Director N. Chandra belongs to the category of directors who are acknowledged for their films like 'Ankush', 'Pratighat', 'Tejaab' and 'Narsimha' which have made waves in Bollywood. The veteran film-maker is now obviously shifting from the earlier genre of films to a different genre like 'Ishtyle' and 'Xcuse Me'. With his new realistic film 'Kagaar', N. Chandra has completely defied contemporary cinema. And, with this creation, he definitely stands apart from the herd of present film-makers. 'Kagaar', his new venture, makes you think of the first film of Bollywood's "angry young man" (Amitabh Bachchan), 'Janzeer'.
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Many would have dismissed it as a show of generosity when Big B applauded this film at a special show in Mumbai sometime back. This film, which comes with a subtitle and is named 'Kagaar-Living on The Edge', does make you grab the edge of your seat. It may not give birth to another angry young man who is the hero, Amitabh Dayal, but it certainly has much to offer to those who are looking for real life drama in Hindi films. Together, N.Chandra and Amitabh Dayal make a lethal combination and despite the fact that this film does not have very bright chances of success at the box-office, it has an appeal that makes the film an experience to watch.
'Kagaar' is based on a Mumbai cop who has specialized as a sharp shooter. He prefers to kill criminals rather than nabbing them and later allowing them to use the loopholes in the legal system to escape the law of the land. It is said that the film is inspired from the real life cop Daya Nayak who has also been an inspiration for Ram Gopal Verma's upcoming movie 'Ab Tak Chchappan'.
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The hero of 'Kagaa'r, Bhaskar Sarjanak (Amitabh Dayal) is like any other common youth of today, who attaches immense glamour to the role of a cop. Even his wife (Nandita Das) dreams of becoming the wife of a real life hero who can handle any miscreant on the streets. In fact, the whole story of 'Kagaar' is of one night where Bhaskar is waiting for a criminal for whom he has waited his entire life.
Known for having taken the lives of 70 deadly criminals so far, Bhaskar finds this man Ali (Anoop Soni) who is not just a law breaker but his childhood friend as well. The story is a flashback unwinding the scenes of Bhaskar's past life one by one. He remembers his first day when he reached this city to fulfill his dreams. He recalls how all his dreams came shattering down in one blow. The rewind show how Ali's foolishness was a major factor for Bhaskar's ouster from his job. Since then, they have not met.
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Director N. Chandra has teamed up once again with the famous writer Sujeet Sen in 'Kagaar'. Those who are not familiar with Sujeet's name may recall films like 'Saransh', 'Arth' and 'Prahar' where his pen did miracles for the main protagonist of the film, be it Anupam Kher in the first or Nana Patekar in the last. Sujeet weaves his characters in such a way that their growth on screen looks happening somewhere in between the society. There are not many writers today who make the common man as the hero of their stories. Even film-makers like Subhash Ghai have left the common man behind and have moved ahead to the NRI generation. However, it is being increasingly established that the audience identifies better with a common man. N Chandra has a mastery over such subjects and this latest film of his is on the lines of 'Ankush' to be very honest. It has the same raw appeal in its handling and the same earthy feeling that one has witnessed in that debut film. Amitabh Dayal is lucky that he could find a director like Chandra for his debut film. Without going into the merits of the case as to why Amitabh's wife may have decided to produce this film, it will be better to see this power packed film just for the sake of this new boy on the prowl. He has certain qualities of being the icon in the film industry, if he manages to get more films like this in the near future too.
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Nandita Das has matched the performance of Amitabh Dayal and has come out once again a winner in a deglamourised role. Om Puri stands like a pillar in the film and holds the narration of the film from the center. It is his character that brings more authenticity to the story that is always required in such a type of narration on the screen. The major weak point of this film is its music. Vishal Bhardwaj seems have to lost interest in composing as his films like 'Makadi' and 'Maqbool' are getting more attraction where he is the director of the film. But films like 'Kagaar' do not require run off the mill music either. The compositions rendered in the film may be in demand too, but even then they do not fit the bill properly. On the whole, the film will appeal to some classes of society only, but it will remain a film with a difference.
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