- Film : Satyagraha
- Producer : Prakash Jha, Ronnie Screwvala, Siddharth Roy Kapur
- Director : Prakash Jha
- Star Cast : Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Manoj Bajpai, Amrita Rao
- Music Director : Salim & Sulaiman, Adesh Shrivastava, Indian Ocean
3.5
Prakash Jha's "Satyagraha" bears no resemblance to his previous political dramas nor does it entirely bet on Anna Hazare's Jan Lokpal Andolan and it is certainly not a sequel to his last outing “Rajneeti”. Rather, “Satyagraha” is the director's infallible attempt to capture the anguish of hoi polloi, beaten down by corruption and unjust system. It orbs around a movement initiated by the middle class Indians to hammer out a deal with the corrupt system and retrieve transparency in democracy. Prakash Jha spares none in this movie — everyone from the deceitful babus to unscrupulous politicians are brought to book here. An impeccably narrated plot, “Satyagraha” does borrow inspiration from a slew of real-life episodes — “the Anna Hazare movement, the murder of the whistle-blower who exposed the road mafia and the telecom scam, besides highlighting the police attack on public and the candle light protests”, but remains unbiased in its treatment. Realistic, hard-hitting and forceful, Jha's new outing leaves a “hammer-strong impact”.
Other Ratings
Story :
“Satyagraha” is the story of a Gandhian [Amitabh Bachchan], a go-getter industrialist who epitomizes the modern India shining philosophy [Ajay Devgn], a social activist aspiring to be a politician [Arjun Rampal], a gutsy political journalist [Kareena Kapoor Khan] and a foxy politician [Manoj Bajpai] who would stop at nothing to break the system.
Manav Raghvendra (Ajay Devgn) is a highly ambitious Delhi based entrepreneur who runs a telecom company. His towering aspirations exposes him to the brutal realities of Indian politics and nepotism. Balram Singh (Manoj Bajpai), a conniving politician, wrecks his ideals and ambitions, and wrongly frames him in a tele scam.
Implicated of double-crossing and killing his morals, he loses the trust of his ladylove Yasmin Ahmed (Kareena Kapoor Khan) and Dwarka Anand (Amitabh Bachchan), his ideal and a school principal.
Devastated, Manav decides to hit back at the corruption and launches a protest that soon turns into nation-wide protest supported by Yasmin, Dwarka and Arjun. From here flags off a massive movement to mow down the corrupt system and derail the government.
An unsullied mix of emotions, drama and political satire, Jha's laudable attempt to fit a gigantic act into a cinematic jar is commendable.
Analysis :
For Jha, the veteran of political thrillers, executing a plot as such with aplomb is certainly a child's play. The movie is strewn with several episodes that not only instils anger and disgust for the system, but also keeps you hooked up all throughout.
Brownie points to Jha for deftly including songs in the narrative, with 'Raske Bhare Tore Naina' [Aadesh Shrivastava] and 'Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram' [Salim-Sulaiman] jazzing up the goings-on. Sachin Krishn's cinematography frames the anger and angst with precision. Dialogues are biting, bitter and absorbing.
Performance :
“Satyagraha” is bedecked with ingenious, real performances. Devgn is the body of “Satyagraha” while Amitabh is its soul. And Bajpai is its 'satanic temptation,' doling out a smooth performance, hair-raising in its perfection. Amitabh Bachchan articulates the movie's philosophy - "Janta sarkaar ki malik hai. Malik nirdesh deta hai. Maang nahin karta."
Mr. Bachchan stands unparalleled in yet another stellar performance, one of his bests in the recent times. Ajay breathes fire into the tale poignantly. Kareena is matchless in her role of a strong, fearless journalist. Arjun too delivers a towering performance that shows that the actor has truly come miles when it comes to his caliber. Manoj Bajpai is diabolical and ruthless to the hilt, sashaying the evil streak flawlessly. Last but not the least, Amrita Rao impresses in a noteworthy role, and leaves a strong impact.
Indraneil Sengupta cameo is impressive. Vipin Sharma and Vinay Apte are top notch. Mugdha Godse , Manoj Kolhatkar, Ajay Trehan, Shireesh Sharma, and Girish Sahdev add to the film with their competent performances.
Final Word:To cut the long story short, Prakash Jha's “Satyagraha” is an engaging, compelling socio-political drama that gapers the stark reality around us. Yet another laud-worthy addition to Prakash Jha's impressive repertoire, “Satyagraha” will go down in the history of cinema as a politically momentous motion picture. This hard-hitting fare is a must-watch!
Satyagraha Releases on 30th Aug 2013
(AW:Suchorita Dutta)
