Bullett Raja

With only the climax decorating itself as a savior, Tigmanshu Dhulia disappoints, big time. With accordance to what his movies have been flaunting lately, Bullett Raja lies nowhere near and when even the cast cannot help the film, it can be only best described as "below average."

Starting off with an instant bonhomie between Saif Ali Khan & Jimmy Sheirgill, the plot is about a duo fighting for politicos. Then they outmatch everybody in their line of work and eventually try to salvage their existence when adversaries kick in. What the writers have tried to do here is take up an underworld topic which has been sampled hundreds of times before, and mix it up with glam & emotions and send it out in a twisty plot. The output? Nothing much entertaining, but not boring either.

The performances are good and the casting, thank heavens, apt for an action film, but use of unnecessary songs and dialogs which feel like they were created out of insomnia just won't work anymore. It is high time I ask the question to the makers that how long should I bear this stupidity and not expect something new & fresh?

Yes, this film goes out of bullets even before the intermission and just so to remind who the film is by, we have a wonderful climax worth watching. But, then again, there is nothing new. For crying out loud, Bullett Raja is an utter disappointment by the man who can do much, much better. (What was Vidhyut Jamwwal doing here?)

BOTTOM LINE: A bullet-infested drama with a shallow plot under the disguise of heavy action. Not recommended! Wait for DTH and check out the climax, per se.

Can be watched with a typical Indian family? YES

BR begins on a very uninspiring note unlike director's previous films and when one gets to see an item song within the first 10 minutes only all of a sudden, it becomes pretty clear that this has not been made as per the exact vision of the person behind films like HAASIL, CHARAS, SHAGIRD and PAAN SINGH TOMAR. Yes, BULLETT RAJA too has got a part of that raw, unforgiving and realistic Tigmanshu feel in its initial moments using the local dialect and settings. But an all predictable screenplay & sloppy editing actually plays the main spoilt sport here wherein things keep happening too easily for the main lead and therefore their journey of becoming 'Political Commandos" from the common man largely remains less impressive and unconvincing. Still the film does have some irregular engaging moments arising out of its well written enjoyable dialogues in the first half, along with few poor songs.

But once many of its notable characters vanish altogether as per the story progression, it all becomes quite dull and the film falls drastically post intermission having nothing new to serve other than the usual revenge drama. To save it from sinking further, the writers bring in a fresh character of Vidyut Jammwal in the last 40 minutes of the film playing the tough inspector with some new twists and turns. But the move fails to provide any major lift and it all ends with an open climax as we have already seen several times before in the recent times.

In few words, the director who is known for coming up with some fresh films following his own unique way of execution surprisingly chooses a very poor story idea for his first mainstream project made with a big name. Plus throughout the film his famous touch is visible only in some characters in the beginning or in few scenes later on with some notable dialogues well rendered by the supporting cast. Further a few insertions are incorporated in a quite unintelligent way (unlike a Dhulia film), like the use of Skype in a confidential meeting straight connecting to the jail, the extreme facilities enjoyed by the power broker within the jail premises and particularly the dialogue mentioning Rani Laxmi Bai in the hotel room (What was it really??).

Moreover the intense emotional feel, visible in the director's previous films is completely missing in this and the viewers never feel connected to the ongoing affair between the lead pair not even once. Now whether this was a result of the director's sincere attempt to enter the commercial zone for the first time or the outcome of some external interference in his directorial vision cannot be said. But whatever the reason might be, the truth remains that this happens to be the weakest film of Tigmanshu Dhulia till date unarguably. Apart from its feeble story plot, the other major disappointment of BULLETT RAJA is its poor soundtrack and over use of songs unnecessarily. The background score too sounds both good and average at different places following an uneven path and cinematography could have made a stronger impact with a better editing. Promoted as an action film, the fight sequences do have a realistic feel but the action actually could really have been the key player here with Vidyut coming in earlier since he is the best one to display the art specifically.

Regarding its performances, the film is solely made for Saif alone and he tries hard to fit into the character doing all the home work. Yet, I found a lot missing in his honest portrayal of Raja Misra in terms of energy and that rustic feel, so couldn't relate to his on screen character frankly. On the other side, Jimmy Sheirgill once again displays his best in a Tigmanshu Dhulia project and holds the film strongly till he is there on the screen forming a fine team with Saif. Here I must add that the actor is a completely different person (arrogant and with a lot of attitude) when it comes to Punjabi films in particular. And Jimmy really needs to see into this difference of attitude at the earliest.

