User Reviews

A story of a man whose life changed due to one incident. Nikhil- State champion of Goa beloved by his father seemed to have a perfect life until he was detected of AIDS. His whole life changed. He was shunned from society, his swimming team and by his own dad. Then comes the story of his life after that, how he has to battle the fight against society. Here comes Juhi Chawla, his sister who helps him the most. A well portrayed story, though a little slow many at times, does touch your heart. The main flaw in the script is that the writer has shown everything in the first scene ie they show that he is dead, leaving no suspense as one would already know the ending. On the whole a good movie, mainly for people who like watching slow and sentimental movies.

(Sob Sob Sob)

I was DYING to watch. So finally, I watched it last night. And I have never cried so much in a movie. In one word, I would have to say that this movie is BEAUTIFUL!

This movie is groundbreaking; this movie has a "realistic" look at a gay couple and handles the subject of Aids with sensitivity – which has never been in any Indian movies.

Story is simple, Nikhil is diagnosed with Aids and his parents disown him. He goes to his partner (soul mate), Nigel. He is treated like a criminal and is locked in a dirty room for months before the lawyer fights for his rights. He has the freedom to live freely and lead a normal life, like any other person. Now, he has no parents, no job, and no life. Only support he has is of his beautiful caring sister, Anu (Princess), Nigel (Boyfriend), and Sam (Brother In-law).

Story doesn't focus how or why Nikhil has Aids. Movie focuses how a family and society reacts to the decease. Nikhil is humiliated, once who used to be a star of the town and now he is an outcast. Movie has more of a documentary touch to it (meaning people speak to the camera about Nikhil).

We can all relate to this movie. This movies hits home because, we, once in life has had the perfect life but one day everything changes – everyone you loved is gone… This is how I related to the movie. Also, haven't we done something wrong once in our life, that have made are parents embarrassed or mad at us. Don't we all have our soul mates? Don't you have a brother or sister who would do anything for you?

Movie is about LIFE!

Movie shows courage, strength, and weakness in all characters. This movie is filled with beautiful moments ~ just to mention few:

1- When Nikhil's dad comes to meet him after 2 yrs, Nikhil asks for his dad to tell him, please tell me this is a nightmare and it'll pass.

2- When Anu comes with a rakhi to Nikhil and the words "agle rakhi mei tumsei .." – realizing that there might not be another Rakhi for her.

3- When Nikhil and Nigel have a fight and Nigel takes Nikhil to the beach…there are glimpses of the past Nikhil & Nigel hanging out at the beach, which shows a healthy Nikhil… but now, Nigel is holding on to Nikhil…Nikhil can highly walk or stand.

4-A mother says to her son, I wish you had died when you were born. 5-When Nikhil dies in Nigel's arms.

Sanjay Suri as Nikhil, shows his emotions flawlessly. Sanjay plays the role of a man who is gay and in the closet, a swimming champion, a guy who is so pressured by his dad, an artist, and a weak sad, strong, human being.

Juhi Chawla -She adds the smile in the movie. She oozes happiness and hope and courage in the entire screen she is present. She is one of my favorite actresses. She stands by her brother when no one is there for him.

Purab Kohli - I personally think, this movie belongs to him completely! He is the best. He is an openly gay man. He portrayed the role of a gay man who is loosing his soul-mate so well, that I had to take a double take as to if this was really happening to him. His eyes expressed more than he even spoke. His smile showed how much he misses his boyfriend. His frustration showed how he is missing having Nikhil by his side now. Like, I said about Sanjay suri, Purab is also an excellent actor – I became his fan right after Supari & Bas Yun Hi. I am looking forward to his future projects.

ONIR, the director, writer, producer He is the best! He handled the subject of Aids very well. He showed utmost sensitivity and sincerity to a gay subject line. He showed "realistic" issues and realistic characters. I am very much looking forward to any of his future movies.

Music by Vivek Philip is so beautiful and moving that any time I hear just the "la lal lllaaa.." I get a lump in my throat. Lyrics by Amitabh Verma are so beautifully written and are so relevant. Those words will haunt you… After you see this movie, you'll feel like someone very close to you just left you..

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS MOVIE & CD TO YOU ALL! It's a MUST FOR Everyone! PLEASE GO SUPPORT THIS MOVIE AND IT'S MUSIC! WE NEED THESE KINDA MOVIES MADE IN India. I, for one, am very very tired of watching "masala" type movies. They are not only annoying but make you feel like an idiot sitting in the theatre watching people cry over meaningless emotionless scenes.

