Shaitan

Shaitan, when i first heard of the title i thought it was was weird. Anurag, the producer has always been associated with different cinema, some great (Udaan), some quite bad (No Smoking) and some weird (Dev D). I thought that this would also be in the later category of weird. But I was curious, I wanted to check it out. Some subconscious inside me was telling me that this is gonna be good. Well my subconscious was spot on. This is one film that is not to be missed. To all my international friends who think bollywood is all about song and dance will sit up to this movie. On the downside this movie is not for everyone. The old and the still not adult category may not like it. It has some disturbing shots but are actually a piece of art. This is what cinema is all about, The ART. The film excels in all the departments, both on and off the camera. screenplay and direction are of the highest quality, cinematography and editing is breathtaking, background score is superb and the music is in sync with the film. The film has an ensemble cast and each and every character shines in their respective roles. Very good characterization also helps in their performance. This film like Udaan has a long long way to go. Everuone like it or not, But do WATCH IT

The movie as I guessed earlier, is a revamped version of Anurag Kashyap directorial debut (which is still in the claws of Indian Censor Board) "Paanch" starring Kay Kay Menon.And now after almost a decade of his first yet unreleased movie, Anurag Kashyap producing this movie and getting it through the censor board without any cuts is a good slam to the Indian Censor Board. Clearly the movie is more intense and dark than Paanch. The movie is a way more profane with mild to severe abuses, implicit sex and nudity, and explicit violent scenes. And yet the movie has passed without a cut (showing a fact that censorship has improved a lot).

The movie is almost perfect on cinematic aspects. Casting and Direction is flawless.Cinematography is something best I have seen so far. Every scene is shot in the ultra stylish way leading to a brilliant story telling.Music and background score adds a new dimension to the movie.

First half of the movie is extremely engaging and entertaining, the second half lacks a bit by predictable turns and twists.

All the subplots of the movie like their characters are very strong take it as subtle love story of Rajeev Khandelwal (So graceful on the screen) or the one with Amy's mother, every character has its own story to tell and they tell it in their own ultra stylish way.

The "Shubhu" cameo (By someone who has done commendable job in AK's last produced movie) and Nikhil Chinnapa add the surprise factor to the movie.

Yet again a brilliant piece of cinema by Anurag Kashyap Production and kudos to Bijoy Nambiar.

Newbie director Bejoy Nambiar certainly has got himself an impressive if not a mind-blowing debut. And the young actors have done justice to his quirky script & storytelling technique.

You can recognize new age cinema with its 'hatke' script, youthful actors and edgy storytelling / narration. And when you go see Shaitaan you can see all of it there.

The story opens with brief introductory scenes of the lead characters that give you an insight into what each character's personality is like. The story unfolds to show an unruly group of spoilt brat teenagers who believe in the adage 'if you got it, you gotta flaunt it'.

A NRIs daughter Amy (Kalki Koelchin), with a traumatic past, is new in town. She joins the spoilt teenager group and finally starts to enjoy her life. After a night of partying, drinking, doing drugs & racing their Hummer on the empty roads, these guys happen to mow down two innocent people and subsequently flee the scene.

At this point the story actually starts taking pace. In order to escape judicial custody they make an arrangement with a cop who for a huge sum of money will take care of their case. Since none of them has enough money to pay the cop off, they hatch a plan of staging the kidnapping of Amy and demanding the ransom money.

From here the story starts to spiral towards things that neither of them imagined would happen. What was considered to be a harmless plan turns out to be something that will change their lives forever.

This movie is a classic example of how peer pressures and herd mentality can actually make the sanest of people do things that they wouldn't normally do, only to realize it when it's too late.

There is also a parallel track running of the cop Mathur (Rajeev Khandelwal) who has been given the responsibility of handling the case. Along with his professional life, we get to see glimpses of his personal life & the problems he is facing in his marriage. In fact in the end you realize that it isn't easy being a cop where you have the responsibility of protecting the nation with a measly salary being paid for it.

The story is interspersed with clever narration techniques and flashbacks which make the film edgy.

The end makes you feel sorry for the characters & makes you question practicality vs. idealism.

A decent watch I say.

