Being Cyrus
Encyclopedia
Being Cyrus is an English language
Indian film
directed by Homi Adajania
and released in 2006. It is a psychological drama revolving around a dysfunctional Parsi
family. The film was originally titled Akoori, a reference to a traditional Parsi scrambled-eggs-like side dish.
The film is the directorial debut of Homi Adajania and Saif Ali Khan
's first film in English.
consists of a retired sculptor Dinshaw (Naseeruddin Shah
) and his wife Katy (Dimple Kapadia
). Dinshaw's brother Farrokh (Boman Irani
), their father Fardoonjee (Honey Chhaya), and Farrokh's wife Tina (Simone Singh
) reside in Mumbai.
It is at this time that Cyrus Mistry (Saif Ali Khan
), the narrator of the story, shows up at the Sethnas' doorstep in Panchgani one morning, a seeming wanderer hailing from Jamshedpur who professes his admiration for Dinshaw's work and asks if he can be his apprentice. Dinshaw and Katy agree, and soon the young man becomes a part of their life. Katy makes advances towards Cyrus, which he tolerates while cryptically telling the audience that he is "playing Katy". As time passes Cyrus gets to know the oddball couple better - Dinshaw is a perpetually zoned-out eccentric, though a rather affable one, while the rather promiscuous Katy, tired of slow-moving Panchgani life and her moth-eaten marriage, has embarked on an affair with her brother-in-law Farrokh in Mumbai
. Katy makes Cyrus her pawn, sending him to Mumbai to visit her father-in-law Fardoonjee, who lives in an extension of Farrokh's flat, with orders to get a stash of money Fardoonjee supposedly has. On meeting Fardoonjee, Cyrus realizes that he is ill-treated by Farrokh. Farrokh's timid young wife, Tina, is unable to be herself except during the few hours Farrokh is at work. She enjoys smoking, loud music and goes to hair appointments when Farrokh is gone.
One day Katy convinces Cyrus to go and murder her father in law and Tina so that she can be with Farrokh. Unknown to Cyrus, Farrokh plans to kill him after the deed to close the loose end. Cyrus arrives at a time when Tina is coincidentally out for a waxing appointment. He feeds Fardoonjee his favorite dish and kills him immediately afterwards. This is positioned to the audience as a mercy killing to release Fardoonjee from his wretched existence. Farrokh sneaks into the house but Cyrus kills him instead. When Katy calls to check on Farrokh, Cyrus picks up the phone and tells her that her plan is in tatters. And then Cyrus vanishes.
The Inspector calls Katy and Dinshaw for interrogation. She constantly blames Cyrus for the murder. When the Inspector investigates, he finds no evidence of any person named Cyrus even in the market in Panchgani. So Katy and Dinshaw are arrested for the murders while poor Tina is sent home with both her and the Inspector agreeing that she was lucky to be away at that time.
A few months later, Tina is in her bedroom when the door is opened surreptitiously by Cyrus. It looks like he has come to finish the last murder. Shockingly, Tina and Cyrus embrace each other. This whole murder is shown to be an elaborate plot by Tina to inherit the whole property. With Farddonjee and Farrokh dead, and Katy and Dinshaw in Jail, her plot has been successful. Tina is shown as a cold-blooded schemer who identifies such families, gets married into the family and then Cyrus murders them. Cyrus is shown to have a conscience. While Tina is showering, he sees a newspaper where Tina has marked another family for this scheme. Unwilling to participate in this any further, he runs away before Tina comes out of the shower.
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
Indian film
Cinema of India
The cinema of India consists of films produced across India, which includes the cinematic culture of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal. Indian films came to be followed throughout South Asia and...
directed by Homi Adajania
Homi Adajania
Homi Adajania is an Indian film director. His directorial debut Being Cyrus was an off-beat English-Language psychological drama film. Touted as one of the brilliant emerging directors coming from India, Homi Adajania was also the co-author of Being Cyrus, which was his debut as a director. He has...
and released in 2006. It is a psychological drama revolving around a dysfunctional Parsi
Parsi
Parsi or Parsee refers to a member of the larger of the two Zoroastrian communities in South Asia, the other being the Irani community....
family. The film was originally titled Akoori, a reference to a traditional Parsi scrambled-eggs-like side dish.
The film is the directorial debut of Homi Adajania and Saif Ali Khan
Saif Ali Khan
Saif Ali Khan is an Indian actor known for his work in Bollywood films. He is the son of the late former Nawab of Pataudi, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, and actress Sharmila Tagore. He has two sisters: Saba Ali Khan and actress Soha Ali Khan....
's first film in English.
Plot
The Sethna family of PanchganiPanchgani
Pānchgani is a town and municipal council in Sātārā district in Mahārāshtra, India .-History:Scenic Panchgani was discovered by the British during the British Raj as a summer resort, and a superintendent named John Chesson was placed in charge of the hill station in the 1860s...
consists of a retired sculptor Dinshaw (Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
) and his wife Katy (Dimple Kapadia
Dimple Kapadia
Dimple Chunnibhai Kapadia is an Indian film actress. She made her acting debut at the age of 16, playing the title role in Raj Kapoor's teen romance Bobby . In that same year she married Indian actor Rajesh Khanna, and retired from acting. Kapadia returned to films in 1984 after her separation...
