The Extraordinary Adventures of a Radiant Fakir

Cinema Wednesdays - Alexandre Wälti

Dreams extend reality, amplify it, or sometimes make it less harsh. They can also point toward a life goal that we can rely on with peace of mind. Two sentences that capture the essence of Ken Scott’s film. A director who has built a cultural bridge between Bollywood and Hollywood conventions. He crafts a fable at the crossroads of these two cinematic traditions, with an extra dose of imagination to boot.

A fable. The word perfectly suits the world of The Fakir's Extraordinary Journey. Ajatashatru Oghash Rathod (Dhanush) grew up in a poor district of Bombay, where his mother raised him alone. Together, they nurture the dream of one day living in Paris. When she dies, the young Indian man decides to take her ashes to the City of Light. From that moment on, the adventure really begins.

A Journey Full of Unexpected Events

From being a simple tourist who gets ripped off by cab driver Gustave (Gérard Jugnot), Aja becomes by chance an undocumented immigrant and finds himself overnight in Spain, sleeping in an airport with other migrants. Aja's only wish is to return to Paris, where he has fallen under the spell of Marie (Erin Moriarty). There's another reason for this much-needed return: to find his mother's ashes. But here he is in Rome, jumping out of the luggage of artist Nelly Marnay (Bérénice Béjo) and finding himself thrown into a luxurious palace. Like a character in a good novel, Aja traverses the world's diverse human realities.

How do we embark on Aja’s extraordinary journey? He tells his story to three children who are facing imprisonment in India for repeated thefts. This allows for constant shifts between reality and fantasy, between the laws of the street and those of the imagination. As they listen to tales of wardrobes, hot-air balloons, and pirates, the three children are initially reluctant—just like the guard watching over them. But they haven’t reckoned with Aja’s storytelling prowess, which suddenly makes them less aggressive and more attentive—and, above all, dreamy. The effect works just as well on the audience. They never know whether Aja’s story actually happened or if he’s just a wordsmith.

A fantastic story in tune with the times

In short, Ken Scott’s film is the result of a series of unexpected events. There’s no time to get bored—quite the opposite. The scenes flow one after another, and the camera follows the characters as if in a race against time. Two dance scenes stand out in particular and serve as a reminder that The Fakir's Extraordinary Journey is also a bridge between Indian and Anglo-Saxon cinema. Colors and glitter explode everywhere, without abuse, even in the saddest passages. As if to thumb one's nose at the prevailing gloom. Simply luminous cinema.

The film’s main appeal lies in the choice of the main character’s perspective and the lighthearted atmosphere with which it tackles a serious subject: migration. All without ever lacking dignity or modesty. Aja is the most naive man in the world. He observes what is happening around him and experiences his own circumstances with a touching innocence. He ventures wherever he pleases and adapts to every situation, driven solely by a desire to help others—to make their dreams come true. A comedic premise for a tragic film.

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Photo credit: © Impuls Pictures