A Heartwarming Tale of Dreams and Determination

When Anjana is tired of her father’s relentless attempts to thwart her ambitions, Anjana simply takes off. On the other hand, when Murthy gets a phone call from his daughter during the early days of his struggle, he is instantly moved enough to reconsider his plans and go back to his small town. Despite his ambition to do justice to his potential, Murthy never forgets his family.

And yet, despite its guise of an inspirational story about following your dreams, Music Shop Murthy also remains rather conservative in the manner in which it ties up the story. The film is not comfortable with the greyness of its characters. Every character, who is earlier shown as a naysayer against Murthy, is redeemed by the end of it, one way or another (except for the evil DJ character, who must repent for his overt brashness). Despite the fame he has achieved, Murthy cannot go along happily in life if that success means alienation or disapproval from his family. Anjana might have run away from the small town that restricts her dreams, but she is humane and attached enough to respond to her father’s email and be open to making amends.

I was taken aback when, at one point in the first half, Anjana tells her disgruntled father (Bhanu Chander) the difference between an educated man and a literate man; It is too big a reality check for a small-town man who continues to oversee every move his grown-up daughter makes. But Music Shop Murthy, precisely like its protagonist, is not rebellious enough to choose a path of independence over communion. The dysfunctional family equations, despite their share of messiness, must be resolved. That’s the right way, if not the only way, to pursue your dreams, Music Shop Murthy tells us. And it almost convinced me.