DONT CONDEMN THIS MOVIE. JUST CONDOM IT.

RAJNEETI

Director: Prakash Jha

*ing Arjun Rampal, Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Ajay Devgan, Manoj Bajpei, Nana Patekar

I’m a sucker for deals and special offers even though I know I most often don’t really need that ‘something free’ that comes with the main product. And when it happens in a movie its even more annoying. Rajneeti is like 2 separate movies.

Pay for the movie you expected to see and they’ll throw in a bollywood potboiler for free.
The difference between the first and second half is so distinct that you wonder if it was the same director who’s made the whole damn movie.

The 1st half is stunningly gripping and things and events move so fast you cannot help but sit up in your seat and take in all that’s happening.

Its not perfect ofcourse. Naseeruddin Shah is wasted in a miniscule role and then further insulted with an outrageous sex scene. As fine an actor as he is, the words ‘sex-scene’ and ‘Naseer’ don’t usually don’t go together in my head and after seeing it on screen it is even more revolting.

The problem begins in the second half.

Now twists in the story is always fun, infact there is nothing I like more than to be surprised but they must come with a reason. They have got to be plausible.

A couple of years back came a movie called “Race” in which there were so many twists in the story that I wasn’t sure if Bipasha was Saif’s lover or sis-in-law or aunt.

But Race was a big hit you may say. Yes it was but then that was a different kind of movie. Houseful too was a hit a few weeks back and that too was a different kinda film. But when you begin to talk of Rajneeti in the same breath as Race & Houseful I think its not a good thing.

Politics is a dangerous game but this movie takes it to heights. So many people die around the principal characters that it’s a wonder the junta is still voting for them. And even in UP & Bihar I’m sure major politicians don’t go shooting opponents in broad daylight.

And if things weren’t odd enough there’s even an item song which ends almost as suddenly as it begins.

Performance wise however there are some gems.


Nana is quietly reassuring as the Krishna like character while the dependable Bajpei is saddled with a strangely Rajput inspired wardrobe.


Katrina looks pretty as always and her acting is not bad. The problem is that its not great either. While watching some scenes I was just wondering what Madhuri Dixit (one of Jha’s previous heroines) would have done with this role. Or even Kareena.


Ajay Devgan is given a role which in old movies would have been done by Gulshan Grover and the one scene where he really gets to act is so silly it becomes embarrassing.

And based as this movie is on the Mahabharat, it’s the crucial Kunti-Karna scene. What a shame and what a waste of what should have been an explosive and heartrending scene.


The 2 best performances are from the main leads Ranbir and Arjun. Ranbir’s role is longer and seemingly more complex but its Arjun who’s stunningly believable as the central Indian politician. His wardrobe, his mannerisms, his unkempt hair and even his slightly dirty/sweaty face is what anchors this movie. When he dies, the movie really loses its soul and turns into a senseless melodrama topped off with an even more ridiculous climactic shootout.

The worst performance is from Shruti Seth (she’s the girl who brilliantly played Kajol’s friend in Fanaa). She’s otherwise okay but in her seduction scene with Arjun she really, really hams it up. So much so that she seems to get an orgasm even when Arjun is just talking to her. And she wants an election ticket from Sitapur. You have got to be kidding me.

The other odd thing about this movie is its birth rate.

Everyone seems to be getting pregnant with just 1 lay in the hay. Ranbir’s mom, Katrina, the foreign girl… every major female character gets the bun in the oven after just one shag. So remember it girls and boys….. you gotta condom your sex.

And for a movie on Politics it’s a shame that the only message you take back is birth control.

What a pity cause the first half was really really good.



Maybe they should have just condom'd their pens after that.

More later

Luv as Usual

Vish