Raajneeti

Mahabharat returns in Prakash Jha's 'Raajneeti'. This one is a Masterstroke! Jha makes a film about politics, it's players and it's history.

What works the most for 'Raajneeti' is it's inspiration. Jha and Anjum Rajabali's screenplay is water-tight, the first hour, especially, is fantastic. It's a winner, because it's a drama that creates an impact of it's own. Jha's direction is superb, and performances are award-worthy. Despite, a running time of over 2 Hours and 30 Minutes, this film is a must watch!

Jha and Rajabali's screenplay is water-tight, Jha's direction is superb. The Performances: Manoj Bajpayee is fantastic. He is sure to take away all the awards in the Supporting Actor category next year. Nana Patekar is, as always, flawless. Ranbir Kapoor is wonderfully restrained. Ajay is good, but he deserved more scope. Arjun Rampal is superb. Naseeruddin Shah in a cameo, is effective. Katrina speaks Hindi, and does a fair job. Nikhila Trikha is excellent. Shruti Seth is good. Others are perfect. The Camera-Work is killer.

'Raajneeti' is not to be missed. 2010 brings it's first power-packed venture! Two Thumbs Up!

I didn't have high expectations from the movie, even then it failed to impress me. There were a lot of things happening very fast, seemed like it was over-packed with events and turns but surprise element was missing. Dialogues were average and seemed stupid in many scenes, like the conversation between Ajay Devgan and Ranbeer's mother, and the conversation between Katrina and Ranbeer in one of the last scenes where she announces her pregnancy.

Arjun Rampal was looking out of place, and wasn't carrying the aggression and rawness required for his character, he was too polished. Ranbir Kapoor acted good and carried the Micheal Corleone act well. Not to mention he had a lot of scope as his character was central, but again this was one of the flaws because it left very little for the rivalry between him and Ajay Devgan, who still made his presence felt in all the scenes and did justice to his role. Manoj Bajpei was also good but lacked sharpness needed for his character, if his character could just carried the confidence he showed up in Veer Zara. To summarize mostly all the characters were under developed. Katrina's transformation into a loving wife was so sudden that it looked awkward.

Katrina as a political leader waiving hands looked awkward because of the way the scenes were shot. Dialogues and character development is the basic flaw along with not so good editing, or the movie could have been very good.

That scene of Arjun Rampal after killing the police officer was executed well and had the necessary terror element, however there was so much of blood bath in the movie that it came and went like an ordinary scene.Nana Patekar was OK in his role.

I would rate 6 out of 10.

If this were a typical Hollywood political thriller, it would be clear which folks were the nasty ones and which were the heroes. If this were a typical Bollywood film, there would be plenty of dancing and the usual generational conflicts. But Raajneeti is neither; surely it is a political thriller, but because it upends expectations, some viewers are disappointed it doesn't deliver what they expect. Granted, it might be a richer film from Westerners if they were more familiar with the complexities of politics in another country, but if you approach this film for what it is--a political thriller with a heavy dollop of family melodrama and a good deal of violence, adding numerous rich characterizations and brilliant color, you might find it hugely entertaining

Even if you do not know before going into the movie, it is evident in the first few minutes that the film draws heavily from the epic of Mahabharata. From the basic plot to the characters. Your palms will get sweaty a few times if you can relate to it.

Ranbir Kapoor is our modern day Arjun & Krishna woven into one. All characters in the movie have shades of gray and Ranbir is no exception. He is a strategist who is not afraid to go the bloody mile. Being a young actor in a multi starer can be tricky, but Ranbir does emerge on top, thereby setting the pace for more serious & deeper roles in the future. Nana Patekar is so subtle & understated that he takes the film forward effortlessly. No yelling, just shrewd smiles. Ajay Devgn proves yet again that he is past the stage where he needs screen time to justify his role. He easily enters into the skin of the modern day Karna, letting Manoj Bajpai as Duryodhan take center stage. And Bajpai, justifies every minute of his presence on screen. Arjun Rampal has his moments in the sun. Katrina impresses mainly through her improved Hindi. This is definitely not the role that she was hoping would get her a national award.

Subtlety is not a mark of Prakash Jha's cinema. From Gangajal to Apaharan to Raajneeti, all are in your face dramas. Raajneeti, if I may say, would be his most commercial outing in some time. We have very mainstream actors, a grand scale in the sheer number of crowds, bloody violence, cars going up in flames & people killing each other left, right & center.

