8 A.M. Metro

Story: This is the story of an unlikely friendship between a married woman and a banking professional who bump into a metro train.

Review: Superficially, 8 AM Metro seems like a de rigueur story about an unappreciated homemaker trapped in a thankless marriage who discovers companionship in a new man she meets. But the movie is precisely on the opposite side of the spectrum. It’s about two hurting hearts finding the meaning of life and healing. And the beauty is that just like you need to keep showing up every day in your journey towards awakening, two unlikely friends meet each day to learn a new lesson in life.

Iravati (Saiyami Kher) is a simple Maharashtrian homemaker and a closeted poet dealing with a traumatic childhood event that results in panic attacks, preventing her from travelling by train. As her husband fails to join her on a trip to Hyderabad to look after her younger sister about to deliver a baby, she must navigate through a new city by herself as she deals with episodes of panic. She meets a banker, Pritam (Gulshan Devaiyah), who helps her reach her destination the first time and accompanies her every day after that as he takes the same train. Friendship blossoms between them as they go through their individual lives.

The film is replete with poetry, literature and tales of tribes that serve as lessons in humanity, bonding, loss and life in general. In its own subtle way, it also comments on how society looks at mental health issues and how people suffering from anxiety disorder and panic attacks are asked to ‘be strong’. There’s a brilliant scene where Iravati takes the role of society, and Pritam becomes her and exchanges a dialogue about what it means to suffer from panic attacks. The emphatic way in which Gulshan Devaiyah responds wins your heart. The movie also touches upon how socially-awkward people often deal with life, letting go of plum opportunities because of their inability to interact. There are many such nuances, and the film’s measured pace allows that to come through sensitively and beautifully.

As things unravel in the second half, the narrative organically spins on its head, all that it establishes in the first part. Unexpected things galore. Director and writer Raj Rachakonda and co-writer Shruti Bhatnagar balance a heart-touching story with tense moments and also infuse humour in it through the duo’s co-traveller, an IT guy who answers video calls on the metro and strikes the conversation with them as they sip on filter coffee.

Saiyami Kher and Gulshan Devaiyah deliver stellar performances—and their helplessness, angst and humane side are palpable in every scene. They are raw yet so controlled, and look the part of simple people. Recounting Franz Kafka’s tale of the missing doll is the perfect ending. It can only be experienced by watching.

8 AM Metro is a languid tale but nowhere dull. If you sit rapt with attention, you will learn something about the meaning of love, life, loss and eventual healing. This is definitely worth a watch.