Movie Review : Aurangzeb (2013)

Rating : 3.5/5
Genre : Drama
Year : 2013
Running time : 2 hours 20 minutes
Director : Atul Sabharwal
Cast : Rishi Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Amrita Singh, Tanvi Azmi, Deepti Naval, Swara Bhaskara, Sasha Agha
Kid rating : PG-15

Aurangzeb’s story is of epic proportions and the star cast is large. There are the good guys and the bad guys, and there’s the hero in a double role. As expected, one of the heroes is on the good side and other on the bad. When the shit hits the fan, blood will tell, and all will end as per Bollywoodian demands. So yeah, this film reminds me of the 80s angry-young-man overwrought potboilers, except that this is a modern, not unpleasant interpretation of that dated genre.

Corrupt cop Ravikant Phogat (a portly Rishi Kapoor) has perfected the art of the bribe. With his conniving ways he’s worked up to the top becoming DCP of the police force , and has placed his family of similarly corrupt policemen in powerful positions. His honest policeman brother (Anupam Kher), embroiled in a scandal, has died of hopelessness, but his son Arya (Prithviraj Sukumaran) follows his corrupt uncle.

When per chance Arya Phogat comes across evidence that might clear his (now dead) father’s good name, Ravikant agrees to help Arya in further investigations; they can not only clear Arya’s father’s name but bring down corrupt tycoon Yashwardhan (Jackie Shroff), all in one go. Of course good intentions are not always what they seem. And when the betrayals come, they come thick and fast.

This film has a pretty strong storyline, apparently based on wily Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s penchant for killing off the competition. It is also ambitious because it takes an intricate story with many characters (each with their own backstory) and attempts to fit it into a 2 hour film. That’s a tall order – there is limited screen time, and you must decide what to show and what to leave for interpretation – and directorial judgment and experience is called for here. With a better director, say Ram Gopal Verma who’s directed fabulous films like “Company” in his heyday or Vishal Bharadwaj with movies like “Kaminey”, Aurangzeb might have been spectacular. With Atul Sabharawal, this film turns out a little shaky and amateur, and rough around the edges. Sabharwal shows promise – I’d look forward to more of his work – but he seems overwhelmed when it comes to such a large project of a film.

We are thrown into the action right from the beginning. There’s a flurry of characters being introduced and it takes some time to make sense of it all. The film tromps along at a pretty good pace, but the depiction lacks finesse. The characters are a little card-boardish – we are told of their circumstances but we don’t feel them, and as such it is a little hard rooting for them.

Arjun Kapoor has a double role – he plays clean-shaven goody-two-shoes Vishal, and arrogant spoilt brat Ajay. He does all right in his swagger-filled scenes, but comes across kinda weak when real emoting is called for. In this he reminds me of Abhishek Bachchan – good as long as he is glowering, wishy-washy otherwise. The female lead is disappointing. Skimpily clad Sasheh Agha (daughter of nasal-voiced Salma Agha of “Nikaah” fame) plays Ajay’s girl-friend Ritu, and displays neither talent nor beauty. The veterans – Rishi Kapoor, Deepti Naval and Amrita Singh do well. Tanvi Azmi, playing the hero’s mom, is adequate, and with all her motherly weeping and moaning can be officially crowned the modern-day Nirupa Roy.

And here, a paragraph about Prithviraj. We saw him in Aiyyaa; that film didn’t quite appeal to everyone. In Aurangzeb, he makes his presence felt. His Hindi needs some work, although it is much improved since Aiyya. Other than that, Prithviraj does very well; he is understated, yet strong in in his portrayal of conflicted Arya Phogat.

Aurangzeb is a pretty decent watch, for all you lovers of well-paced action/crime dramas. Do not go expecting finesse and you will not be disappointed.

Kidwise : Plenty of violence, and a few love-making scenes make this a PG-15 watch.