My First Movie in India: The Paradise, Flying Confetti and an Item Number Played Twice

My first moviegoing experience in India was The Paradise in Hyderabad, and everything I had been told about going to the cinema here turned out to be true. I could not follow the dialogue, so this is less a review of the film and more an account of a night that included confetti, chanting, and a theater that stopped the movie to run an item number back from the beginning.

A friend surprised me with a shirt to wear to the film, which was a really nice touch. The only option available was the film without subtitles, but I had heard so much about moviegoing in India that I had to experience it anyway. I will share briefly what I could understand and what I could see, then get to the experience itself, because that is really what I wanted to talk about.

Nani looks the biggest I have seen him in The Paradise

Let me start by saying Nani never disappoints me when it comes to his acting and his physicality. In The Paradise, he is probably the biggest I have seen him, muscle wise, and he looked fantastic. You could tell he put a lot of work into this, including the work of getting things down for the action scenes.

From the trailer alone, I noticed a mix of martial arts in the action. I was seeing Wing Chun, I was seeing Capoeira, I was seeing different styles, and I was excited to see them while wondering how they would fit in. I kept thinking, why is he doing Wing Chun? It looks awesome, though. Having seen the film, I would say it did not really tell me why we got those specific styles, but I think it did enough to show where they came from that I could say, okay, that kind of makes sense, without giving too much of the plot away.

A friend who went with me told me a couple of plot points and a couple of things I might have needed translated, though I did not want to bother him too much. Beyond that, I could pick up some of what was going on. Visually, the film is stunning. The cinematography was excellent, there were some really great shots, and they made Nani look very good.

The slow motion and nonstop music are what I would have done differently

There are a couple of things I probably would have done differently. I love a good slow motion shot, but when there is too much of it, it takes away the gravitas for me, and there was quite a bit of it here. I see that a lot in other films, and it can slow down the plot. If you cut out all the slow motion, how long is the movie? It seemed to me that it would have been a lot shorter. I will not harp on it, but that was my thought.

For the first half, it took me a while to get into the pacing, because it was a bit of a slow roll getting up to speed. I will not say much about the characters, since I could not understand the dialogue and was really there for the experience.

At some point I started to wonder whether music had been playing for the entire film, so I decided to clock it. Once I started paying attention, I could not find a single spot without music. The music was fantastic, a star on its own, especially in the item numbers. But I want a breather sometimes. For me, the lack of music can set the mood better than the use of it, and I would have handled that a little differently.

Why I still think The Paradise is worth checking out

I could tell a lot of work went into this film, and that Nani specifically put a lot of work in. I do not want to be unfair in my opinion of some things when I could not understand the language, so I will leave judgements on the plot and dialogue to someone else.

I do think it is worth checking out. If you like Nani, go see it and decide for yourself. If you are into the visuals and the dancing, go see it.

The Hyderabad crowd at The Paradise lived up to the hype

We went to what I think is a single screen theater, and I rode there on the back of a motorcycle, which I really enjoyed. It was crowded outside, with a huge standing figure of Nani that was probably 30 or 40 feet tall, maybe taller. There was a DJ, there was music, and the vibe was wild. This was the show on the 23rd, which I understand was something like a fan show or premiere type screening, so the energy was high.

Getting in was very crowded, and I was fine with that. I was there for the experience. As I put it, "if I get trampled, hey, at least I go out having fun." There were metal detectors at the front, and getting up the stairs was tight. I did not have to throw any elbows, and while I got some pushes, people were mostly all right.

Once we were inside, the crowd got a little rowdy and started rushing the entrance by the metal detectors. I have been in that situation once before, at a concert years ago, when thousands of people behind me rushed the gate and anyone next to it had no choice but to go through or get trampled. Compared to that, this was a smaller crowd, so it was not scary for me. People wore shirts made specifically with Nani on the back and writing in Telugu I could not read. Someone would lead a chant, someone across the room would yell the rest, and others would join in. I had no idea what they were saying, so I stayed quiet.

Confetti everywhere the moment the banner came up

The chairs were quite comfortable, big seats that lean back a little. My friend next to me told me, "Yeah, you watch when the banner comes up, that's when the crowd's going to go nuts." So I waited for that moment. Before it, there were a couple of trailers, including one for a film I think I saw a teaser for a while back and am excited about too.

As soon as that banner came up, the crowd went wild. People had told me about the confetti, and it was no joke: cut up newspaper was flying all over the place. When Nani appeared, the crowd erupted again. Everybody was cool and just enjoying themselves, and the whole thing was a lot of fun.

Intermission brought great popcorn and a flat soda

About halfway through, we had an intermission. In the States, we do not really do those anymore. Back in the day, you would get your popcorn and drink and come back, but that has faded even for long films, which is a shame because you could use a break.

I had some folks with me who really helped me out. I used the bathroom and got popcorn and a soda. The soda was flat, and I was not too impressed with it, but the popcorn was great, and my friend's cheese popcorn was really good.

The theater ran the item number back from the beginning

The part that blew me away was the item number. I enjoyed it as much as the movie itself. The dancing and choreography were really good, and Nani is always great with that kind of thing. People got up, ran to the front and danced while confetti flew everywhere. I probably would have joined in if I had been near the aisle, but I was stuck in the middle of a row, so I stayed put and filmed a little of it.

When the item number ended, the screen started acting strange, blacking out while people screamed. Then I realized they were running it back. We stopped in the middle of the film to play the whole item number again from the beginning, and the crowd went wild all over again, with confetti everywhere. We do not do that in the States. I have been to rowdy screenings there when a film is really good, but never one where they just decide to show a scene again.

Afterwards, I went back and just absorbed it all. I know I did not say a lot about the film, because I do not think it is fair to judge it without understanding the language. But I was not going to let that stop me. The experience was fantastic, and I would love to come back and see another film here.

Do you think heavy slow motion and nonstop music add to a film like The Paradise, or would a few quieter moments serve it better?