OSTs in the whole film and the rest as background score, sound design in Vangajar Ulagam is phenomenal. There’s a lot of Carnatic influence in the scores, accompanied by electronic music, mainly dubstep. Then there’s an addition of modern jazz and some really mean metal sounds. Combined with excellent cinematography, the music creates a cinematic experience that is mystical and trance-like. The film stays true to all genres of music it uses. Instead of the emulated facsimiles of rock, metal and jazz that mainstream Indian cinema usually creates, the music in Vangajar Ulagam is raw, punchy and hits you hard.

Another stand-out along with the music is the performance of Guru Somasundaram as Sampath/Durai Raj: the actor playing an eccentric criminal mastermind with a dark secret is convincing.

His physical appearance, dialogue delivery and facial expressions all align to give a realistic touch to the persona he embodies. Without any disrespect to other actors, Guru’s Sampath/Durai Raj alone seems like the inspiration behind the trippy background music.

If only the climax had been better the film would probably have gotten more popularity. Because despite the film’s chances of becoming a cult classic and a major twist in the end, including a shocking revelation, the climax seems to lack the intensity expected of a film that is consistently captivating for the most part.

Who should watch it?

This is a film we recommend not only to thriller movie fans but also to music lovers. Vangajar Ulagam is a treat to watch and listen to. This is one Netflix film that should come with a “must wear headphones” recommendation because the music hits you hard.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Genre: Crime/thriller

Actors: Ciby Bhuvana Chandran, Guru Somasundaram

Director: Manoj Beedha

Run time: 2hrs 2mins