From The Last Hurrah to Salam Venky (11 0f 2023)

Last hurrah' means  a final act, performance, or effort.

The Last Hurrah written by  Shrikant Murthy is inspired by the true story of the young chess player Kolavennu Venkatesh, who had Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and passed away in 2004. The book of 147 pages was published by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in 2006. 

Shrikant Murthy ; Beginning his career as a Probation Officer in the Bombay Children's Aid Society where he currently holds a senior position, Shri Murthy was required to do innumerable case studies of lost, run-away and the delinquent children admitted in Remand Homes and other child welfare agencies and submit written reports to the Juvenile Courts. Going down the memory lane, he has brought out this collection.

The Last Hurrah vividly recounts a true, stirring saga of a mother and son. It is a dedication to K. Venkatesh, a young chess player affected with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy died at the age of 25.

The story of Venkatesh and his mother aptly titled The Last Hurrah is a poignant tale of mother and son duo who under the most adverse circumstances, lead a very meaningful life and eternally strived to serve some little purpose. In the process, both grew beyond themselves. This biography of Venkatesh will be an immense source of inspiration to readers, young and old not only in India but all over the world.

Based on true story this film dose what it was suposed to do it makes you sob; Directed by Revathi, reminds of her (Bottakalam - Revathi and Shane Nigam). This movie is said to be curated and dramatic and why not or it would have been a documentary film. We have dialogues from other hind film like:

• Zindagi Bhadi honi chahiye, lambi nahi, from Anand is Venki's favourate film. 
• Kal ho na ho,
• Palat
• Muskiloke Pahad - not seen a real mountain.

For anyone it is a worst plight to see your son  die when he is 24 years of age. This is an incredible, earnest, heartfelt,  true story, of the son who wanted to die sooner, so he could donate his organs, but unfortunately could not. 

Kajol with her eyes displays all the complex emotions she's going through within extraordinarily. No other actress in Bollywood can cry the way she does, her strength is emotions.

She enacts Sujatha, the mother who leaves her husband's abode when he refuses to treat their son as he's a dead investment in his own words. She faces a lot of hardships in raising a terminally ill son whose life is short but in turn of events, she accepts his incoming death and promises to make her son's life larger by fighting for his right to die with dignity, single-handedly taking care of Venky. He was at home when suddenly, his condition got serious. He's rushed to the hospital where Dr Shekhar (Rajeev Khandelwal), who has been treating him for years, realizes that Venky's end is near. Even Venky is aware of it and he asks  mother to fulfil his last wish. He wants to go for euthanasia and then donate his organs to those in need. In case he dies naturally, some of his organs will not be worth donating. He doesn't want such a situation to arise. Sujata, obviously, disapproves of his plan because as a mother, she can't agree to this idea. But soon, Sujata finds merit in Venky's suggestion. She agrees and decides to go to Court, seeking mercy killing for her child. But in India, euthanasia is illegal and it can result in a long, courtroom battle. What happens next forms the rest of the film. Vishal Jethwa acts good in the movie but his acting feels more methodical than natural. Aahana Kumra as the Journalist is the biggest plus point for the movie, after Kajol. Her entry in the movie brings the right amount of excitement in the movie. She's superb in all her scenes. Rahul Bose, Rajeev Khandelwal, Priyamani, Prakash Raj, Anant Mahadevan, etc. All acted good but again methodical, didn't feel natural and connected with me. The girl who played Nandu is another brilliant part of the film. Loved her natural acting, same goes for the girl who played Venkatesh's sister.

Kajol and Vishal Jethwa's drama sets the tone right for an emotionally charged tale from the word go. And to its advantage, it does not let go of the momentum that is built early on. From the start, the viewer is made aware of the path the film is headed towards and that it won't be a happy ending of the conventional sort. But Salaam Venky builds up the expectations, turns them around, and treats us with a pleasant climax. Apart from its into-the-face dramatic and tear-jerking moments, it also gives us plenty of reasons to smile about. The movie is not on a one-way track to drain the viewers of all emotions but tempers the journey with light-hearted moments and holds our hand through an optimistic ending.

The movie sets off at a slow pace and builds the mood. Revathy knows that in order to invest in her story, the audience will need to relate to the characters and their world first. Thus, she uses only a few locations and lets her actors do their job. In fact, the entire film has a seemingly low production budget because the locations are just a handful. The viewers get immersed in the struggles of a terminally ill patient and the deep turmoil the mother and the family are in while they fulfill Venky's last wish of euthanasia. Salaam Venky presents a deeply humane subject.  Don't watch the movie thinking its light hearted film it will break you.