Read more reviews at www.jhakaasyabakwaas.wordpress.com

Since the trailers were first out I have been waiting for the film. The song Bali, suits the trailer best. I did miss the first day first show and a few more days and shows consequently, but today I finally got a chance. Shaitan starts with Anurag Kashyap giving a social message. Yes the 'lazy ass ranter', starts the film telling youngsters that alcohol, drugs, cigarettes etc., are bad for them. While if the dialog was start taking drugs, start life, the quote 'well begun is half done' would have been so apt. The scenes from the asylum give us a hint that the movie is on the insane end of brain, like most of Anurag's films are. Then again we have typical scenes, fast introductions, normal 'I hate my parents' people and alcohol and drugs and a lot of drugs. After wild parties, cranky dialogs and a couple of kisses, you reach the scene which has created the hype. The accident scene. And yes, the scene lives up to the hype, it is a great milestone in Hindi cinema. But just a few moment more and you'll have the moment. The moment you'll scream , "What the f***, this is the story of Paanch" and that would sure turn you off, completely! But as the film proceeds you do notice remarkable differences and slowly it attracts your interest. Then the fast paced action, the haunting music, Rajeev Khandelwal's grit and Kalki's neurotic expressions when she is high, makes you want to forgive all the negative aspects of the movie and makes you an instant fan. Remarkable scenes :- When KC asks Amy to open a 'joint account', the accident scene(of course), the crashing of the beer bottle and a TV set, by KC and Dash respectively, on the heads of two guys who were 'teasing' and 'more than teasing' their girls, Khoya Khoya Chand(thats already a rage), the shot where Inspector Arvind Mathur flashes from behind a bed and kills a junkie(though you can't possibly save yourself from machine gun fires with a mattress) and Amy's hallucinations of her mom when she is high in the 'Church'(thats Anurag Kashyap). The weak points of the movie were :- Obviously the script, it could have been better. The director was confused whether he was making a thriller or a black comedy. Too much time wasted on the camera work and special effects. The German girl wasn't really German. The good points were :- The camera work, indeed. Cinematography. The music, especially Bali and Fareeda. The acting – all of the actors have done a very very good job, but special credits to Rajeev Khandelwal and Kalki. In the end, Shaitan is a good film. It is definitely not great! And if you do think otherwise, watch Paanch. You'll know what Bollywood really needs. You'll know who Anurag Kashyap really is!

We all have some inner demons which we keep suppressing inside us. Some of us succeed and some of us don't. Shaitan, the movie, is also a tale of some entities fighting their inner demons while they are involved in a web of events that unfold as a result of a self-inflicted horror on their lives. Shaitan is a contemporary cinematic experience that explores the dark sides of humans belonging to different backgrounds.

It's difficult to draw parallels of Shaitan with movies we have seen before. A road accident ala 'I Know What You Did Last Summer', a young girl staging her own kidnapping ala 'Khiladi' and wild youth ala 'Rung De Basanti' maybe, but that's all there is in comparisons. When the debutant director Bijoy Nambiar combines these stories with other intriguing elements of Shaitan, they become a completely innovative experience never told to the Indian audience before. Luckily, Shaitan does not rely solely on these events. It offers much more to the audience in story and not just story, it simply excels in other departments too. It does have some gruesome details of torture and substance abuse, hence, the A certificate, but it's definitely not a Rakht Charitra. At times, it even got the audience into fits of laughter.

Kalki, as Amy, is a mother-less teenaged daughter of a rich engineer, who despises her step mother. She befriends a gang of outrageous youth and together with them gets involved in a crime. Enter Rajiv Khandelwal (Aamir and Sujal Garewal fame) as the belligerent, underpaid, hard-hitting cop who is also going through troubled marriage. It's a gripping story that has been told very well. By far the best work in 2011. Bijoy drives straight from Mani Ratnam way of film making. Authentic and intense.

Shaitan features the group of youngsters as the main cast; however, it never expects the audience to sympathize with them. The treatment and screenplay is spellbinding right from the introduction of the cast. The film is very strong on technical grounds. Madhi has done a phenomenal job with the camera. Watch out for the scenes in the church, views from inside a beer bottle from the center of a cricket bat etc. Sound design and Kunal Shamra's background scores are simply brilliant. 'O Yaara' is a beautiful song. 'Hawa Hawaii' of Mister India has been featured in a unique way but good old 'Khoya Khoya Chand' on a gun fight sequence is just mind blowing. That gun fight sequence itself is the best part of the entire film and something that has never shown in Hindi cinema before.

On performances, Shaitan a power house. Kalki steals the show with her genuine portrayal of a disturbed child. She is unbelievably good in drugs scenes and in her portrayals of insensitivity. Rajiv is not far behind either, although, his role is lesser than Kalki's. Kashyap and Binoy have gathered a wonderful ensemble cast for this project. Pawan Malhotra, Shiv Pandit, Gulshan Devaiya and Neil Bhoopalam etc. have done their respective jobs with sincerity. Nitin of MTV is a pleasant surprise. The actress playing a cameo as the divorce lawyer in the court scene is remarkable.

The film does have some low points which could have been handled in a better way. The repetitive emergence of Kalki's mother's sequence could have been avoided at some places. It was overdone and not explained well, although shot with utmost appetizing camera work. Kirti Kulhari who plays young actress in the group could have done a better job. Even her character towards the second half, lacks the intensity it showed in the beginning sequences. The humor sequence of an informer's Nikah was unnecessary. The reason why Rajiv and his wife are having troubled marriage has not been explained. These things have little impact on the overall film and story but could have improved it further.

Anurag would not cast a KHAN in his productions and will probably never sign up Pritam for the music. Kashyap brand of Indian cinema will always be unique but is also expected to have a limited audience. He experimented with a debutant director for Udaan and created a masterpiece. He has almost done it again with another debutant director Bijoy and has created another modern day classic. Anurag has little left to prove to the world that he can make beautiful films. What he does still need is to prove is that his films can do wonders on the box office. Shaitan, is a colossal attempt, however, it's still unlikely to set box-office ablaze. Watch it before it's off the cinemas already.