If you have ever lived or at present are living in those particular parts of the cities where electric poles, hanging clutter of wires and big power transformers are installed at just a few feet away from your house or balconies then KATIYABAAZ is exactly talking about your own city and you are sure going to enjoy its realistic narration a lot, without any doubt.
In other words, this is not a film/documentary made on a realistic subject but reality itself, featuring all real existing people who are still there fighting with their individual tough lives in various regions. Basically talking about the city of Kanpur in Uttar Pardesh, the story actually belongs to almost every city of India struggling with the uneven power supply and its erratic cost. Revolving around Loha Singh, the brave electrician, Ritu Maheshwari, an honest government officer and an opportunist local politician along with the common people, KATIYABAAZ doesn't follow the routine format of a documentary with a voice over explaining the situation. But defying the set norm, it impressively presents the helpless plight of the people in an unusual yet entertaining manner wherein they themselves become the good and bad characters of the film depicting the serious situation.
In reality, yes there are a certain section of people who do it deliberately breaking the law, still in many cases, the common man is forced to opt for 'Bijlee Chori" unwillingly, after getting fed up from the faulty supply system and their disrespectable interaction with the consumers. Resulting in many KATIYABAAZS in the city, who are well trained in switching illegal wires (called Kaitya) stealing the electricity into several houses of a locality diverting it straight from the mail pole. Taking up a relevant and burning issue, the director duo Fahad Mustafa & Deepti Kakkar build up a great drama explaining the scenario through all real life characters playing themselves, which is both thought provoking as well as entertaining like a typical Hindi film full of tension, action, drama and comedy too with the help of many commonly used cuss words.
The brilliant execution particularly makes you enjoy all the well- crafted sequences of Loha Singh (who surprisingly acts superbly). But at the same time also makes you think about the difficult life pattern of the lady IAS officer who is expected to give sufficient time to both her duty as well as the family within the available 24 hours of a day. At times one does feel awkward that probably they have shot all those official & personal scenes of the key characters with a prior preparation and instructions. Yet the thought doesn't let you find the faults and one enjoys the less than 90 minutes of its duration thoroughly.
In short, KATIYABAAZ is our own slice of life which deserves to be watched essentially like one of those exceptional attempts taking you into the personal lives of few real people who are all related to the city's power supply conditions in their own distinctive ways. The documentary also needs to be seen as a must since it gives you a chance to sharpen or enhance your regular movie watching taste, which certainly isn't being served well with all the routine, predictable and mediocre Hindi films offered every Friday. To encourage you further, if you loved watching SUPERMAN OF MALEGAON a few years back then KATIYABAAZ is one step ahead than the great documentary, though not related with our Hindi cinema in any direct way.
So with thanks for the presenters who made it possible for this film to at least reach the selected multiplexes, do watch the outstanding attempt if its being played in your city by making an extra effort, because your movie watching passion desperately needs to be provided with such well-made stuff more often.
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