The Mahesh Bhatt camp is known for a particular genre of films, which are full of love and lust. And, Vikram Bhatt from the same camp had a hit in his 'Raaz', though his later movies flopped at the box office. This time Vikram presents a different type movie, say, one with plenty of horror. He wrote the script of this movie titled '1920' and looked for a producer. After a great struggle, he found Surendra Sharma of the 'Mumbai Salsa' fame and known for making movies based on music and dance.
Since Surendra's 'Mumbai Salsa' hadn't fared well, he agreed to produce Vikram's film that happened to be a horror one. However, he agreed with the condition of a limited budget and with new faces. Hence, Vikram called fifty new faces for audition to his office to choose the lead actors from amongst them. 'Vikram's '1920' is a new experiment by him in the field of supernatural powers. You have to believe him when he says that he is still afraid of ghosts/ spirits.
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Vikram takes us back to the year in India where a young couple has just got married in the face of a severe opposition from the boy's father. Arjun Singh Rathod played by Rajneesh Duggal is a staunch believer but turns an atheist following his family's resistance, especially his father who threatens to burn his wife Lisa, a Catholic, played by Adah Sharma. Incidentally, architect Arjun gets an assignment at scenic Palanpur to convert an old haveli there into a new hotel. The newly wed couple moves in this house that is located in wilderness. Though Arjun doesn't mind living there but the bride is seized of something unnatural in the home! By the time Arjun begins to believe her, Lisa is already possessed by a spirit.
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Then, Arjun attempts uncovering the secret behind it. Incidentally, this house is waiting for a curse to come true. For years, everyone who has tried to pull it down has died of mysterious circumstances. Meanwhile, Lisa already possessed by a spirit, indulges in gymnastics, flying in the air, and even playing a mean hide-n-seek game. Besides, Lisa is being jostled by an unseen force and then pulled into an opaque black hole of a room. Such strange events start taking place. No one can explain the reason behind these uncalled for incidents. Since the year pertains to India under British rule, the house is located in Yorkshire. Well, no Bollywood movie would be complete without a love story. '1920' is no exception! Vikram and his co-screen player Dhiraj Ratan have very painstakingly depicted the love story between the couple and the obstacles faced by them.
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Now, the movie's story runs too fast since the spirit enters the girl's body. Every event is followed by another strange one. The girl goes to the nursing home, but the spirit, not the girl, talks to the doctor. Then again, the spirit talks to the priest. The poor husband is caught unawares and therefore prays to his favorite God-Hanuman - by reciting the verses in his praise called Hanumaan Chaalisa.
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After critically examining, we can conclude that '1920', though a very different genre movie for the Bhatt camp, proves the director's skill to deal with all types of movies. Hopefully, this is Vikram's best movie so far. The movie was shot in Yorkshire and the first schedule was over in 28 days. The rest of the shooting was completed in 37 days in Mumbai's Film City Studio. There, the director had erected a haveli for shooting. To add masala to the movie, Vikram left no stone unturned, and also included a very bold item song of none other than Rakhi Sawant to the movie to charm the audience.
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The movie is released with 35 prints in the Delhi -Uttar Pradesh territory. Both the actors -Arjun (Rajneesh) and Lisa (Adah Sharma) -- are new to films, but not to the entertainment sector. While Rajneesh has been "Mr India" in 2003, Adah hails from the fashion world. Thus, the director Vikram fulfills producer Sharma's condition of a limited budget movie with new faces. Technically, Pravin Bhatt's camera work is good inasmuch as the scenic beauty of the castle in Yorkshire has been captured very well. Music-wise, Adnan Sami strikes a chord. And the singers have done a marvelous job. The song "Bichua" sung by Shubha Mudgal and filmed on Rakhi Sawant is sure to appeal to the masses. "Tujhe Main Pyaar Karu" by Kailash Kher and Vaada by Pandit Jasraj touch one's heart, too.
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The selection of the cast by Vikram Bhatt is superb. His new faces in films -- Dugal and Adah Sharma prove their self-confidence. Rajneesh has a talent, so a bright future lies ahead for him. The female lead in Adah Sharma is excellent. Anjori Alagh looks beautiful and leaves an impression in the second hour. Indraneel does well. Raj Zutshi plays the priest's role very well.
Overall, the movie is good as it fulfills its promise of providing enough scare. Hopefully, the movie would fare well at the box office.
