Clichéd narrative fails strong actors
film. On his first day of training, Adi meets his senior, Khan (Neeraj Kabi), who takes him along while chasing a murder accused. Shiva (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), the accused, tries to throw them off his scent. During the chase, Adi meets Shiva in an alley and has to make his decision — to shoot or not to shoot.
Director Amit Kumar presents all three options: shooting Shiva, letting him escape, and shooting him in the knee as the middle path.
What if Shiva is innocent? What are the repercussions for Shiva’s family? Would
Adi live with the guilt? How will he redeem himself if he shoots the wrong person?
But what if he lets a criminal escape? Won’t that mean more ruthless murders in the future? What if, despite choosing the middle path, no justice is served to Shiva or to his victims?
Kumar’s is a fresh storytelling structure — one that makes time flexible, keeps the audience wondering what actually happened and what was a figment of imagination.
It is the confused execution that leaves us baffled. A clichéd portrayal of the gangster and crime world is a major hindrance preventing the film from becoming a masterpiece.
Dim lighting, incessant rain, heartless criminals, con- niving politicians and corrupt administration officials — we’ve seen them in gangster films made by Ram Gopal Varma and Anurag Kashyap over three decades.
In fact, during each of the three scenarios, the sequence of events is so predictable it would have turned a bore-fest had it not been for wonderful actors.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui is in his comfort zone — playing a merciless criminal who roams around with a hammer, Neeraj Kabi makes sure none of his acts go overboard. Tannishtha Chatterjee and Geetanjali Thapa have very small roles.
Vijay Varma outshines everyone. He is the kind of actor who makes you forget his face and believe in his character. From guilt to remorse, anger, love and more, Vijay manages to portray each emotion with perfect conviction.