I began this final blog of the year planning to write about Rahul Gandhi and his decision to skip parliament. Honestly, I felt uninspired by the topic. However, after watching the Hindi movie 'Dhurandhar' yesterday, my entire perspective shifted. 'Dhurandhar' is a gripping political thriller that explores the intricate ties between terrorism, politics, and intelligence operations in India. The film struck a deep chord with me, evoking a sense of urgency and concern about the political landscape. Its powerful storytelling and raw depiction of events left me both moved and alarmed. It made me reflect on the stark realities of political decisions and reinforced my resolve not to vote for Rahul Gandhi or the Congress Party. How did we even survive the Manmohan Singh era?
The Plotline:
The plotline was not easy to present. The time period spans over a decade, and the movie covers some of the most bloody and inhumane acts of barbarity against India, including events inspired by the actual Kandahar hijacking and the gruesome 26/11 Mumbai attacks. The film also imagines mafia violence happening in Karachi intertwined with these occurrences. These events are woven into the perspective of a fictional Indian undercover operative who has deeply embedded himself into the unholy nexus of ISI, the Karachi underworld, and corrupt Indian politicians (at least, one of those politicians' names rhymes with 'findambaram'). This complex task was masterfully handled by Aditya Dhar, who directed and co-wrote the movie. As Indian political will steels up, Indian intelligence devises a desperate plan to safeguard its innocent civilians. Agencies plant Indian undercover operatives and set a long-term plan in motion. The film’s second part is already much anticipated.
Why does it work?
Simply put, the movie is outstanding. It’s subtle at times, but it goes all out during some fight scenes. While it has all the elements of a typical Hindi masala film, the filmmakers respect the audience’s intelligence. The script is layered but always clear. The violence is graphic, but it feels necessary. The story is based on real events, and I believe the actual events were even more brutal. Some critics quickly labeled the film as propaganda. I hadn’t heard much about it before the first trailer, but after seeing the backlash from certain groups, I suspected it would be impressive. If showing the harsh reality is propaganda, then so be it. The film succeeds both as a movie and in its message. It entertains while also highlighting the ongoing threat of Islamic religious extremism and the lack of political will to protect innocent people at the time. Particularly, the events of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack and the 2001 Parliament attack were skillfully shown. The usage of real-life footage, the humanization of innocents, as well as the security personnel who were killed, using real audio of a Pakistani handler directing terrorists in Mumbai after watching utterly shameful coverage of Indian media (ahem...the name that rhymes with ‘Darkha’!) cuts too deep. The jubilation shown by the perpetrators shows how the anti-India and anti-Hindu sentiment runs deeply within Pakistan. Kudos to Aditya Dhar for creating maximum impact on the audience.
The acting is excellent. Ranvir Sing combines star power with real talent. His presence is strong, and his expressions are powerful, especially in scenes where he regrets not being able to prevent the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. The supporting cast is also impressive. Akshay Khanna deserves all the praise he’s getting. I was especially struck by Rakesh Bedi’s performance as a corrupt politician—it was a standout. The slimness of a politician is succinctly portrayed. I hope Rakesh Bedi wins some awards for it.
The movie could have been at least half an hour shorter. The love angle, though critical to the plotline, could have been cut a bit. The violent last fight was a bit unbelievable, especially since the movie, till then, had shown the violence quite masterfully. Sanjay Dutt's entry and his overall presence is bit distracting. His character is important and Sanjay Dutt does fit the role but somehow the impact wasn't as much as it should have been. On the Indian side, the intelligence apparatus could have been shown beyond Ajit Doval’s presence. Ajit Doval was (and is) critical to Indian intelligence, but I am sure there were individuals who played their role. The audience would have loved to know about them. Perhaps that will come in the second part.
Political implications:
The movie draws on real events, such as the Kandahar hijacking during the Vajpayee government era. Then the series of bomb blasts and ghastly 26/11 Mumbai attack under Manmohan Singh (i.e., Sonia) era. The lack of political will to stand up to Islamic terrorism of the Vajpayee era quickly descended into the utterly corrupt politics of the Manmohan Singh era, leading to multiple terrorist attacks in India going completely unanswered by the government. The Manmohan Singh era, especially, was utterly hopeless and spineless. Internal Muslim appeasement vote bank politics actively interfered with India’s need to stand up to the Pakistani Islamic terrorism state machinery. Hundreds of lives were lost to the politics of Sonias, Digvijay, and Chidambarams of the ruling junta. How many more lives of the Indian armed forces or of Indian intelligence were lost to these anti-national politicians? We may never know. I just hope India never elects that political party or ever entertains the dangerous buffoonery of Rahul Gandhi. I generally disliked them for their dynastic incompetence and a track record of family-first, India-second politics. The film shows the actual events that tell me that I never want to vote for Congress or I never want Congress to ever come to power because these people will not think twice before handing over the country to Pakistan or to China if the price is right. It’s remarkable that the country survived the Manmohan Singh era as well as it did.
The job of any movie is to entertain first. If a filmmaker wants to send a message to society or highlight something critical to it, they have to do so only through the lens of entertainment. Balancing a message with entertainment is not easy. Dhurandhar is a rare Hindi movie that pulls this off successfully, and for that, the entire crew deserves great appreciation. It's worthwhile to consider how other Hindi films like 'Sarfarosh' and 'Border' have similarly managed this balance, delivering strong social messages while engaging the audience. Dhurandhar is certainly a worthy successor to such movies.
No comments:
Post a Comment