3 Stars (out of 4)
A man’s accidental death births a religious cult when his motorcycle appears to move with a will of its own. Writer-director Ritwik Pareek’s feature debut Dug Dug is delightfully odd.
At a roadside stand along a busy trucking route at night, Thakur Sa (Altaf Khan) stumbles towards his motorcycle. He’s drunk and in no condition to drive, especially not after he smokes a joint. Thakur stands in front of a sign that makes it look he has like a halo encircling his head. Church bells ring. He slings his helmet over his arm and takes off on his bike, driving “into the light” of oncoming traffic. We know what’s going to happen.
Thakur makes it surprisingly far on his doomed final ride. Cinematographer Aditya Kumar uses the available light from the truck stop, passing vehicles, and Thakur’s own bike to paint a strangely beautiful picture of a world in transit. The score by Salvage Audio Collective is propulsive and tense, filled with anticipation more than dread.
On a side road off of the highway, Thakur is distracted by a billboard advertising a magic show. He falls off his bike in front of the painted image of a sorcerer and is promptly run over by a truck. The police collect Thakur’s body and bring his motorcycle back to the station. The next morning, the bike is gone.
Despite their efforts to lock up the blue motorcycle with a pink seat, it keeps reappearing at the spot where Thakur died, day after day. The townsfolk are left to wonder what it means. Did God use Thakur’s death to send a message? If so, what is it? How are they supposed to give this miracle the respect it deserves?
Thus unfolds Pareek’s satire of the commercialization of religion. Thakur — a drunk driver — is turned into a saint, and his sainthood spins off into business and marketing opportunities.
Dug Dug opens with a standard onscreen note that it is a work of fiction inspired by real events. Midway through the movie, a similar statement appears again on screen, reiterating that, while names have been changed, this is based on a true story.
The double clarification is an attempt to diffuse any potential anger from devotees of the “Bullet Baba Shrine” in Rajasthan, the true story on which Dug Dug is based. However, there’s no hint of disrespect in Pareek’s film, which admits that faith is complicated and highly personal.
Other than noting how ready people are to monetize a miracle, Pareek is careful not to make fun of the devotees. The town’s young police officer Pyare Lal (Gaurav Soni) refuses to participate in the new traditions of dropping money in a collection box and pouring booze on the motorcycle’s tires, but he doesn’t stop anyone else from doing so. The whole tone of the film is observational, not judgmental. The natural acting by the charming cast reinforces that.
Dug Dug moves at a languid pace that suits the sleepy rural town where it’s set. It bogs down in the latter stages with prolonged, repetitive musical montages of people handing over money, praying, and waving flags. Other than that slow section, Dug Dug showcases the talent of an intriguing new filmmaker with a distinct style and point of view. I’m looking forward to see what Pareek does next.
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