This is the age of the Indian English film. And we’ve come to expect a lot from these movies. So, Lovesongs – Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow, Jayabrato Chatterjee’s second directorial venture in English has a lot to live up to. Releasing across India today, Lovesongs has a promising cast, including Jaya Bachchan, Om Puri, Mallika Sarabhai and Rajit Kapur, among others. The film is produced by Big Motion Pictures, in association with Handmade Films. Music for Lovesongs has been composed by Pritam Chakraborty, another person who fosters high expectations, and Siddharth Suhas.

The film revolves around a merry widow, Mridula Chatterjee, who lives in Kolkata and runs an NGO for the physically challenged. Rohan, her grandson, raised single-handedly by her, comes to stay with her for his vacations. His curiosity impels him to discover skeletons in Mridula’s closet that had been locked away for many many years. Each startling revelation leads to a better understanding of Mridula, her life, her loves, the choices she has made in life and her relationship with her daughter.

Lovesongs beautifully portrays how circumstances shape people and how seemingly ordinary people lead extraordinary lives. From love lost in youth to living in fear of Naxalites, learning to live first with a husband and then without him after his untimely demise and coping with a tempestuous mother-daughter relationship, the film speaks of love and hope and a whole vista of possibilities even when all seems lost.

This quiet release, amid all the hype about Race and U, Me Aur Hum, offers quality entertainment, an interestingly woven story and performances to look forward to.