Sarkar Raj

I’ve been holding myself back from writing about the movie. I want you to go and see it before you get clouded with my opinion. But what the hell, here goes nothing…

Sarkar Raj follows in the footsteps of a well directed film – Sarkar. When Sarkar came out, I exclaimed in glee to all who would listen that Abhishek Bachchan had finally stolen the show from his father. Alas, he couldn’t keep at it. The movie is not as bad as Ram Gopal Verma’s attempt at remaking Sholay (A movie titled Aag which literally went up in flames like it was named). But that doesn’t say much. So in my attempt to give my analysis without spoiling the movie for you (not that they need my help on that), I will divide my thoughts into what I did not like and what I did.

The background score is obviously second grade when you compare it to the former. The main track ‘Govinda’ is the only bit that works. The rest (including the one odd song) could just as well be left out. The performances are bland. The crux of Sarkar’s success was that there were hardly any dialogues. The ones that were there, made an impact. All else was done with expressions. The sequel shies to follow suit. All the actors are given unnecessary dialogues including a 10 minute scene where Amitabh Bachchan literally seems to be tutoring Aishwarya on the political game that has been played. Give the audience some credit Ramu – we can figure things out!

The most disappointing thing about the movie is the direction. You have a terrific story, great actors and what do you do with it? Waste it completely. The scenes are hardly ever riveting and the play of shadows often seems unnecessary. In my opinion, time for Ram Gopal Verma to retire…seriously!

The saving grace is the story. I believe that if it would have been written in the form of a book and sold, it would have made millions. It’s the kind of story that one can get completely engaged in with ample twists to pique the interest. Alas, the movie failed to capture the same.

So go and watch the movie – after all, everyone should have their opinion. But don’t say later that I didn’t warn you…