Kanoon Kya Karega

"Kanoon Kya Karega"or "What can justice do"?got a very talented young director Mukul S Anand his first film award of the most promising director of the year in India.It succeeds in reproducing the spine chilling atmosphere of this famous story of a hardened criminals lust for revenge and the havoc it wreks on the family of the lawyer who sent him to prison.The sensitivity of the indian context and the rigour of the original render the sparing use of stock in trade mainstream indian cinema devices such as song and dance to further the thematic furthering of the narrative make it a must viewing for all Mukul S Anand fans.

Forgive the remaking of Cape Fear but this happens to be late Mukul Anand's best movie directorial. "Agneepath" is too cheesy compared to this.

The best things about this movie is the cast...Danny Dengzongpa is one terrific dude when it comes to menacing roles. This guy with his perfect Hindi diction (unaccented, clear, clean and modulated) could put to shame some of the biggest orators of moviedom, despite his Sikkimese background. It is absolutely a treat to hear him in his baritone voice. Of course, terrific body, perfect body language and that super-confidence that he shows on screen in any movie...in short GREAT ACTOR. Mukul gave him a good role...that of a real bad guy without a trace of remorse even after committing a brutal rape...looking at his eyes dilate in glee upon his misdeed makes you despise him thoroughly! The same guy goes through a crash course in patience and sophistication during his incarceration in prison for the rape charge and he comes out as a suave criminal mind capable of causing enough anxiety in his nemesis' mind without stepping an inch out of legal limits. Here is where natural Danny's super confidence helps him sketch out the character of a menacing stalker. And this is where his perfect Hindi diction helps him establish his masked menace.

Suresh Oberoi never played a lead role before or after...but I must give it to this baritone-gifted actor for brining to justice the role of an upright lawyer with a family to protect. Suresh brought out the anguish of a stalked family-man perfectly. The scenes where he loses his normal poise and cool when confronting Danny are wonderful and convey the anguish of a person who knows he is being stalked by a criminal but cannot book him under any law.

This cat and mouse game between the Lawyer (who was a deposing eye-witness to Danny's crime) and the criminal comes to a fitting climax.

A small detour is seen in the story in the form of Deepti Naval as an estranged wife of Suresh Oberoi who re-unite after a long time just before the menace of a stalking Danny starts to disrupt their life. The friction between the couple somehow adds up to the grimness of the situation.

Overall this was a well made movie without much wastage of footage to mindless comedy, songs or tear-jerking emotions. Made in the times when these elements were primary ingredients to a movie, this one goes a whole yard ahead in terms of quality and finish. A good movie for collections.

Kanoon Kya Karega review :

Inspired from Cape Fear, Kanoon Kya Karega was Mukul S Anands debut film and he went on to make super hits like Hum and Khuda Gawah with Amitabh Bachchan later. This film features Suresh Oberoi and Deepti Naval as a couple who are terrorised by a convict Danny who holds Suresh responsible for his jail term.

The same plot was also copied in Dharmendra - Shatrughan Sinha starrer Qayamat which also released around the same time.

Mukul Anand's directorial touch and technical finesse is evident in every frame of the film. There are couple of songs; one of them an item number filmed on Asha Sachdeva who had a pivotal role in it. Sharad Saxena was cast in a positive role for a change.

Overall, Kanoon Kya Karega is a one time watchable fare even if you have seen it's far superior Hollywood original. I had seen this film on VHS in late 80s and found it quite bold and different to fit in to that era.

Regards, Sumeet Nadkarni.