Playing the female lead, I wonder how on earth Sonakshi manages to act and enjoy the same kind of performance in almost every film of hers in a repetitive mode (except LOOTERA). Perhaps she is more interested in only quantity and not quality. Gulshan Grover & Raj Babbar are fine as usual but both Vipin Sharma and Shart Saxena leave a solid impact in their short roles. Chunky Pandey and Mahile Gill are there for only few scenes in the beginning. However to say the truth, BULLET RAJA would have been an entirely different film altogether with Vidyut Jammwal and Ravi Kissen having more lengthy roles in the script. Particularly Ravi Kissen whose highly interesting character of a cross-dressing man, remains wasted without given much to do.

Ending on a sour note, BULLETT RAJA doesn't have that thrill, excitement, freshness and honesty associated with the films made by one of the most promising director of our times, Tigmanshu Dhulia. Perhaps this is the cost a visionary director has to pay while working with big production houses and STARS following their specific instructions. So assuming that the makers would learn from their mistake made, I hope Tigmanshu returns back to his own school of film-making soon following his inner urge and gives us another gem in the future, taking BULLETT RAJA out of his system at the earliest.

Tigmanshu Dhulia's 'Bullett Raja' is An Ordinary Fare, that works only till it lasts. Though engaging in parts & superbly acted, this gangster-flick lacks sharp writing. One Expected More!

'Bullett Raja' Synopsis: A common man who transforms into a gangster revolts against the very system he once obediently followed by declaring war on the police, the government, and the industrialists.

'Bullett Raja' begins nicely & holds its momentum efficiently up-to interval. The second-hour is unconvincing, with most sequences lacking pace or sharpness. Even the twist in the climax isn't smart, but rather predictable. The Screenplay has merit in its first-hour, which is pretty interesting, but the second-hour disheartens. Tigmanshu Dhulia's Direction is passable. Cinematography, Editing & Art Design are adequate. Music by Sajid-Wajid is foot-tapping. Action-Sequences are terrific.

Performance-Wise: Saif Ali Khan excels as Raja. He suits the part & stands out with a tough performance. Sonakshi Sinha is nicely restrained in a brief role. Jimmy Shergill is excellent. His on-screen chemistry with Saif is delightful. Vidyut Jamwal is super in a cameo. This dude can do some kick-ass action for real! Gulshan Grover & Ravi Kishan are fabulous. Chunky Pandey is very impressive. Raj Babbar is flawless. Vishwajeet Pradhan is good. Vipin Sharma scores, as well.

On the whole, 'Bullett Raja' offers mild entertainment.

Dir. Mr. Tingmanshu Dhulia has taken a confused take on this political drama. This is not a film but a project, whether first you decide actors, then some action scenes, some love scenes and a political backdrop to create drama. Eventually no story comes as outcome. Screenplay is predicative besides few scenes. Dialogues by Director himself is very good. Even the opening dialogue of film is very impressive. Film looses logic at most of the places. If, a person thought about another to kill in his home only and the other person has arrived then what is the need to create childish drama, where he eventually kills him through blast? Because another person has few goons with him, so the blast was required and five minutes unnecessary screen time!!? Love between the lead pair is not well established. An I.A.S rank of officer thinks with his body muscles rather than his brain muscles!? He prefers to combat rather than plan, because this actor is good at fight!!! There are lots of things who indicate that role was considered according to actors caliber rather than the flow and requirement of film. A hard core villain pretends to become Radha and Police believe!!! Performance wise Saif Ali Khan is very good. Sonakshi Sinha has not very much scope but she is good. Raj Babber, Gulshan Grover, Jimmy Shergill, Sharat Saxena , Vipin Sharma are OK. Vidyut Jamwal is very good at stunt but not that much good at act. Ravi Kishan is fine. Music is also very average.

This is just a movie for Indians who wish to see things that are practically condemned these days around the world. Yes, the classic features and music and dance performances in a "spaghetti western" as other user wrote, but bullets come and go... and overreacting into violence on behalf of the gods... and all the world thinking the fundamentalism violence is exclusive from Muslims.

I saw the promotion done by interviews to the cast and particularly to Saif Khan, when I was living in India. He said he will use real weapons... honestly, you have to be very stupid, and risking the fact that manipulating real guns for films is more expensive and dangerous. But it's for the marketing, and if you believe it, and like it, well, that's the kind of human being you are. Story is entertaining, while the character Raja deals with his new enemies in life and protects damsels in perish.

If you love Indian culture and you still swallow that new age religious manipulated stuff of the spirituality in India, don't watch this movie, because is the reflection of the ideal "macho" Indian version. Which the whole opposite of those fantasies sold by the tourism industry.