Gardish

One of Priyadarshan's viciously underrated films...and in my opinion, Gardish is one of the most well acted Indian films ever. The story is of an aspiring policeman (Jackie Shroff) who gets caught in a web of hooliganism and the fight of his father (mesmerisingly played by Amrish Puri) to keep his son from becoming corrupt. The story may sound tried and tested but the results on screen are nothing short of amazing. Excellent direction by Priyadrashan, where he more than capably manages to portray the emotions of both father and son. The film never bores or loses the audience's attention because the screenplay is so flowing and relevant. I think Amrish Puri deserved a National Award for his performance and this is one of Jackie Shroff's most praiseworthy performances. The star of the show though, once again, is Amrish Puri (surely the most underrated actor to work in Bollywood). His performance rivals that of Amitabh Bachchan's in some of his classics such as Sholay and Silsila. If you like to be entertained by watching well acted, well directed and stimulating films, then you must watch this!

Gardish is a relief from the usual Bollywood masala movies where the plot is just an excuse for the hero to take on the bad guys and beat them black and blue. This film has a strong plot, good music, slick editing and good cinematography.

The story revolves around Shiva (Jackie Shroff) whose father's (Amrish Puri)dream is to see him become a police officer. However, circumstances compel Shiva to cross paths with a local thug Billa Jilani (Mukesh Rishi). One day while Billa beats up Shiva's father, Shiva decides to take matters into his own hands and beats up Billa severely, sending him to the hospital. While in the hospital, Billa contemplates taking revenge against Shiva and once he gets out of the hospital, he begins to terrorize the whole village and Shiva's family. Will Shiva take a stand against Billa or will he act according to his father's principles, putting his dreams of becoming a police officer to the fore?

The story is very well told and Priyadarshan did a really good job of keeping the viewer involved. I didn't know that Priyadarshan can direct an action film and that too with a good story and acting.

Jackie Shroff unquestionably gives the best performance of his career after Parinda. He proves that he is a director's actor and Priyadarshan succeeds in bringing the best out of him. Amrish Puri is excellent as Jackie's confused father and he proves yet again that he can carry off not just the negative but also the positive roles with aplomb. He has very large, expressive eyes conveying anger, sadness and fear painstakingly. Dimple Kapadia is also good as the prostitute and her last scene is heart wrenching. Raj Babbar succeeds in creating an impression in just a guest appearance.

Overall, Gardish is a good and thoughtful film. If you like meaningful cinemas, then this movie is for you to watch.

Gardish is a remake of the acclaimed Malayalam film Kireedam by Sibi Malayil, a versatile director who has directed many critically and commercially successful films in Malayalam.

Kireedam (the Crown, in Malayalam) among the Keralite population belongs to the folklore, a film unmatched and always among the top 15 or 20 brilliant films in Malayalam. No discussion on Malayalam films or its star Mohanlal is ever complete without mentioning Kireedom. The movie is also famous for catapulting Mohanlal (who was already a superstar then) to unimagined heights among the malayalees. The movie is also famous for winning the National award - Special mention to its lead actor. The climax scene in Kireedam where Mohanlal depicts a range of emotions of agony and pain which his character is going through, in a single take is unmatched till now, and I have read many discussions on the performance even among non-keralite and international audience, who have seen the movie. You can even google many articles on this performance.

Coming to its Hindi remake, Priyadarshan (another popular and accomplished director in Malayalam films) makes his second Hindi film and he does well by staying true to the script of Kireedam. I think this is the first movie which had the great Amrish Puri in a character role (long before DDLJ), a change from his villainous characters.

Probably Gardish will be remembered as one of the few films (along with Parinda), which had Jackie Shroff showing his acting skills and getting a Filmfare Best Actor nomination. Amrish Puri is excellent as the father, Dimple Kapadia is good and so is the cameo of Aishwariya (daughter of yesteryear actress Lakshmi, who played the lead in Hindi movie Julie). Suresh Oberoi and Mukesh Rishi also play their roles well.

How can the review of Gardish be complete without mentioning its music by the one and only RD Burman. 'Badal jo barsein tho', 'hum na samjhe the baat itni si' 'tum jho mile humko, tum jho mile ho', 'ye mera dil, tho pagal hain' are some of the popular tracks and can they ever be matched?

Overall, Gardish is a must watch.

Priyadarshan made some good serious films earlier before HERA PHERI

This is one of his best films ever

The story is well handled and the turn of events are well handled Amrish- Jackie scenes are a highlight and the way the film moves it keeps you on the edge till the end

The film may seem dry for some people but the way it is handled deserves kudos

Priyadarshan's direction is at it's best Music is okay

Jackie Shroff excels, this is one of his best performances Sadly we don't get to see such roles from him now Amrish Puri is another highlight, the veteran always gave his best in Priyan films Dimple is good Suresh Oberoi is likable Mukesh Rishi is okay rest are okay

The fight scenes and cinematography and an excellent screenplay mark this great Priyadarshan directed blockbuster.

Oustanding acting performance by Amrish Puri, Jacki Shroff, Mukesh Rishi, Dimple Kapadia, Asrani and Annu Kapoor.

The plot is this: Purshotam Kashinath Sathe (Amrish Puri) confiscates the van of the son of a Member Of Legislative Assembly (M.L.A).

In revenge the M.L.A transfers him to to the dangerous district of Kala Chowk where a thug known as Billa Jalani terrorizes the populous.

One day it so happens that P.K. Sathe is caught in a fight with Billa. Shiva P. Sathe, P.K Sathe's son (played by Jackie Shroff) intervenes, and strikes Billa's head with first a steel pail and then a metal rod. It seems that Billa has not died of that beating, but apparently recovering at a local hospital and plotting his full and final revenge against Shiva.

Who will prevail at the end, Billa or Shiva?