Serious Men is definitely a good treat to Nawzuddin Siddiqui fans. The story revolves around father and son, in which the former desperately wants the latter to be a big personality despite all odds. Featuring Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Nassar and Aakshath Das in the lead roles, it is written by Niren Bhatt, Manu Joseph, Abhijeet Khuman, Bhavesh Mandalia and Nikhil Nair and directed by Sudhir Mishra.
A 2nd October release on Netflix, the film grips the audience from the beginning to end. Ayyan Mani (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) is an assistant of an astronomer (Nassar), who has gathered colossal details about astronomy and science by witnessing his boss’s day to day activities.
The premise of the film basically talks about the complexities of a child’s psychology and how their parents play a pivotal role in shaping a child’s mind. South Asians children are expected to be extremely obedient towards their parents and have little control over the decisions they make in life. So, what the movie is trying to tell us is that sometimes what we think is best for our children might not be exactly so. Forcing them to be someone they’re not will ultimately only bring chaos and instability. The Sudhir Mishra directorial is a good treat to the people who seek for a uniquely relatable story in movies.
The performances are the highlights and Siddiqui shines the most as always. Chemistry of father and son is also shown in an entertaining manner. Others have done a commendable job as well and each and every character has brought justice to their respective roles. The execution of the film is fine and has a balance between emotional and comedic sequences.
At last, I would like to say that all parents should give it a try as it’ll teach them to be more liberal towards their children. And, at the same time, I also recommend it to all the children as it’ll give them a perspective on why parents act the way they do. Although Serious Men is an adaptation from a book with the same time, I read somewhere that the makers have taken creative liberty in the film and changed some situations.
