Eye of The (White) Tiger

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Cows mulling on the road. People. Strings of marigold flowers. Cheesy ‘Indian-sounding’ background music. Multiple shots of the slums. Trains. A toothless beggar woman smiling at the camera. These are a few standard tropes that play out in almost every film about India made by a non-Indian director, including the infamous Slumdog Millionaire. I call these ‘tropes’ because even though they are a part of daily Indian life, you hardly see these tropes affect everyday life in our society and country (except maybe for the cow). These are still a part of the outsider’s view of India. Only an insider knows the issues that actually plague the country; poverty, caste, class, patriarchy, and the evergreen rich vs poor. The White Tiger, directed by Ramin Bahrani, despite the standard tropes, chooses to focus on the latter, and that’s what makes this film stand apart.

The White Tiger, based on the Booker prize-winning book written by Aravind Adiga, is a story about how Balram, a lowly but ambitious driver, rises ranks to become the owner of his own car-driving company. Part fantastical, part satirical, and part horrifying, Balram’s story is deeply engrossing all the way and also thought-provoking; is this what the domestic help at home feels? Is there anything we can do about it? Is our unnatural skepticism of them justified? Does there exist any skepticism from their side, and if not, why?

(Image Courtesy: imdb.com)

This simple premise is propelled to a whole new level by the filmmaking, beginning with the dialogues. I generally avoid Booker & Pulitzer prize-winning books simply because the ones I’ve read have been long, boring, and eventually, pointless. I wish I hadn’t avoided reading The White Tiger when covers of the books were plastered everywhere, because there are some fantastic lines & analogies in the film. Also what’s interesting is that none of the characters, barring Balram, his masters Pinky & Ashok, have names; they’re all referred to by names of animals. The cinematography is brilliant, with familiar but poignant shots of the country; brownie points to one long shot filmed in the main road of Old Delhi, in which the incessant sounds of everyday life reflect the storm in Balram’s mind. The screenplay is peppered with visuals that are hauntingly graphic, but at no point do they seem superfluous. In a film about contrasts, the visual department gets the color right.

But the biggest asset of TWT has to be the protagonist, Balram, played with convincing ease by Adarsh Gourav. Gourav gets under the skin of Balram with such ease and finesse that it is astonishing. With the able support of his body language and dialogue delivery, Gourav puts his face into full play; all it takes is one smile for his expression to go from congenial to sinister. His swagger as a master is suitably justified for his helplessness as a servant/driver. They say a white tiger comes only once a generation. Gourav is certainly deserving of this moniker since he seems to be the kind of actor that comes once a generation. Priyanka Chopra-Jonas is perfectly suited as the Indian American Pinky madam, who acts as both an educator and a catalyst in Balram’s life (in an absolutely unromantic way, may I add). It is odd to see Rajkummar Rao speak in an American accent initially, but really, how many more Chanderi/Bareilly/random UP-MP roles will he do?

(Image Courtesy: imdb.com)

The flaws in the film are as visible as stripes on a real-life white tiger. There are some random sequences in the film that seem to have been added just to increase the pretentious quotient of it all. The film is good when there are pure Hindi and pure English dialogues, but rather odd when one character asks questions in Hindi and the other responds in English.


With a central theme of India of light vs India of dark, the film seems to be an ironic release for 26 Jan known for the parade where all light steals the display and dark is relegated to the side. Wanted to sound deep but now that sounds stupid. Anyway, all in all, TWT makes for a gripping & entertaining watch. Block two hours of your life, put on your headphones, and watch the tiger. This tiger is on the prowl, and I won’t blame you if you become the prey!