00:00Some films resonate differently depending on who you are when you watch them.
00:04On Tamasha's 10th anniversary, it is easy to say that it's a film about conformity, about selfhood
00:11and about enduring love that people have admired or critiqued but repeatedly returned to.
00:16Welcome to Aged Like Fine Wine or Spoilt Like Milk, where we discuss and revisit cult films
00:32to ask the only important question that matters.
00:35Has time been kind or has it just exposed their cracks?
00:39Tamasha flopped at the box office, gained a cult status through streaming and became
00:45a favourite for many cinephiles and now exists in this murky space between underrated masterpiece
00:52and Imtiaz Ali at his most indulgent.
00:56So, where does the film stand now?
00:58From the start, Tamasha dazzles with its interesting structure, whether it is the story within a
01:04story or whether it is the theatrics of it all.
01:07Quite signature to Imtiaz Ali with films like Chamkeela, but this was quite daring for mainstream
01:13Bollywood back then.
01:15Rather than a linear coming-of-age, Tamasha presents time as layered and co-existent
01:21between childhood, fantasy and adult life.
01:27Simultaneously, Tamasha indulges in yet critiques the idea of romanticised memory.
01:33Wade's childhood stories and Corsica expedition are enchanting but they are also selective reconstructions
01:41of the past, showing how nostalgia can trap creativity and perception as much as liberate it.
01:48Corsica too can be read as a critique of Bollywood's long-standing fetishisation of European landscapes
01:55as spaces of liberation and finding yourself.
01:58We see Wade in the three mirrors, talking to his robot self, his clown self and the self stuck
02:05in the middle.
02:06Although Wade isn't just repulsed by conformity, he is also driven by the pressure to be exceptional.
02:13His rebellion is thus the collapse of two competing performances.
02:17His internal conflict though is confined to convincing himself to pursue his passion.
02:22The actual struggle of pursuing and performing the craft, something that every artist grapples
02:28with, is not quite there in Tamasha.
02:30Wade's narratives serve as rehearsals in truth and empathy, forcing him to confront his identity.
02:37The film, in subtle ways, also critiques the structural discouragement of non-conformist
02:43art in India.
02:44The film's gendered blind spots are clear as well.
02:48We never see Tara's professional or personal life with the same depth or interiority.
02:53Here to Badi Sad is one of the only places we see her life unfold.
02:58Although, when Tara realises Wade isn't the man she fell for, she rejects him, flipping the
03:04usual waiting heroine trope on its head, instead of just accepting him for his flaws.
03:09Wade quitting his job, convincing his father and following his passion to start from scratch
03:14is a vibrant tale of redemption.
03:17And for many ardent fans of Tamasha, it is not realistic but that is exactly why they find
03:23it cathartic.
03:24To witness someone being able to, even if in a movie.
03:29Despite Tamasha flopping at the box office, OTT proved to be a powerful catalyst, allowing
03:35repeated viewing and reflection, giving audiences time to catch subtleties they missed in theatres
03:41or experience the film for the first time at their own pace.
03:46Even its structural or artistic flaws contribute to its commentary on imperfect people and stories
03:53that still deserve to be told.
03:56At 10 years old, Tamasha has truly aged like fine wine.
03:59By finding a rare middle ground between cinephilic complexity and emotional accessibility.
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