The White Tiger is a drama directed by Ramin Bahrani. The film was produced by Mukul Deora and Ramin Bahrani, and executive produced by Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Prem Akkaraju, and Ava DuVernay. The White Tiger’s musical score is produced by Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurrians and the cinematography is by Paolo Carnera, and editing by Tim Streeto. An adaptation of Aravind Adiga’s 2008 novel of the same name, is the story about Balram, who comes from a poor Indian village and uses his wit and cunning to escape from poverty. I’m not sure if the message is a good one or not but the movie was great!
In 2010, entrepreneur Balram Halwai (Adarsh Gourav) emails Chinese premier Wen Jiabao, requesting a meeting, and relating his life story. He states his belief that the Indian underclass is trapped in a perpetual state of servitude, like chickens in a chicken coop. In India, there are only two classes, upper and under.
As a child in Laxmangarh, Balram is offered a scholarship to a school in Delhi because of his advanced academics. He is told that he is a “white tiger,” someone born only once in a generation. However when Balram’s father (Satish Kumar) is unable to pay off village landlord ‘the Stork’ (Mahesh Manjrekar), he is forced by his grandmother to work in the village’s tea stall, never to return to school. Balram’s father dies from tuberculosis after his family was unable to get him treated by a doctor.
As an adult, Balram aspires to become a chauffeur for the Stork’s son Ashok (Rajkummar Rao), who has returned from the United States with his Jackson Heights-raised wife Pinky (Priyanka Chopra Jonas). Balram has his grandmother (Kamlesh Gill) sponsor his driving lessons, with the promise of sharing his chauffeur salary. Balram is hired as the Stork family’s second driver, but is also given menial tasks to complete and is otherwise mistreated. Balram is kept loyal by the threat of him and his entire family being murdered if he were to conduct a betrayal.
The White Tiger is a long and complex story of love, faith, betrayal, murder, and drama that takes you on quite the journey as it turns to the dark side. Balram’s story is suspenseful and somewhat mind-blowing. As he makes changes, according to his forever life-changing positions, his mindset also changes. Balram fights to live by his principles but finds that his principles must change if he’s ever to gain the position and respect he seeks. I feel The White Tiger is a “must-see” and is not for children. The acting is brilliant, it’s the message I’m concerned about. You’ll have to see the film to make your own decision. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 92% based on 162 reviews, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The website’s critic’s consensus reads: “Well-acted and beautifully made, The White Tiger distills the strengths of its source material into a grimly compelling drama.” The movie appeared in the Netflix top 10 lists in 64 countries and was viewed by an estimated 27 million households. FYI: This is Adarsh Gourav’s first leading role, along with Priyanka Chopra and Rajkummar Rao. The White Tiger is streaming on Netflix — Check It Out!
[THE WHITE TIGER is Oscar-nominated at the 93rd Academy Awards for Best Adapted Screenplay — Totaling 1 Nomination]
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