Showing on a big screen near you for almost three weeks now, New York could be singled out as another one of those rare Indian film released commercially in cinemas. Perhaps it might be unusual too for the film to have premiered a week after another Indian blockbuster, the Los Angeles-set showbiz tale Kambakkht Ishq, was released to a select audience in one local cinema.

Yet, given New York's storyline and how close it resembles the recent bombing incidents in Jakarta, audiences cannot help but wonder about the likelihood of last week's chain of events unfolding so close to the movie's release.

What New York focuses on is the bigger, and to date perhaps the biggest, terrorist attack that ever occurred this century: the 9/11 tragedy. Set and shot entirely in the US, mostly in New York city and a few scenes in Philadelphia, New York revolves around the lives of three friends who once led carefree lives as college students before the tragedy unfolded, and, along with millions others, were forced to change the course of their lives, by choice or fate, after the bombing happened.

The film follows a formulaic love triangle between two boys and a girl: a fish-out-of-water Omar (Neil Nitin Mukesh) who recently moves to the US from India, meets his counselor from a student body, Indian-American Maya (Katrina Kaif) on his first day. The very same day, Maya introduces Omar to another Indian-American Sam (John Abraham). The three forms a strong bond, and in a very Bollywood tradition, Omar secretly harbors feelings toward Maya, but sacrifices them believing Sam is a better choice for her.

Or so we think. The twin tower bombings divides the trio, and the story finally starts moving after being stuck for a while in prolonged romance scenes. Although those scenes are essential ingredients of a watchable Bollywood film, New York is kind enough to hold back and let the romance scenes flow, without actors belting notes out or dancing, but with music discreetly playing in the background.

In a way, such a move can be seen as the filmmakers' attempt to bring the film across to bigger markets, as some audiences may feel alienated by spurts of Bollywood-style musicals. Incidentally, the two leading actors could easily pass as Americans. With actors such as fair-skinned Neil Nitin Mukesh and tanned hunk John Abraham, who has pretty much built his career on his toned body, the film seemingly aims to bring a much more polished vision of India, the kind not seen in Western-type movies such as the successful Slumdog Millionaire.

Still, New York remains an Indian film at its core. Or in this case, South Asian.

While the subject of paranoia against Muslims and South Asians after the 9/11 tragedy has been brought to the big screen before, albeit very few and far between, it took Bollywood's mainstream industry eight years after the incident to finally step in and bring a balanced perspective to the subject. Some other Bollywood films set in the city, for example Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003), are too busy trivializing the lives of well-established Indians, as is the case in the bigger budget movie Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006).

In keeping up with this sense of struggle, director Kabir Khan does not shy away from portraying the harsh reality of mostly Caucasian officers wrongly accusing South Asians of being terrorists.

Given the film script was submitted to all US film bodies for approval, such scenes were executed without bearing a sense of political incorrectness. Detective Roshan, played with dignity and strong charisma by Irrfan Khan, provided a balanced perspective. Despite having played similar scenes before (he was the investigating officer in Slumdog, and played a similar role in A Mighty Heart), Irrfan manages to deliver the best lines, which are more than sufficient to bury past hatches between Western and South Asian countries. His casual relationship with his American counterparts diminishes the distinctive line between Indians and Caucasian Americans often awkwardly captured in many Bollywood films. The fact he plays a Muslim - which raises the bar for Muslim portrayals in modern mainstream cinema, but also brings to question how much a Muslim should tolerate the Western lifestyle - also strengthens the safe line the film has chosen to walk on.

New York is a poignant Bollywood film, more deserving than other Bollywood films released until now, whose issues happen to strike a chord in our shores. Watching the film today may make us wonder what would have happened in our town last week, should similar bombing methods have been used. New York does a commendable job as a film. Still an entertaining flick in the end, despite factual text appearing before the end credits roll, New York could have been a bigger hit had it been released more widely.

New York

in Hindi with English and Indonesian subtitles, is playing exclusively at Blitz Megaplex.

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