Manoj Bajpayee's 'Last Man In Tower' Wins Hearts with Haunting Portrayal of Isolation

Manoj Bajpayee plays Yogesh Mishra in 'Last Man In Tower'.

Ben Rekhis Last Man Tower

Ben Rekhi’s ‘Last Man In Tower’ can be seen as a meditation on working class compulsions. There, a typical Mumbai housing society becomes a microcosm of the larger universe. Providentially, writer Sooni Taraporevala’s screenplay doesn’t prowl from apartment to apartment searching for eccentric characters.

On the contrary, the free-flowing narrative enters organically into families, cruising their lives discreetly before exposing them for what they are. The protagonist, the man of the match, is Yogesh Mishra, also known as Masterji not only for his vocation but also for his penchant to intuitively lead the herd out of their mentality.

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Only this time, they are not listening. The conflict between Masterji (played masterfully If you have read Aravind Adiga’s novel — and even if you haven’t — you would know that the climactic resolution is extreme. Director Ben Rekhi (in his finest onscreen outing yet) doesn’t pause for breath before the final blow.

There is a sense of seamless continuity in the way the drama unfolds. And credit for that must be given where it belongs: the co-editors Meghna Manchanda Sen and Akshara Prabhakar. The camera (Rangarajan Ramabadran) never prevaricates.

It prowls sleeplessly through lives in the building, gathering glimpses of their regimented frozen lives as fragments of invisibility. The characters never behave as if they are on camera.

There is a sense of inevitability about their presence and action. Bit Divya Dutta as a desperate mother is both vulnerable and manic. The actors are all steeply subdued, so good at what they do that it doesn’t show.

Finally, though, the film belongs to Manoj Bajpayee. His Masterji is a masterclass in understatement. Manoj plays this stubborn man as a loner incapable of forming lasting relationships with anyone.

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Not even his son, played (The father-son stalemate has been seen once too often lately. This includes that very fine Telugu satire ‘Pallaburusu’). Masterji has given up on people.

It is a scarily isolated place to be in. When has Manoj Bajpayee ever hesitated in going into imperturbable characters'his is among his finest.

But then, look at what’s on offer here for the salient character: a plot that doesn’t allow itself any pit pause. Like its protagonist, this film just won’t give.