). Dinshaw's brother Farrokh (Boman Irani
Boman Irani
Boman Irani is an Indian film and theatre actor and photographer. Irani began his acting career in theatre and moved to film in 2000 at the age of 44 with a role in Josh...
), their father Fardoonjee (Honey Chhaya), and Farrokh's wife Tina (Simone Singh
Simone Singh
Simone Singh, in Jamshedpur to a Sikh father and Bengali mother, is an Indian actress.She made her acting debut with the television series Sea Hawks followed by a small role in Swabhimaan, in 1995...
) reside in Mumbai.
It is at this time that Cyrus Mistry (Saif Ali Khan
Saif Ali Khan
Saif Ali Khan is an Indian actor known for his work in Bollywood films. He is the son of the late former Nawab of Pataudi, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, and actress Sharmila Tagore. He has two sisters: Saba Ali Khan and actress Soha Ali Khan....
), the narrator of the story, shows up at the Sethnas' doorstep in Panchgani one morning, a seeming wanderer hailing from Jamshedpur who professes his admiration for Dinshaw's work and asks if he can be his apprentice. Dinshaw and Katy agree, and soon the young man becomes a part of their life. Katy makes advances towards Cyrus, which he tolerates while cryptically telling the audience that he is "playing Katy". As time passes Cyrus gets to know the oddball couple better - Dinshaw is a perpetually zoned-out eccentric, though a rather affable one, while the rather promiscuous Katy, tired of slow-moving Panchgani life and her moth-eaten marriage, has embarked on an affair with her brother-in-law Farrokh in Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
. Katy makes Cyrus her pawn, sending him to Mumbai to visit her father-in-law Fardoonjee, who lives in an extension of Farrokh's flat, with orders to get a stash of money Fardoonjee supposedly has. On meeting Fardoonjee, Cyrus realizes that he is ill-treated by Farrokh. Farrokh's timid young wife, Tina, is unable to be herself except during the few hours Farrokh is at work. She enjoys smoking, loud music and goes to hair appointments when Farrokh is gone.
One day Katy convinces Cyrus to go and murder her father in law and Tina so that she can be with Farrokh. Unknown to Cyrus, Farrokh plans to kill him after the deed to close the loose end. Cyrus arrives at a time when Tina is coincidentally out for a waxing appointment. He feeds Fardoonjee his favorite dish and kills him immediately afterwards. This is positioned to the audience as a mercy killing to release Fardoonjee from his wretched existence. Farrokh sneaks into the house but Cyrus kills him instead. When Katy calls to check on Farrokh, Cyrus picks up the phone and tells her that her plan is in tatters. And then Cyrus vanishes.
The Inspector calls Katy and Dinshaw for interrogation. She constantly blames Cyrus for the murder. When the Inspector investigates, he finds no evidence of any person named Cyrus even in the market in Panchgani. So Katy and Dinshaw are arrested for the murders while poor Tina is sent home with both her and the Inspector agreeing that she was lucky to be away at that time.
A few months later, Tina is in her bedroom when the door is opened surreptitiously by Cyrus. It looks like he has come to finish the last murder. Shockingly, Tina and Cyrus embrace each other. This whole murder is shown to be an elaborate plot by Tina to inherit the whole property. With Farddonjee and Farrokh dead, and Katy and Dinshaw in Jail, her plot has been successful. Tina is shown as a cold-blooded schemer who identifies such families, gets married into the family and then Cyrus murders them. Cyrus is shown to have a conscience. While Tina is showering, he sees a newspaper where Tina has marked another family for this scheme. Unwilling to participate in this any further, he runs away before Tina comes out of the shower.
Cast
- Saif Ali KhanSaif Ali KhanSaif Ali Khan is an Indian actor known for his work in Bollywood films. He is the son of the late former Nawab of Pataudi, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, and actress Sharmila Tagore. He has two sisters: Saba Ali Khan and actress Soha Ali Khan....
: Cyrus Mistry - Naseeruddin ShahNaseeruddin ShahNaseeruddin Shah is an Indian / Bollywood film actor and director. He is considered to be one of the finest actors of Indian cinema. In 2003, the Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian cinema.-Early life:...
: Dinshaw Sethna - Dimple KapadiaDimple KapadiaDimple Chunnibhai Kapadia is an Indian film actress. She made her acting debut at the age of 16, playing the title role in Raj Kapoor's teen romance Bobby . In that same year she married Indian actor Rajesh Khanna, and retired from acting. Kapadia returned to films in 1984 after her separation...
: Katy Sethna - Boman IraniBoman IraniBoman Irani is an Indian film and theatre actor and photographer. Irani began his acting career in theatre and moved to film in 2000 at the age of 44 with a role in Josh...
: Farrokh Sethna - Simone SinghSimone SinghSimone Singh, in Jamshedpur to a Sikh father and Bengali mother, is an Indian actress.She made her acting debut with the television series Sea Hawks followed by a small role in Swabhimaan, in 1995...
: Tina Sethna - Honey Chhaya: Fardounjee Sethna
- Manoj Pahwa: Inspector Lovely