Shahid

Saw this film today and couldn't resist coming to IMDb and look at this movie's page.I was shocked to see the 6.7 rating and read the 3 reviews which give 7 stars(hopefully that will change).Now,it could be just that not everyone likes this movie as much as I do.But,when I think about it there is not a single thing about this movie that you can criticize.This movie is as underrated as you can find.Acting by every actor in the film is top-notch.But,the acting of protagonist's mother and Kay Kay Menon are something exceptional.Cinematography is also good compared to other Indian movies.If this movie had a more famous actor like Aamir Khan or Akshay Kumar,I am sure I wouldn't have write this review.Story is both cruel and sweet. If you have not seen it till now and you are reading this then STOP AND WATCH IT NOW.You will not regret this.I know you have read previous two lines in reviews of almost every random movie but I really mean it.Even though I have viewed it only once,I can tell you that this movie will be among my favorite films. A must watch for every Muslim brother in India,Pakistan and Bangladesh. In fact,a must watch for anyone who can understand Hindi.

Shahid is a must-see film with an absolutely impeccable sub text that can be read as an urgent warning against the politics of isolation practiced by many political parties.

watched the movie last night and thought this is one of the best movie i have seen in a long time.... a true story of a person fighting for truth.... a must watch for sure..... just amazing to see there are people like this in this world who would dedicate their life for justice and in their quest they will stop at nothing..... my salute to shahid azmi about i did not know before i saw this movie.... salute to hansal mehta for daring to make this movie..... a good quote made by the movie reviewer

"Shahid deserves more than just a standing ovation. It deserves accolades for standing up to be counted and narrating the kind of story that is usually buried under mainstream media cacophony.

The fact that Shahid has got to a multiplex near you should also be applauded and made the most of. Go and watch the film – it is one of the most important films to come out of Mumbai in a long, long time" Best tribute to Shahid Azmi by Hansal Mehta, very inspirational true life story.

When i went to this movie in NJ, the theater was empty. The show was only for me alone. But i am glad that i haven't missed this movie. This is a honest attempt to make a nice movie. All the characters were well chosen for this movie and they played there part. Its a good movie for every country that had been target by terrorist attacks. And this is a movie for those extremists who are making normal people life a big hell. A must watch movie. Thanks to the director for showing true things that happens after attacks which majority of the people don't know. Wish more movies of this kind are produced and directed. You need lot of patience to watch this movie and this is not your regular masala entertainment.

A true story of a selfless protagonist, fighting for the freedom of falsely framed victims of a minority community, this is about SHAHID AZMI, a noted lawyer who was killed in his own Kurla office in February 2010 by some unidentified men. With a mix of more facts and less fiction, director Hansal Mehta makes this best film of his career in a pure realistic style, as an absorbing documentation of the life of Shahid Azmi which is going to be a fascinating yet disturbing cinematic experience for many. Shot at actual locations with an immensely likable touch of romance in this otherwise unkind portrayal, the film reaches its peak with all the gripping courtroom scenes filmed in the most authentic manner rarely seen before in a Hindi film in particular. SHAHID grabs you from the collars within the first 10 minutes itself, especially in the scene wherein even a mother is scared to open the door of their hideouts in the riots, listening to the voice of her son knocking at it constantly. And once you get into the grim, shocking world of Shahid's valuable life, Mehta never lets you move out of it even for a minute, in the next 100 minutes of his film very convincingly.

Apart from its scary & unbelievable kind of real life account of a lawyer, what makes SHAHID hit you hard is its sharp editing, flawless casting and superb, realistic performances from the entire talented cast. Perfectly played by Raj Kumar Yadav, the actor goes deep down the skin of his character and surely becomes a strong contender of many worth deserving awards this year. Such is the authenticity in his performance that after watching him, one feels like having met the real SHAHID and for that both the actor and his director truly deserve all the praises showered upon them in the last few months. Other than Raj, there are two names in the film playing the female Muslim characters perfectly and the ease, with which they play their respective difficult characters, clearly proves the true talent of these ladies undoubtedly. The names are Prabhleen Kaur and Baljinder Kaur (Shahid's mother) and they do provide a strong visible support to Raj Kumar's towering performance along with subtle Mohammed Zeeshan Ayub,silently playing his helpful brother. As the public prosecutor, Vipin Sharma once again proves that he is a remarkable actor. Plus Kay Kay Menon & Tigmanshu Dhulia, truly impress in their small cameos, as expected. Also Shalini Vatsa, Prabal Punjabi and Mukesh Chhabra turn out to be a very valuable addition to the supporting cast with their truthful acts.