Even for its 3 hour run time, some scenes & sequences do seem rushed in a bit. Nasserudin Shah has as much a presence in the film as he has on the posters. He is not in the film if you are five minutes late to the movie. All our political men are ultra virile & the females- ultra fertile. There is also a needless club song. Then, there are car bombs & a climactic gun battle that is a bit over the top just like all Prakash Jha films. It could have been kept tighter & more believable.

But that said, the film is a gripping tale with very intensely executed pieces and careful attention to detail. The basic premise remains that of the Mahabharata, but the film is not limited to that. It is fast paced and there is seldom a loose moment. It is not Jha's best work, not even close. But I am tempted to rate it highly for the power packed performances & the gripping screenplay.

I say 3.5 on 5

To say that the film has influence from Francis Ford Coppola's Godfather is not without merit. After all, it has references such as the bloody bed scene (without involving a horse head), deaths of similar characters, and of course, the story of the rise of the youngest, most promising child of the household, here played by Ranbir Kapoor, into the bitter orchestrator of his political party's campaign for the Chief Ministership, complete with an overpowering vendetta of revenge and honour. Ranbir's Samar Pratap role is perhaps the juiciest of the lot here, given his transformation into someone cold and calculated, who will not hesitate to give up his emotions in order to manipulate others into doing his bidding, all moves played out like a chess game in order to advance his cause.

And the other persona in the film given a transformation at that level, is Katrina Kaif's Indu, an impetuous girl deeply in love with Samar, who also has to give up feelings more as a matter of instruction by her industrialist father, who sees donations to political campaigns and marriages as a sealing of alliances for favours and benefits, highlighting the clout that campaign donators wield over the politicians they support. Katrina's role is something you'll notice right away, as she disappears into a mature woman taking on seasoned politicians riding on her wave of sympathy, and in a way resembles through her demeanour, very much like Sonia Gandhi. A pity though that this interesting turn only takes place in the last act, having to disappear very much in the middle of the film.

Which is probably why it was reported that one of the stars felt disappointed with the film being billed as a Kapoor-Kaif starrer, with posters having these the two characters taking centerstage. But who can blame the marketers, as they had starred in the highly successful and popular Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani in 2009, and most certainly the filmmakers will want to tap on that same crowd to come into and experience a thematically heavier film. What more, these are the two characters that experience change, much unlike the others who play seasoned politicians who are entrenched into the way they work and operate, leaving room for schemes to enter through the blind side, in a game of threats and counterthreats that you can easily see looming, to gain the upper hand leading to ballots being cast.

Prakash Jha crafts a web of character relationships that you'll need to mind-map as the film moves along, introducing key characters and influencers in this family dynasty politics, where the early generation of alliance between brothers, break out into a power struggle for party leadership amongst the next generation between cousins. It's very much dirty business, and Jha, a one time politician, provides plenty for the audience as he goes into sub plots and elements involving corruption across ranks, the ineptness of the police force, tactics in getting mass support, and how through the greasing of the right palms, one gets ballots by the village-load. And if all else fails, there's always the nod toward the enforcer type to flex some muscles, and political assassinations too fall into fair play. It's an extremely dirty business, and it's somehow a sneak peek into how Indian politics get played.

The ensemble cast shouldn't be overlooked as well, with Arjun Rampal's Prithviraj the hot- headed brother of Samar who on one hand is being propelled to lead his breakaway party and yet having a character that's less than noble, and Manoj Bajpai is excellent as Veerendra Pratap who's constantly finding himself not in the driver's seat of events, and have to rely on heavy muscle to keep the competition away. The villains here seem more sympathetic as they cannot find viable solutions to their predicament, and have to boil everything down to violence. Nana Patekar's Brij Gopal also shined as the unfailing mentor who has experience to count on in his repertoire of tricks up his sleeve, and has a key role to play in the falling out of the established dynasty.

I suppose a film like this cannot possibly be made here until our state of industry and politics mature to a stage where filmmakers can tell a story without the innate fear of harassment, though Jha did get requests by the censors to tone down some scenes and change some dialogues, which was complied with. The film turned out as an average epic much to my disappointment as I expected a lot, but it did have moments which stood out from the usual cookie cutter. It's not great, but it did enough to share a glimpse into the shady world of politics and the less than angelic politicians who struggle with each other for the vote of the populace.