Pratighaat

"Pratighaat" portrays a city that is terrified of a mobster named Kali who is under the shelter of police and politics. No one can stand against his fury. A young lady fights for this against her family's will and job. On this backdrop, the film tries to raise a voice on patriotism and politics.

The story is pretty exaggerated and is full of gore and violence. But the story stands for symbolism to the increasing violence, crimes in the city for which the film deserves an attention. Well, I won't say the film goes for a suitable answer by the end; but the story telling is quite remarkable in the film and the treatment is surprisingly different from the 80s movies.

The film has a rawness and keeps you disturbed for most of the time. Perhaps the content won't be suitable to be watched with family. It manages to grip and comes close to an intense thriller. The special mention needs to go to the powerful performances given by Sujata Mehta and Rohini Hattangadi in their central roles. Besides, it would be unfair not to mention Nana Patekar in his earlier yet one of his best performances. Most of his dialogues make a satire to the current politics. Despite a non salable cast, the film manages to grip. Overall, the film raises the voices against the increasing crime and violence in the country and hints the unwillingness of the law and order to terminate it.

Anyway, I have a reservation for this movie; and it's the lack of reality to the story which views the story in a fairy land where only a single mobster has the power to terrify the whole city with his fury. Perhaps the law and order of a city at present may not be that lame as portrayed in the film. Had the story been a bit real to life, "Pratighaat" would have been a remarkable film to be remembered for years. For a general watch, the film is gripping, intense and disturbing that you may not want to miss.

Rating: 2 stars out of 4

Pratighaat review :

After making a dashing debut with Ankush (1986), director N Chandra chose to remake the Telugu hit Pratighatana (1986) as Pratighaat in Hindi. Sujata Mehta replaced Vijaya Shanti from the original while Charan Raj reprised his role of gunda turned politician Kali Prasad.

Like Ankush, Pratighaat also explored the politician- gangster nexus as well as student politics. It became famous for a particularly disturbing scene where Sujata Mehta is publicly disrobed and humiliated.

The film also featured a parallel track involving Nana Patekar as a honest cop who goes insane. This was his second collaboration with N Chandra immediately after Ankush and the duo worked together again in Wajood, twelve years later.

Inspite Nana's strong presence, Pratighaat belonged to Sujata Mehta who was simply outstanding in the lead role as the college professor who takes the law in her own hands. In one scene, she admonishes a group of rowdy students who draw her nude caricature on blackboard just to shame her. Her expressions and demeanor in that scene is extraordinary!

Charan Raj exuded menace as Kali Babu who rules the city like an evil dictator. Interestingly, Marathi veteran Ashok Saraf, known more for his comic roles, plays a negative character here. Mohan Bhandari deserves a special mention as the supportive police inspector.

Overall, Pratighaat ranks amongst N Chandras best work. Yea ofcourse, Tezaab was the bigger hit but it was far too formula driven and highly commercial in approach. Pratighaat is raw, hard hitting...and even today, packs a solid punch!!

Regards, Sumeet Nadkarni.