Considering the film from a general public viewpoint, one might find few glitches in it related with Shahid's Pakistani training camp days and his escape from there, shown in just a few scenes. Moreover Kay Kay simply vanishing from the story progression to never return later may also tease many (like myself). But these few points are not solid enough to bring down the excellence achieved by the team in its overall depiction and thus need to be ignored to attain a bigger and much important social objective as desired.

Personally, more than the film, it is the message, the purpose and the mission of the man named SHAHID, which forces me to include it in my must see movies list right away, particularly for the Indian viewers, who are facing this religious clash everyday like an inseparable issue of our multi-cultured society.

Specifically talking about the unsung hero of many victim families from the minority, SHAHID is an important document bringing to us an iconic name of our social system, not known to majority of people living in the other parts of the country. And the reason for this shameful mass ignorance ironically lays in the way our media works, which actually holds back the positive news for their obvious reasons and always spreads the negative word around in a much stronger and deliberate manner to gain some instant attention. Probably that is the reason why we very well know about the men who made important arrests at those crucial times of crisis but don't really know about the man who got many innocents out of the jail after few years, rightly fighting the court of law with his own sincere efforts.

For instance, be it Mumbai, Kashmir, Punjab, Gujarat, Assam or any other region of our country, we always get to hear and read the news of suspected terrorists arrested from anywhere and it's at once all over the media as their main focus. But whenever the same court serves justice making those 'framed people' free after having proved innocent, very seldom we get to hear about them on the channels or respectfully mentioned in the headlines on the first page. The poor coverage of such cases, don't let us know about many courageous and human right activists like SHAHID AZMI and therefore the film presented on his life is indeed a very vital and major contribution made by Hansal Mehta and his team to Indian Cinema as well to Indian social system, embracing diverse religious beliefs since centuries. Practicing as the lawyer for such special framed cases, Shahid had an astonishing record of getting 17 acquittals from the court in his short career span of only seven years. And even thinking about those 17 families greeting their wrongly framed members back in home is enough to make you realize the relevance & importance of this historical achievement made by the makers of SHAHID.

So if you are willing to see a rare kind of alarming as well as enlightening biographical film made on a true fighter who always fought for others in his forcibly shortened life of only 32 years, then do watch SHAHID as a must and celebrate this new triumph of Indian cinema made for a cause.

Watched this movie recently and i was simply too much impressed with its script, acting, and direction all were just too natural, real and perfect, hardly i realized in 150 minutes that i am watching a movie.

The story was very sensitive as it was based on real life of Late lawyer Shahid Azmi who known for his high acquittal rate specially of terror accused who are falsely implicated in terror cased being poor and helpless, he was gunned down by unknown men in his office on Feb 2010 as he was defending the accused of 26/11 Fahim khan.

The story is portrayed in such a gripping, yet responsible manner that it makes you hold your attention right from the beginning where we first meet Shahid as a young boy scarred by the barbaric violence during the communal riots of Mumbai in 1993. The devastating impact of those events prompts him to join a terrorist training camp in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. But in a terrific scene that illustrates the actor's ability to convey volumes without the crutch of words, he changes his mind and heads back home.

Shahid spent 6 years in Tihar jail along with the other terror accused, and kept hope and continued his studies being in Jail and latter was acquitted by the court after 6 years as there was no evidence found against him.

A scene that stings with honesty, Shahid asks a packed courtroom if an accused by the name of Matthew, Donald, Suresh, or More, would be singled out and subjected to the same injustice as his client Zaheer, who has remained in jail for a year-and-a-half although no evidence could be gathered against him.

This film has remarkable cast and their perfect performances. Particularly worthy of mention: Prabhleen Sandhu as Shahid's wife Mariam, who brings depth and real feeling. Also, Mohammad Zeeshan Ayyub (last seen playing Dhanush's friend in Raanjhanaa), wonderful as Shahid's trusted sibling Khalid. Expectedly it's Rajkumar Yadav who provides the soul of this fearless film. Relying on minimalist instinctive acting over loud theatrics, he delivers his second winning performance this year after Kai Po Che.

Shahid according to me is GEM of a movie produced in recent years. Its hard to find such movies these days , where a good movie is only defined by how much money it has made.

My rating 10/10