Damini

Damini was a well made film that dealt with a woman's lone battle against a male dominated society to get justice for a rape victim. The film had some very powerful sequences in the second half, with Sunny Deol taking control. The film is remembered for its screenplay and direction and excellent performances from 3 actors,Meenakshi Seshadri, Sunny Deol and Amrish Puri. Director Rajkumar Santoshi combined a socially relevant subject with commercial ingredients to deliver one of the best films of the year.

Sunny Deol was easily the scene stealer. Although Rishi Kapoor was the main lead, he walked away with several awards, including the National award. Amrish Puri delivered a memorable depiction of the corrupt lawyer, Chadda. Rishi Kapoor was just about okay. Nadeem-Shravan came up with an average musical score. Meenakshi and Aamir Khan's pairing in the song Bin Saajan Jhoola Jhulu was refreshing.

Meenakshi Seshadri gave Damini everything she had and she truly shone in a performance of a lifetime. All who watched this film knew that the best actress trophy belonged to no one else in 1993, but her. She portrayed the role of Damini Gupta with complete conviction. Honestly, how Juhi Chawla won for Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke over Meenakshi in Damini, is a mystery that remains unsolved till date. I have lost all respect for Filmfare ever since!

Powerful acting. Even Sunny Deol in the second half rocks with 'taarik pe taarik' and my favorite 'dhai kilo ka haath' dialogues. His act as a drunk lawyer is brilliant. If more Indians watch this, crime and corruption would go down. Great movie, especially with Sunny. Amrish Puri makes a great villain, although he is humorous at times as the corrupt lawyer named Chadda (what a name)! Anyways, the point is to take the stand for what is right. Speak out people! It is your right, and nobody can ever take that away from you. I would watch this for Sunny Deol, as he is my favorite action star. A movie like this is really thought-provoking and meaningful.

In my opinion 'Damini' is Rajkumar Santoshi's best work to date. Meenakshi Sheshadri gives a powerful and flawless performance in what can be described as a role of a lifetime, a part every actress would only dream for. However, the actress decided to call it quits because, rumour had it, she didn't win the best actress award. She only did a handful of films to keep up with her other commitments.

Damini is a simple honest young lady who lives with her poor parents and sister. To save her parents from misery, Damini's elder sister elopes with an alcoholic. A wealthy businessman Shekhar sets his eyes on Damini and falls in love. The two get married but Damini's in-laws keep their distant. A lonely Damini develops a close relationship with the young housemaid Urmi. During the holi festival, the whole household celebrate the colour and music with visitors. Damini's brother-in-law and his three friends gang-rape Urmi. A helpless Damini witnesses the horror and she desperately seeks help from Shekhar. But they're too late and Damini faints from the shock. Shekhar's brother and co dump Urmi's ravaged body in the gutter. When Damini is conscious, she wonders about Urmi and Shekhar assures her that Urmi's fine and receiving medical attention in the hospital but suddenly the police arrive and want to interrogate Damini. Shekhar begs Damini to 'lie' for the sake of the family honour. But Damini never lied in her life...

Definitely an innovative screenplay and Santoshi deserves full marks as a director especially for the way he builds up the tension without going over the top (in most cases). However, the courtroom sequences tend to be a little too dramatic.

There are very few songs but they provide a nice break and are melodious and pleasant.

Rishi Kapoor does well in a role with shades of gray. Same goes for Kulbushan Kharbanda. In a very brief role, Sunny Deol too is good (though he should have tried not to be too loud). Amrish Puri does well but his character is slightly caricatured. Ditto for Paresh Rawal.

But, 'Damini' is a one woman show and it rests entirely on Meenakshi Sheshadri's powerful performance. The actress is amazing and she finally gets a role that does full justice to her immense talent. Known to be one of the finest dancers (and yes, here too she dances with grace and energy), with 'Damini' she's proved to be one of the finest actresses of India. It would have been easy for an actress to mess up the role but Sheshadri portrays Damini's strength and vulnerability through her innocence and sincerity with gusto.

'Damini' is also a socially relevant film about the power of one. How the power of one voice can make a difference, how honesty is always best policy (as the truth shall prevail), to do what's right and always fight against injustice.

The great Rajkumar Santoshi delivers "Damini", a powerful, gripping and hauntingly fascinating picture which can be rightfully called a great relief at a time when most Hindi films were poorly written. This is the story of a young girl who marries into a wealthy family. One day, during the Holi festival she witnesses a horrifying incident of her brother in-law gang-raping the housemaid Umi along with his friends. She cannot get into the closed room, and seeks help from her husband, but the two are too late. When the police comes to interrogate Damini about the physically and emotionally ravaged Umi who lies in hospital, Damini, despite all the pressure coming from her in-laws and her own husband, says the entire truth, and that's how this is taken to court. The story narrates the nightmare Damini goes through only because she is decisively stuck by her stand.

Amazingly scripted and aptly executed, Damini shocks you with its unpredictable proceedings and its disturbing and brutally honest portrayal of rape, injustice and social ignorance, without overdoing any scene in this regard. Its main goal, however, is not to portray the society as bad or unfair, but to show the power of one, and in this case, the power of one simple yet strong woman who has nothing but her truth, and who is ready to face the entire world if necessary to go with this very truth. The film is aided by pleasant music, brilliant dialogues, good editing, effective cinematography, but what makes it stand out is of course Rajkumar Santoshi's fantastic direction. Santoshi pulls this project off and delivers a product that is laden with intensity, suspense and entertainment value. He pays attention to details and extracts first-rate performances from his actors and from Meenakshi Sheshadri in particular.

