Jubilee on Amazon Prime Video: Vikramaditya Motwane’s show mirrors the emptiness of fame beneath its glitter

Jubilee, right from its promos, made it evident that it was Bollywood’s romanticised tribute to the formative years of the industry. It was a good reason why I resisted watching the show initially, fearing it would be another self-indulgent, rose-tinted portrait of the industry. When I finally gave into the temptation after the glowing reception, the show proved my presumption wasn’t wrong either. Yet, Jubilee left me impressed on several levels.

Holding a mirror to the eccentricities within the film industry between the late 1940s - early 1950s, Jubilee sways you with its technical splendour and there are no two things about it. Right from the beautifully lit up sepia-tinted frames capturing the nostalgia of Bombay, dreamy Bollywood parties to the sophistication in the production design and the attention to detail with the costumes, Jubilee is a visceral delight.

It’s hard to focus on the human drama amidst the gorgeous canvas. Created by Vikramaditya Motwane and Soumik Sen, Jubilee teases you to read between the lines with its parallels between the characters and real-life personalities - Devika Rani, Ashok Kumar, Dev Anand, Kamal Amrohi. The film titles are mix of fact and fiction - Sunghursh, Taxi Driver, Baiju Awara, Raj Mahal but they contribute to the authenticity in the setup apart from the showy dialogues and the stunning (Amit Trivedi’s career-best) music score.

Beyond Bombay, you get a taste of the world in Lucknow, Bengal, Karachi and how these cultural influences shaped the industry. While you’re certain to be charmed by the nostalgia and the simplicity of the era, it’s quite scary to imagine what all an industry aspirant would’ve gone through, to bag an opportunity in an incestuous world with limited power centres. Has the industry really changed much in seven decades?

The show rightly takes enough time to establish the core traits of its characters - Sumitra, Madan Kumar, Jamshed Khan, Jay Khanna, Niloufer, Shrikant Roy - and their ambitions. However, once the foundation is set, the show gets too conscious of paying a tribute to the industry, serving as a showcase of the maker’s research of the era.

The characters, their drama gradually take the backseat and the show pays more heed to the detailing and becomes information-heavy with every episode. From the socio-political situation to the influence of AIR, life in a refugee camp and the inner workings of the industry, its pretentiousness, there are too many threads to keep track of. As much as you’re impressed with the efforts, the makers pay a price with the desperation to be picture-perfect.

A Bollywood enthusiast will certainly be pleased with the treatment of the gossipy backdoor material - the extramarital affairs, the vicious romantic triangles and the criminal tactics employed by the bigwigs to sustain their dominance. Jubilee, which loses its way after a fine start, finds its mojo towards the final episodes and the tussle between the characters, their egos, their helplessness is captivating to watch.

As the show ends, you can’t help but feel for its pivotal characters and remember how they spent happier times without the limelight and its pressures. As they savour the magic of cinema, make money and find their way in the industry, fame corrupts them, wrecks havoc on their relationships. While they make a mark, life catches up with them and they’re only left with bitterness deep within.

It’s impossible not to be intoxicated by showbiz but the show indicates why success is a difficult beast to handle. Prosenjit Chatterjee’s authoritarian presence as Shrikant Roy, Aditi Rao Hydari’s regal yet vulnerable portrayal of Sumitra, the joi de vivre within Wamiqa Gabbi’s Niloufer and Aparshakti Khurana’s effort to highlight the insecurities of Binod Das linger on your mind long after the show.

The real star, though, is Sidhant Gupta as Jay Khanna. He not only stays true to the material and the era but also brings in a playful innocence to his performance. He portrays the character’s ambitions and ambiguities with childlike enthusiasm and a twinkle in his eyes. Ram Kapoor, Shweta Basu Prasad are no less significant to this universe and they hold their own amidst the ensemble cast. Jubilee is a stellar effort and merits a viewing despite its flows.