As Bollywood veteran Nawazuddin Siddiqui celebrates his birthday today, it’s the perfect time to revisit one of his best, most understated performances — Photograph (2019). Currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video, the film sees Siddiqui in an understated, likable role that deviates from his usual brooding ones. Directed and written by Ritesh Batra, the award-winning director of The Lunchbox, Photograph is a sensitive and poignant story of two strangers whose lives intersect by chance.
Against the gritty backdrop of ordinary Mumbai, the movie is about Rafi, a struggling street photographer, who convinces a shy young woman, Miloni (played by Sanya Malhotra), to pose as his fiancée to appease his nagging grandmother. What begins as a harmless white lie snowballs into a poignant, unspoken bond between two individuals from vastly different worlds. With its leisurely pace and emotional depth, Photograph is a small gem that celebrates the magic of human bonding in the most unexpected manners.
While mainstream Bollywood romances often rely on melodrama, grand gestures, and vibrant song-and-dance sequences, Photograph takes a refreshingly different path. It leans into silence, subtlety, and the unspoken — offering a narrative built on quiet moments and emotional restraint. There are no dramatic twists or theatrical outbursts here, just an honest portrayal of two strangers navigating an unusual connection.
The movie lives on the strength of stillness — stolen looks, short talks, and moments of mutual loneliness. These tender exchanges gradually bring the protagonists closer, without ever depending on clichés or manipulative storytelling. Photograph demonstrates that love can exist not only in words, but in silences that speak volumes.
Although it was welcomed by critics when it came out, Photograph flew under everyone else’s radar. It did not create waves at the box office but was enjoyed by the audience who saw it for the carefree pace and poetic storytelling. Siddiqui’s understated performance is a standout one, bringing out the gentler, vulnerable side of the actor who otherwise is adept at portraying intense or gritty roles. Sanya Malhotra matches him step for step with the same poise, performing with restraint and elegance.
The movie is also a love letter to Mumbai — not the shiny, glamorized Mumbai of common fantasy, but the gritty, lived-in Mumbai in which Rafi exists. It captures the rhythm of everyday life with searing honesty, presenting Mumbai as a disordered but quietly beautiful city.
From the chaos of busy local trains to the stillness of narrow streets, director Ritesh Batra captures the city in richly poignant ways. Every scene is a lived experience, so Mumbai is a setting and a character in itself — a character who dictates the moods and directions of the characters that live within it.
If you did not catch Photograph when it was first out, now is the ideal time to see it. On Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s birthday, this understated gem is a testament to his range and to the sort of cinema that discovers loveliness in simplicity.
Streaming Now: Photograph (2019)
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Ritesh Batra
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video
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