I simply LOVED THIS MOVIE and it's very tough to put my thoughts about this movie in words, so I had a tough time writing a review on it. So I hope I did my best to promote this wonderful movie. This movie is not to be MISSED by anyone. And for those who are arrogant and don't like gay lifestyle – only this quote can sum it up:

"It's astonishing how much energy some people Waste worrying that someone else might be Enjoying life in ways that they don't Approve of"

Take care, Bhumi

Plot Outline: Nikhil Kapoor (Sanjay Suri) is a happening young man, state swimming champion of Goa, loathed in the love of girlfriends, friends and a family consisting of Father Navin (Victor Banerjee) and mother Anita (Lilette Dubey) and sister Anu (Juhi Chawla); All put together seems 'picture-perfect'.

Things take a sudden turn when Nikhil gets knocked off his job and the swimming team while his family is ostracized by local community. Things get uglier when his parents disown him, gets arrested and confined to a sanitarium; reason: he is HIV positive, a condition about which social awareness was at its nadir in the 80's.

Only Anu and friend Nigel (Purab Kohli) support Nikhil through his phase of social disapproval till the inevitable. The movie is a portrayed from the POV of his family/friends circle on his first death anniversary.

Comment: The movie underscores that love can spark hope for people like Nikhil. Predecessor Phir Milenge highlighted the career part. But both these movies could have addressed AIDS awareness while doing the love/sympathy theme. The theme is fresh, editing neat but the music is nothing great.

Rating: 3.5/5

My Brother...Nikhil -- The movie left me in tears. It was refreshing to see an Indian film, dealing with a social issue that didn't try to make the issue out to be a exaggerated and hypocritical wrong thing.

I just remember seeing Girlfriend and being appalled at how the film portrayed homosexuals. I have friends that are homosexuals and they are some of the nicest people I've ever met, and that film making them out to be these insane horrible individuals was a real turn off...and that's another review!

But back to the main topic, My Brother...Nikhil was fabulous from the storyline, to the music (Le Chale - will leave your heart mourning with tears in your eyes - no matter which version you hear -- I like the Shaan version the best ), the acting is fabulous! Sanjay Suri is amazing! If he doesn't get a Filmfare or a nod from some sort of higher film academy it would be really sad. I mean, his acting, directing, everything. It's been a long time since I've seen a Hindi film that I walked away from and said "wow." There is a part of the film where Lillete Dubey who plays Nikhil's mom tells him that he was a weak baby and she wishes that he had died then as a child. This is after the family finds out Nikhil has contracted HIV...needless to say, the scene will make your jaw drop. Sanjay and Lillete are beyond amazing in this scene.

Kabhi is another song in the film... it's really a laid back tune...very Goa-Esq I think. Kind of like what Jack Johnson's music is to the US's coasts would be what Kabhi would be to Goa I suppose. It has that a beach like, laid back, but trendy sound to it. Juhi was good. She played the role as if it was made for her.

One of the things that I found the most interesting and the most refreshing about the film is the element of HOW. Meaning, the audience never finds out HOW Nikhil contracted the virus, they are just aware of the fact that he has it. I liked this dramatic element a lot because I feel that it doesn't take away from the virus or the situation at hand. It shows Nikhil has human, like you and I, a person with feelings...a golden boy who has been ousted by his surroundings. I'm glad we do not know, it leaves the mind to wonder.

I saw the making of the film on the DVD of it that I rented (it's on the Elite Films DVD version) and they were talking about how the story is based on a true story of something that did actually happen in Goa. I wasn't sure if it really was, but after wards I thought it was quite admirable to do a film such as this in Hindi cinema.

Another element of the film is the fact that it starts in the 1980s in India...which is the same decade that the USA has it own AIDS "scare".

Even if the subject matter bothers you, or you do not like Hindi films, go watch it just to Sanjay Suri portray what I would consider the role of his career!

10/10

The subject of the film is about something many people have gone through: the contamination to HIV, the development of the disease of AIDS and the ultimate death of the patient. Personally I do not want to count the victims around me because that would be too sad. Some died of pulmonary infections. Some died of a vicious attack on their nervous system. Some died of Karposi skin cancer. The types and modes of death were incredibly varied. For nearly 15 to 20 years the available treatments did not do much except slow down the end and soften that end. We now have a treatment that can lengthen the life of the patients seriously, but it is no cure yet. But luckily we are far beyond Reagan's declaration that it was the punishment of god against homosexuals.