Meenakshi Sheshadri, in a role of a lifetime, acts like never before. An actress who was limited to insignificant roles of the wife and the love interest in mindless action films, she is simply outstanding as Damini. She is compelling, intense and very convincing throughout the film. I also liked the "nervous breakdown" dance number she did, like the one of Sridevi in Lamhe. This is an exceptional performance. The only other actor who stands out in a big way is Sunny Deol, whose character of the good lawyer comes as a great relief. This is one of his greatest performances. Other cast members include Rishi Kapoor, who makes no impact as 'the husband', Kulbhushan Kharbanda who is good as Rishi Kapoor's father, and Amrish Puri who is as brilliant as always as the corrupted lawyer. Damini is an incredibly interesting, disturbing and ultimately inspiring piece which should not be missed by anyone.

Rape is that heinous crime in which the culprit escapes punishment due to the social structure as well as the law being heavily tilted in his favour and the victim, i.e., the raped woman has no option but to swallow her tears and live her life with the unhealable wounds on her heart and soul. Mostly, such cases are either not registered or aborted before reaching the court. And even when any such case reaches the court of justice, the defendant's lawyer takes the advantage of the legal loopholes and save his client for whom the acquittal proves to be a moral booster to repeat the crime with someone else. Damini is a movie which deals with this issue with utmost gravity and sincerity.

There is one apex court above all the worldly courts, the court of conscience which no criminal or anybody aiding and abetting him can escape. Where all the worldly courts fail in their job, the court of conscience takes the charge. Though in today's world, hardcore criminals have buried their conscience also deep down the earth, never allowing it to surface agai; nevertheless conscience plays its role at least for those who are not tainted themselves but don't raise their voice due to the fear of social obloquy or blood relations with the culprits. This fact is emphatically brought to fore in the climax of Damini (lightning).

Damini (1993) starts with the love of Rishi Kapoor as Shekhar and Meenakshi Sheshadri being in the title role. Shekhar is the eldest son of a rich business house whereas Damini is from an ordinary family. Damini who is trying to adjust herself to the hostile environment in the family is stunned to see the maid being raped by her brother-in-law and his friends. She could not save her honour but then she makes up her mind to make her get justice. Quite naturally, she finds herself all alone in this compaign with all her in-laws going against her and her loving husband preferring to be the silent spectator to their activities in the name of the family's honour.

Situation gets from bad to worse for Damini when the maid is killed in the hospital, the crooked lawyer (Amrish Puri) hired by her in-laws proves her as insane in the court so that her testimony is not taken into cognizance by the court and even the sympathetic police inspector (Vijayendra Ghatge) also proves himself to be greedy of tangible beneifts instead of doing his duty diligently to ensure justice to the victim. Imprisoned in an asylum, everything seems to be bleak for her. But when she is able to escape from it, fortune make her cross path with another desperate person Govind (Sunny Deol) who, despite being a laywer, could not get justice when his wife was killed in a hit and run accident and is now trying to find solace in alcohol. In Damini's relentless quest for justice, Govind also gets a purpose for living. However since the criminals are too strong to allow any evidence against to survive, finally justice is ensured when the slept conscience of Shekhar awakens and the failure of worldly court is overshadowed by the victory of the court of Shekhar's conscience.

A hard-hitting movie, Damini is thoroughly impressive and keeps the viewer hooked throughout. It's an intense movie with only the songs providing some relief in between. The biggest credit for making this movie a success goes to its director Rajkumar Santoshi who has rendered utmost reality to the narrative sans the court-room scenes (especially those involving Sunny Deol). The theatricals in the court-room are the only unreal thing shown in the movie because nowhere in India (and the world too), such kind of rhetoric and shouting is allowed by the judges. Otherwise, the A class direction of Santoshi has kept the narrative not only engrossing but also hitting the conscience of the viewers at the appropriate places with appropriate force. Santoshi has crafted each and every scene with the finesse of a devoted artist. A very well made movie indeed.

Rajkumar Santoshi is said to have been in love with the heroine, Meenakshi Sheshadri (who is said to have turned down his proposal). May be due to this personal reason or otherwise, Santoshi gave the role of a lifetime and she excelled like anything. Obese Rishi Kapoor alongwith Amrish Puri and the supporting cast has done well. But it's Sunny Deol who remains with the audience after the movie is over. His over-the-top but very very effective performance make him win the national award for the best actor and his dialogues are still remembered by the people. He is brilliant not only in action and dialogue-delivery but also expressing his anguish and frustration through his gestures.

Technically the movie is A class. The length is quite OK and the production value is high. Dialogues (despite the rhetoric and the over-dramatic tone) are just like hitting the nail right on its head. Nadeem-Shravan's music is good with the beautiful lyrics having been penned by Sameer.

I recommend this socially relevant and eye-opening movie to all those who like meaningful cinema and who believe that the voice of your conscience cannot be suppressed or ignored forever.