Avinash Patalay "Welcome to Sajjanpur" is a revival of times on the lines of Malgudi Days and the flavour of of Hrishikesh Mukhejee & Basu Chatterjee. The fictitious village comprises of characters very humane, easily identifiable and oozing with simplicity (well, not quite!). The narrative is extremely smooth and carries you with the flow. Shyam Benegal attempts an unexplored territory and once again he proves what a versatile director he is. With "Welcome to Sajjanpur" Shyam Benegal to a certain degree incorporates commercial elements into his style yet retaining the flavour of parallel cinema. All the characters seem hand-picked as they are perfectly suited to the "T". Every actor gets adequate space as per the demands necessitated by the character. It seemed only Divya Dutta's character/ role was not fleshed out / elaborated (and her participation in the end was kind of coming). In the times of heavy-weights & escapism cinema, "Welcome to Sajjanpur" manages to command a foothold in its own rights. Don't miss this movie at any costs.

Sambit Dattachaudhuri Welcome To Sajjanpur comes from visionary director Shyam Benegal. It stars Shreyas Talpade, Amrita Rao, Ravi Kishan, Ila Arun and a whole host of others. Benegal, popularly known for his parallel films, with Welcome To Sajjanpur, shifts to a comedy/parallel film. The touch of realism/naturalism in terms of social and political conditions is unmistakable in this film, and more often than not, it is the base of it's happenings.The most flashy thing in Welcome To Sajjanpur comes even before it's opening credits. The UTV Spot Boy banner. From then on, everything about the film is primitive. It's setting. 'Some' village which was once called 'Durjan'pur, but was renamed by Nehru himself to Sajjanpur. It's people. Mostly uneducated. There is a man who portrays a doctor in the film, but he appears in a grand total of one scene. There are the numerous bai's and mausi's, and Ramsingh's and Ramkumar's (among the numerous Ram's whom the narrator speaks of in the introduction, while brushing his teeth with a twig). The comes in the superstitions. I shall only speak of the one that says a girl must get married to a 'kukur' (yes, a dog) because she is, well, unlucky (or whatever one calls it when translated into primitive, religious Hindi. Then comes the political state of things. It's election time. There is a eunuch (acted brilliantly by Ravi Jhankal) running for it, along with your gang of gangster-type people who roam about on motorcycles with their 'mamaji's' sitting behind them, carrying a rifle. Etcetera etcetera..Shreyas Talpade does well as the film's lead. The narrative, always having a comedic spark to it, does not disappoint. The acting is top class. Ila Arun, Yashpal Sharma and Ravi Jhankal are priceless. Also the man who plays the Subedar (damn, i forgot his name). The songs are mediocre. Bheeni bheeni's picturisation is done very well, with what one can only call a dream sequence. Aadmi azad hain acts as the revolutionary (comedy) song, as does Munni ki baari (yes, it was sung after Jhankal's Munni bai won in the election). Kunal Kapoor makes a nice guest appearance.You wouldn't miss anything if you do not see Welcome To Sajjanpur. It's a decent watch though, which introduces you to certain bits and pieces of primitive Indian thought and action. 6/10.

kamskans A wonderful movie with a wonderful script,screenplay and acting. This film is set in rural India and is based on the life of a letter writer in a land called Sajjanpur. The problems he faces because of his writing and how he utilizes his ability to write to woo his love forms the crux of the story. A thoroughly enjoyable film simply for the sheer comic sense that is filled in the movie. You will literally fall in love with Mahadev played wonderfully well by Shreyas Talpade and he is one actor for the future. Sometimes it is a bit hard to understand the local slang but when the movie finishes you will really have a feeling of having been to rural India and enjoyed life with them. The film also addresses certain issues like widow remarriage,Eunuchs rights etc but not in a serious way. Don't miss rare gems like these go watch this flick now.Shyam Benegal you rock man. We need more directors like you !

nishantkyal I went to see this movie after hearing some good reviews but still doubtful if it was going to be worth the while. The movie started and I knew I was in for a treat. A must watch if you liked Malgudi days that used to air on Doordarshan long back. The focus of the movie is the innocence floating in the village air but it also makes a statement about the superstitions, corruption and some other prevalent evils, though subtly and in a somewhat comic way. The movie doesn't mean to make a moral statement in any way, just tells a story and leaves it to the educated audience to become aware. The music is sweet and I added it to my play list as soon as I got back. Quite a treat to watch!