In the film we are in Goa and we are dealing with a State Champion in swimming. He finds himself HIV positive. He is expelled from the swimming team: one day he gets into the water and everyone else scrambles out. He is totally rejected by his parents, his father beating him up and his mother telling him that since he was premature at birth she wishes he could have died. He has only one refuge and it is Nigel, his friend. He is arrested and definitely roughed up by the police who took him to the hospital where he is isolated in the sanatorium, alone and totally abandoned and unable to leave. He suffers from the rejection because of the disease, which is absolutely outrageous because everyone has the right to benefit from medicine equally, at least officially. But he also suffers from the rejection because he is at once revealed to be a homosexual. Note that's the only word used in the film and the word "gay" is never used.

At this point we are deeply engulfed and drowning in some colonial heritage that India's supreme court has still not been able to declare anti-constitutional Here is their latest decision:

« IN THE SUPREME COURT 0F India CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION (ORDER XL, RULE 1) REVIEW PETITION (CIVIL) No. of 2014 (Against the Order dated 11.12.2013 in Civil Appeal No. 10972 of 2013 (arising out of Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 15436 of 2009) passed by this Hon'ble Court: Sought to be Reviewed) IN THE MATTER 0F: Dr. Shekhar Seshadri & Others . . .Petitioners Versus Suresh Kumar Koushal & Others . .Respondents

. . . This Hon'ble Court, by the impugned judgment, set aside the judgment of the High Court and held that Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code was constitutional and that it applied to acts, irrespective of age or consent of the parties involved. »

This Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code is directly inherited from the old British colonial penal code. India has not yet been able to get rid of her colonial heritage and past. We have here a typical post colonial situation.

The consequences are drastic. Nikhil is in locked up detention in total isolation in a sanatorium where he gets minimal care. His family is victimized and ostracized in the city to the point of them having to leave, though this reveals the total lack of courage of the parents, since the daughter supported by her fiancé decides to stay and look for a lawyer and fight. Nigel as Nikhil's partner is forced to go through a test, which is in a way perfectly sane and he should have decided to do it himself, and he finds out he is healthy. After the first difficult situation between the two men, Nigel becomes supportive to the end.

It is difficult to find a lawyer and there is no real legal attack possible if there is no popular support. So they start a public campaign. In that situation Nigel's home will be raided and looted. But they win the battle. Nikhil decides not to fight against his boss who does not want to reinstate him in his job and he develops a musical career for a couple of years.

Then the film shows the slow ending of this life. It is in this part that the film brings the mother first to apologizing for her violent declaration. It will take a lot more time for the father who will finally accept for Nikhil to come back home when he has reached the final phase of the disease and is no longer able to have a normal activity. Nikhil will thus die a deeply emotional death in the arms of Nigel who would have gone to sleep curled up around him waiting for that magic moment when the sun comes up at daybreak, this moment becoming the metaphor of Nikhil's death.

The film is absolutely beautiful and deeply emotional. It was shot in 2005 and it has not been able to prevent the erring position and ruling of India's Supreme Court in 2014 as quoted above. We have to keep in mind India is assuming its colonial heritage instead of questioning it and is now far behind all western countries, or nearly, and all democracies respectful of their own democratic order that recognize the right to any adult to have and practice any sexual orientation they want as long as it does not endanger the integrity and life of their partners, with of course the special case of minors who are not supposed to have sexual intercourse with adults of any type up to a certain age set by the law.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

My Brother Nikhil is one of the best films made, The film speaks about AIDS and also deals with homosexuality The film narrates a story of a swimming champion Nikhil who gets AIDS The film is set in Goa in late 80s to early 90s and it's well carried out, the problems Nikhil faces are well handled The drama,emotions are brilliantly and Onir also goes ahead and shows the homosexuality angle naturally unlike other films which overdo those portions The film leaves you moist-eyed and also yet tries to open your eyes regarding the misconception that AIDS is caused due to homosexuality

Direction by Onir is great Music is good, the usage of Konkani songs suits the theme well

Sanjay Suri is one of the brilliant underrated actors, he performs so flawlessly that I still wonder why he doesn't get much films nowdays? Juhi Chawla is fantastic, Purab Kohli as Sanjay Suri's gay partner is brilliant, he doesn't overdo it Victor Banerjee is flawless, Lillete Dubey is perfect too Dipannita Sharma has a brief role and is okay, Shweta Kawaatra is good rest are okay