With an enveloping direction and a beautifully engineered screenplay, Sonchiriya hits all the right targets.

Abhishek Chaubey has a niche audience to cater to; one which is not quite looking for over-the-top action and dialogue punches but for an authentically accurate atmosphere. You may not relate to it by watching through a glass of realism but you do accommodate into his world for entire film’s duration. He can promise you a good time; good time here doesn’t necessarily mean a comfortable time. The opening shot in Sonchiriya of a cut-open animal carcass with insects humming around is a proof of the fact that Chaubey is least interested in creating a comfortable setting. It is a dusty and abrasive world of rebels, ravines, guns, blood and gore set in 1975 Emergency. Sonchiriya is a film based on Chambal bandits who fight for a cause; something which the film does not spell out in crystal clear words. However, their actions quite tell you what a baaghi dharma is. Chaubey’s last film Udta Punjab showed parallel storylines about four characters who were associated with drugs in some way or the other. However, Sonchiriya gives you a quite different perspective. It does change the stereotypical thought that bandits are wicked by making us believe that bandits are simply debilitated by rigid social structures

Manoj Bajpayee is Maan Singh, the leader of the dacoits and also a humane person. He is quite antithetical to what normally we think of a bandit. When he loots a wedding ceremony, he is adamant on not touching the jewellery the bride is wearing. Infact he also tells one of his aides to give her some money as a blessing. Sushant Singh Rajput is Lakhan who is the prime weightlifter of the story. He slips into the character effectively which makes us forget his previous debacles and admire the treasured actor in him. All the characters in Sonchiriya have some weight to carry and each of them is perfect-fit for the job. Ranveer Shorey’s hot-headed Vakil and Bhumi Pednekar’s Indumati make the screenplay complete. Even in this drama driven by masculinity, Bhumi Pednekar makes her mark in the story. She is a feisty woman determined to carry the victimized little girl to a medical aid. The film delves deep into the rugged exterior and gives u a glance at the raw emotions of salvation and suffering. The characters see the ghosts of their past, a burden on their conscience, and question their morality. With brilliant cinematography from Anuj Rajesh Dhawan, the film maintains its authenticity by giving characters a Bundelkhandi dialect to speak. (It might be uneasy for people to keep looking at the subtitles, especially if they are not accustomed to watching foreign films).

The film has myriad shades of caste inequality, gender bias, politics, redemption and emotion. Sonchiriya refers to a golden bird and bandits are determined to search for the golden bird; something which might relieve them of their guilty conscience. Comparisons to Pan Singh Tomar are evident and film doesn’t quite live upto the Tighmanshu Dhulia directed classic. However, there is an immersive experience awaiting the viewers in drama from Western cinematic universe and Chaubey makes them look beyond the obvious. Here, I would like to specially mention Ashutosh Rana whose character Gujjar, a policeman has easily emerged the best performance of the film. He is brutal and nasty and yet we see his softer side towards end. The film is an ideological take on baaghi dharma and showcases its colours of spirituality and philosophy. With an enveloping direction and a beautifully engineered screenplay, Sonchiriya hits all the right targets.

3.5 on 5 stars

Uri : The Surgical Strike – Kaushal is the best fit in the story which switches quickly from facts to fiction

War films in Hindi cinema are fueled by strong patriotic vehemence rather than an assemblage of true facts for a subtle edge of seat thriller. We have examples of excellent war films which have stood the test of time; May it be Terrence Mallick’s Thin Red Line or Oliver Stone’s Platoon. Films on armed forces are expected to plunge into their psychological, emotional as well as physical realms of the men in uniform and keep audiences psyche hooked to theirs. However in Indian cinema, patriotic dialogues are thrown at higher decibels to create high spirits and sense of thrill. As character Major Vikram Shergill asks his commandos in Uri: the Surgical Strike “How’s the josh”. The answer is pretty much high for both the people on the screen as well as the ones sitting in the audience. Uri: the Surgical Strike had all the ingredients for a crisp procedural but it follows a more mainstream and a banal approach. Vicky Kaushal is the strong muscle of the film and he fits in the role like an electric plug to the socket. He is convincing as Major Vikram Shergill, tall muscular man with guts of steel and having requisite tactical skills as we meet him on his first mission on Indo Myanmar border as he leads the operation to wipe off the terrorists. He is the character, audiences could strongly root for.

Uri: the Surgical Strike oscillates continuously from facts to fiction. There is a hunger for revenge amongst the protagonist, the protagonist is given two fist fight scenes (something which Bollywood is not ready to shed off) and punchy dialogues. These are elements which make up almost every Hindi film and Uri was not an exception. However, it could easily have been one taking into consideration the inspirations it draws. Major Vihaan Shergill takes up a desk job so that he can take care of his mother afflicted by Alzheimer’s. He realizes his true calling back to the battlefield when a relative gets killed in a terrorist attack; a concept of vengeance which has been twisted & turned and thrown back at audience many times in past. The Pakistani terrorists enter the army barracks and shoot the officers in their sleep; an attack which charges up the Ministry to resort to extreme measures of a surgical strike. The film draws strong impressions from Zero Dark Thirty and Hurt Locker (both helmed by Oscar winning director Kathryn Bigelow). Paresh Rawal plays Govind sir whose character has resemblance to National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. He leads the operation from the Ministry and he is completely convincing. Director of photography Mithesh Mirchandani has done a fantastic job with scouting appropriate locations to add visually to the film. However, film lacks immensely at the scripting stage. The flow is unnecessarily divided into chapters which remain far from being dichotomous. They share a similar tone which itself negates the purpose of creating a chapter wise execution. The makers have done a terrific job with action making it slick and ruthless. With predictable outcomes, there is still a sense of dread as we see executions and explosions in night vision as men on mission go systematically from one safe house to other gunning down the terrorists.

 Kirti Kulhari and Yami Gautam do not have much of the heavy lifting to do as they serve to be mere cardboard characters. The factual information is clearly distorted and at points even narrative feels a bit bizarre. We see an intern in a DRDO who has a lion’s share to play in the surgical strike when Govind sir discards the DRDO approved gadgets over his bird-like surveillance drone  (something which is hard to digest if we take into account massive planning that actually went in for the surgical strike). The film is a treat for mainstream audience who wish to go in for another strong dose of patriotism. However for someone who wants to actually delve into the specifics and facts of surgical strike, a documentary would suffice.

2.5 on 5 stars