Rok Sako To Rok Lo

After a long time I have seen a film that scores well on all fronts. This film leaves a happy taste behind and creates a great feel good mania.

Acting of all the new comers is commendable and direction very good.

Music and lyrics are really nice and so is the story.

Best thing about the film is the climax that makes sure you are standing on one feet for entire 15-20 minutes. The confrontation scenes between the two school have a lot of energy and appeal. My nephew saw the film thrice and with his entire gang of friends who are as crazy.

I think Rok Sako to rok lo is one of my all time favorites!

Rok Sako…is one of the most heart-warming films ever made in Indian film history. It sensitizes the youthful spirit inside every one of us. Rok Sako is all about the evergreen spirit of sweet romantic simplicity, which we are so deprived of in the contemporary world of complexity and competition.

The film is like a nostalgic trip down the memory lane, the teenage days, when we were caught in the conflict of dreams and expectations …the growing up years, of winning and losing, of mischief and punishments, of friendships and innocence, the crushes and heart breaks…

Dev, the protagonist of the film, is like any other eccentric teenager from the humble Bharti school, indulges in his own world of dreams with his friends Ganguly, Bhajji, Venky and naive Manjari.

These five friends are tied together in an eternal bond of friendship. As they bask in the freshness of youth and the spirit of innocent adventure. Together they find their way through a maze of trials and tribulations. They however live in a carefree illusory world where lofty ambitions and preparations for a secure tomorrow have little meaning. Though driven by an invincible life spirit – rok sako to rok lo, Dev and his friends are no match against Ranveer, the undisputed champion from the snobby Valley High School. Ranveer lives large. He has all the luxuries most young ones his age aspire for. He also has Sanjana, the gorgeous buzz of the Valley school. Intimidated by the high-handed winning streak of Ranveer, Dev and his friends falter and fail. Enters Kabir into their life. Kabir, whom they refer to as Phantom, is a mysterious and seemingly unapproachable Harley Davidson biker who inspires awe in all. In an unexpected turn of events, Phantom rides into Suhana's life and eventually make friends with her gang. A loner himself, Kabir is drawn towards them by the magic of their innocent and unconditional friendship. With his unconventional wisdom, Kabir provokes Dev and his friends to stand up and face the challenges thrown against them. Dev's faith in friendship and his friends is reinforced. He discovers his first love, his true love. The film climaxes into a grand operatic crescendo as Dev, Suhana and friends for the first time ever live their life spirit – rok sako to rok lo, in its truest form.

Rok Sako To Rok Lo is a rich canvas of colors, emotions and true to life characters, with a very earthy feel. It is well blended with brilliant and youthful melodies making it a wholesome experience.

Note: The readers who have seen 'Jo Jeeta wohi sikandar' (1992) (JJWS) may skip the 'storyline' and directly proceed to the 'comment'.

The movie beings in scenic place with two rival schools Bharti and Valley High. Bharti School is a school for the modest lot (but who apparently live in palatial houses by Mumbai's standards). A group of friends led by the protagonist of the story Dev (Yash Pandit, a newcomer) and his dearest friends Suhana (Manjari Fadnis, another newcomer) Ganguli, Bhajji, Venki and Rati regularly freak together. Valley High on the other hand is the place for the spoilt brats Ranveer, Sanjana, Tango and Ziggy. A nearby coffee shop owned by Namrata Shirodkar is where the groups spend time regularly.

Both the schools have a predictable amount of rivalry in the Annual marathon (similar to the cycle race rivalry in JJWS). Valley is shown to be always interested in belittling the modest Bharti lot. Sanjana tries to play 'girl friend' with Dev and predictably, this causes envy to Suhana. But when Dev learns about Sanjana's motives, he is disappointed.

Enter Phantom (Sunny Deol) on a Harley Davidson. He seems to be the man Friday for Bharti's friends. He motivates Dev to go faster-higher-stronger towards winning the next year's marathon. Phantom gets a new Lexus SUV and takes his young friends out for a drive, with Dev driving it. A freak accident of the SUV kills Phantom. Dev is left grief-stricken. With a mixed feeling of guilt for Phantom's death and with a mind motivated by Phantom's words, Dev takes part in the marathon. The rest is predictable anyway.

Comment:

If you have read the above summary of the story, I'm sure that you would have been disappointed. Watching the movie would disappoint you further. The story absolutely lacks originality and is almost the same as JJWS. Arindam Choudhury's directorial skills are absolutely pathetic.

Performances are average, not due to the actors themselves, but due to the poor screenplay. Sunny Deol has no other role except showing off his Harley. Poor Namrata Shirodkar almost doesn't have a single dialogue in the movie. The lead actor Yash needs to shape up (viewers compare his role with the legend Amir Khan in JJWS). Manjari seems promising. The music is poor and there is hardly a song that you would feel like humming. The dance moves were hopeless.

Before, I say anything, let's all take a moment to laugh at Sunny Deol. Ha ha ha! He's so random in this movie. For the first half he comes in at any random scene, drives his "ooo aaa" (not really) motorcycle in his punk/don't-mess-with-me (not really) look with his scraggly long hair and ill-fitting leather jacket. No wonder all the "high school" students in the movie look up to him as their idol. (Actually, we all wonder.) It's so funny, in one his scenes, it's shows him driving in slow motion for a couple of seconds. It's not actually slow motion! He's just driving really slow, and he looks really dumb! Enough of Sunny Deol's "inspirational" role and back to the main story or lack thereof. I don't know what's going on with this movie but it seems like they're just trying to recreate the lame fresh/innocent atmosphere in the recent Barjatya films. The only thing worse than being lame is trying to be lame, making you even more lame. Songs were terrible except for the title track, which was good. The main actor and actress gave good debuts. If you have nothing better to do (which I'm sure is not true), watch this movie just to laugh at Sunny Deol.

The film Rok Sako To Rok Lo is out rightly a winner with its target audience. Rok Sako.., though less likely to tickle the mature sanity of the seniors, is capable of effectively titillating the juvenile wits of the young. But if you've decided and hit your target audience, it's a prudent contraption.

The packaging and look & feel of the film is rich & colorful. The faces look fresh. The biggest trump card of the film is its music. All songs are urbanely melodious and better than each other. They also fit into the situations quite well. Cinematography and lighting is top of the line.

The story of the film is also encapsulating. Where few casual viewers relate the story to Jo Jita… I think it shall be unfair to draw this parallel. A film cannot be baptized a copy only because a similar event happened in another film… it's very convenient to say so… In that case all love stories are copies of each other, all films that use motorbikes or cars as heroic props are.. all war films are.. all period films are… and so on.

Rok Sako To Rok Lo stands out by sheer quality of its production. The scenes depicting immature love are directed with dense maturity. Debutante director Arindam Chaudhuri does not make the audience feel he's a first timer. He has made the film with refined finesse. For someone directing his first film, that too with first timers in the lead role and a heavyweight (Sunny Deol) to manage in a special role, it's a directorial triumph.

Rok Sako.. leaves behind a positive taste and cuts like a warm knife in butter.. throughout its duration. It's a good family entertainer especially if you have school going kids in your family. I hope more such films are made in India that not only entertain but also leave behind a strong message and cuts away from the usual and boring. All brawny points to Rok Sako..