The Namesake (film)

For other uses, see Namesake (disambiguation).
The Namesake

Promotional poster
Directed by Mira Nair
Produced by Mira Nair
Written by Jhumpa Lahiri (novel)
Sooni Taraporevala
Starring Tabu
Irrfan Khan
Kal Penn
Zuleikha Robinson
Jacinda Barrett
Sebastian Roché
Sahira Nair
Ruma Guha Thakurta
Sabyasachi Chakrabarty
Supriya Devi
Music by Nitin Sawhney
Cinematography Frederick Elmes
Edited by Allyson C. Johnson
Production
company
Distributed by Fox Searchlight Pictures
Release dates
  • 2 September 2006 (2006-09-02) (Telluride)
  • 9 March 2007 (2007-03-09) (US)
  • 23 March 2007 (2007-03-23) (India)
Country United States
India
Language English
Bengali
Hindi
French
Budget $9.5 million
Box office $20.1 million

The Namesake is a 2006 film which was released in the United States on 9 March 2007, following screenings at film festivals in Toronto and New York City. It was directed by Mira Nair and is based upon the novel of the same name by Jhumpa Lahiri, who appeared in the movie. Sooni Taraporevala wrote the screenplay. The film received positive reviews from American critics.[1]

Plot

The Namesake depicts the struggles of Ashoke and Ashima Ganguli (Irrfan Khan and Tabu), two first-generation immigrants from the East Indian state of West Bengal to the United States, and their American-born children Gogol (Kal Penn) and Sonia (Sahira Nair). The film takes place primarily in Kolkata, New York City and various New York state suburbs.

The story begins as Ashoke and Ashima leave Calcutta and settle in New York City. Through a series of miscues, their son's nickname, Gogol (named after Ukrainian author Nikolai Gogol), becomes his official birth name, an event which will shape many aspects of his life. The film chronicles Gogol's cross-cultural experiences and his exploration of his Indian heritage, as the story shifts between the United States and India. Gogol starts off as a lazy, pot smoking teenager indifferent to his cultural background. He resents many of the customs and traditions his family upholds and doesn't understand his parents. After a summer trip to India before starting college at Yale, Gogol starts opening up to his culture and becomes more accepting of it. After college, Gogol changes his name to Nikhil (later shortened to Nick). He works as an architect and dates Maxine (Jacinda Barrett), a Caucasian woman from a wealthy background. Gogol falls in love with Maxine and introduces her to his parents, who struggle to understand his modern, American perspectives on dating, marriage and love. They are hesitant and guarded when meeting her. Gogol gets along with Maxine's family and feels closer to them than he does his own family. Before he goes to Ohio for a teaching apprenticeship, Ashoke tells Gogol the story of how he came up with his name. Shortly after, while Gogol is vacationing with Maxine's family, Ashoke dies. Grieving, Gogol tries to be more like what he thinks his parents want him to be and begins following cultural customs more closely. He grows distant from Maxine and eventually breaks up with her. Gogol rekindles a friendship with Moushumi (Zuleikha Robinson), the daughter of family friends. They begin dating and soon after get married. However, the marriage is short lived as Moushumi, bored with being a wife, begins having an affair with an old boyfriend from Paris. Gogol divorces Moushumi, while Ashima blames herself for pressuring Gogol to marry a fellow Bengali. Gogol returns home to help Ashima pack the house when he finds the book Ashoke gave him as a graduation present. Searching for comfort, and accepting his new life alone, Gogol finally reads the stories written by his namesake on the train home.

As well as depicting Gogol/Nikhil's experiences, the film describes the courtship and marriage of Ashima and Ashoke, and the effect of Ashoke's early death from a massive heart attack on the family. Through experiencing his father's funeral rites on the banks of the Ganges, Gogol begins to appreciate Indian culture. Ashima's decision to move on with her life, selling the suburban family home and returning to Calcutta, unifies and ends the film.

Cast

The film has cameo appearances from actor Samrat Chakrabarti, academic Partha Chatterjee (scholar), and visual artist Naeem Mohaiemen.

Development

Initially Rani Mukerji and Abhishek Bachchan were cast as the principal leads, but due to date problems, the roles went to Tabu and Kal Penn.[2]

Soundtrack

The soundtrack has varied music: Indian, Anglo-Indian (by Nitin Sawhney, influenced by Ravi Shankar's music for Pather Panchali),[3] and a French piece. One British Indian electronica piece is State of Bengal's "IC408." The ringtone from Moushumi's mobile phone is the song "Riviera Rendezvous" by Ursula 1000 from the album Kinda' Kinky; this is the same song that is played when Gogol and Moushumi first sleep together. The Indian classical pieces (performed on screen by Tabu) were sung by Mitali Banerjee Bhawmik, a New Jersey-based musician.

Critical reception

The film received favorable reviews from critics. As of 23 February 2009, the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 86% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 126 reviews.[1] Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 82 out of 100, based on 33 reviews.[4]

Top ten lists

The film appeared on several critics' top ten lists of the best films of 2007.[5]

Awards and nominations

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "The Namesake - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2009-02-23.
  2. ↑ "Why Rani, Abhishek lost out on Namesake". Rediff.com Movies. 23 March 2007.
  3. ↑ Observer Music Monthly March 2007
  4. ↑ "Namesake, The (2007): Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
  5. ↑ "Metacritic: 2007 Film Critic Top Ten Lists". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 2008-01-02. Retrieved 2008-01-05.

External links

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