Kranti

A near 3 hour melodrama with aging actors playing young men, a messed up storyline, and then we have Indian actors wearing blonde wigs and makeup to play Britishers. How this movie became a blockbuster is beyond me. It has to rank among the most overrated Bollywood movies of all time.

The first time I saw this movie I was totally impressed. This movie about the Indian resistance fighting the British oppressors is nothing short of an epic. I was very young and could not know that this movie wasn't entirely realistic. The typical Bollywood themes (examples:mother loosing child in the beginning of the movie and then by force of faith or extreme luck to be reunited with the child who now is an adult,or the love story of the spoiled and stuck up woman in this case a princess played by the wonderful Hema Malini who falls in love with someone beneath her class,the leader of a resistance group,Manoj Kumar) are a bit much and certainly not fitting in a story like this. Manoj Kumar's take on history is a melodrama combined with a lot of action. But to be honest that also is the appeal of this movie. This movie isn't to show what really happened back then. No,it is meant to show the emotions of the people that were victims of the British colonization. In that aspect you can compare this movie to Hollywood productions like "Braveheart" or "The Patriot" both starring Mel Gibson. But even more important is the way Manoj Kumar has directed this movie. When looking at the structure of "Kranti" movies like "The Longest day" and "A bridge too far" come to mind. It has the same setup and feel to it. Only accompanied by the obligatory song and dance (which was good but often too much and too distracting). The great cast,the good direction and it's powerful message have made "Kranti" into a movie that can be watched over and over again. In my book that is called a classic.

Kranti is a historical drama film directed by Manoj Kumar It stars an ensemble cast of Late Dilip Kumar, Manoj Kumar, Late Shashi Kapoor, Shatrughan Sinha, Hema Malini, Late Parveen Babi and Prem Chopra.

Sanga forms a group of revolutionaries with the sole aim of driving the British out of India.

Kranti which was a rage upon it's release may be an outdated or over the top film but considering the time the film was released the film can indeed be called as a superb creation if not masterpiece and is now considered as cult classic of Indian cinema. The film indeed has some drawbacks particularly it's sleazy editing which breaks the continuity, the length of the film and the slow screenplay but still the film can be considered as a guilty pleasure for many.

The plot of the film consists of typical 80s plot with revenge, lost and found and off course patriotism and is been executed decently. The acting is good and almost all the characters were impressive and played their part superbly. Music of the film is superb and many of the songs are still very popular.

Despite of some flaws, lazy editing and length I would still recommend to watch the film and see one of the magnum opus of Indian Cinema consisting of many legendary star cast together.

Review By Kamal K

Movie is nice entertainer I enjoyed songs acting direction was good enough according to those times.

Great film with great songs. Have been humming the songs since watching it - check out www.dishant.com.

Saw it when i was young, and bought back a couple of memories, vaguely remember the film but you can never forget the wonderful songs.

The song, 'Zindagi ki na tote lari' was fantastic and very emotional, especially where the fantastic Hema Malini and Manoj Kumar are on the top deck, all wet and crying their eyes out, the picturisation was amazing and you really felt for both characters.

Why did Praveen Babi have such a short role in the film? Definitely recommend the film to others.