The White Tiger

— At its most basic, this is the story of Balram Halwai’s journey from poverty to driver for a wealthy family, to entrepreneurship and wealth of his own. Along the way there are many moments to give viewers pause and raise questions. Part of it’s popularity may be that it coincides with the growing divide between “haves” and “have-nots” in the U.S. It takes advantage of our growing sympathy for underdogs for the first half of the movie as we watch Balram’s efforts in a world where things are stacked against him. Balram’s perspective begins to shift and he starts taking action to better himself. Lies give way to deceit and petty theft gives way to more serious crime. It reminds us of all the issues surrounding privilege, greed, democracy, and socialism. It also pokes around at the point where resorting to violence on an individual level seems justified if based on individual misfortune, but perhaps less acceptable if it ultimately moves you into the position of power you had wanted to escape. I have no idea how much fact about Indian politics and life is with the fiction and I have not read the novel on which it was based, but I’m glad I watched it. [Netflix streaming.]

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[2021. 125 min. Directed by Ramin Bahrani. Starring Adarsh Gourav, Rajkummar Rao, and Priyanka Chopra.]
https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-white-tiger-movie-review-2021