Rang De Basanti - Cracko Stuff

It's very rare that you see a movie that involves you right from the opening credits down to the closing ones, more so, when you claim to be a Hindi movie fanatic and have sat through umpteen movies right from the classy ones to the made in Ooty Mithun fare.

But then, movies like Rang De.. don't come every day.

Talk of the strong points, the movie has many. Story, background score, acting everything. However, what strikes you the most is the almost poetic juxtaposition of historical characters and incidents to the contemporary ones. That Rakeysh Om Prakash Mehra comes from ad world shows, that he is a poet at heart comes through. So much so that while he depicts historical events right from Kakori train dacoity to Lala Lajpat Rai lathi charge to Jalianwala Bagh to Assembly Bomb episode but preserves the Chandra Shekhar Azad Alfred Park shoot out for the climax. That's a genius speaking and it has to be appreciated.

May be it comes from his ad background or his very keen understanding of the visual media, Rakeysh creates some amazing visuals in this movie. The scene with four protagonists jumping, bare chested with an aircraft taking off in the background, which is also used in the promos might just get highlighted but the movie is full of such visual treats.

The backr ground score is a winner. No mistake.

Acting wise, all have done their part. Soha impresses and so do others though Sharman Joshi hams a bit and is irritating with his affected Haryanwi/Punjabi accent. The camaraderie between the protagonists is palpable but the careful mapping of past events with the present is simply amazing.

Another strength is the sharp dialogues. At times, you just feel like standing up and applauding.

The sense of involvement is so high with the audience that even the multiples crowd claps at not less than four-five instances with the strongest applause reserved for the scene when the defence minister is gunned down.

All in all, a great movie, classic stuff with all the makings of a cult movie. Don't miss it for the world.