Hans-Inge Langø’s review published on Letterboxd:
A piercing study of obsession, ambition, and rejection told with great care and empathetic camerawork. The Disciple is about an Indian classical musician-in-training who struggles to reach the heighs of his guru and his idols, while sneering at those musicians to stray from the old ways, but I connected with it deeply. Having just finished grad school last year, I can see the parallels between artistry and academia, and how we shape our identity in pursuit of recognition. Much like the subject matter, director Chaitanya Tamhane leans into traditional techniques, but the subtle camerawork makes this story so powerful by slowly and surely building up the emotional tension. Tamhane uses the camera well to situate lead Aditya Modak (who is terrific) in relation to those around him as well as revealing his inner turmoil. It all builds to an eruption of emotion, cooly played in one static long shot.
Spoilers beware:
The film has an epilogue that demonstrates Tamhane's masterful use of the camera. After storming out of his performance, the screen fades to black and next we see Modak on a train with what appears to be his wife and daughter. Time has passed, and Modak seems happy, accentuated by the hand-held close-up shots. But then we cut to Modak doing a press conference for a new classical music venture. It seems he has not yet left this world, but is now hanging on as a salesperson and scholar, rather than a practitioner. The film ends with a long shot of Modak sitting on the train again with his family, but this time, his wife and daughter have their backs to us, and we can barely make out Modak's face. He's lost in the crowd, sad and unable to let go.
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