A group of policemen..er, dacait or baaghis are walking silently in the bright and arid Chambal ravines. They see a dead snake up ahead, run over by a vehicle. They start to retreat, choosing to look for an alternate route when the leader steps forward, kneels and prays to the gods and orders his men to trust God and march ahead. A good beginning that seems to foreshadow something.
Instead it doesn't.
The trailers of Sonchiraiya had me excited for a good daaku film after Paan Singh Tomar in 2012. A nice blend of the good vs evil formula, with some interesting characters. While this film does have interesting and memorable characters, it suffers from the inconsistencies in its direction. Director Abhishek Chaoubey can't seem to decide which way he wants to steer the film, whether it is to be about a contrast between Vakil Singh (Ranvir Shorey) who wants to carry on being a baaghi and Lakhna (Sushant Singh Rajput) who is looking to surrender and thus turn a new leaf. Or is it to be about the baghis and Indumati (Bhumi Pednekar), who is on the run with a child. Into the mix is the whole caste interplay between Rajputs, Gujjars and Dalits. The movies touches on all these points barely before moving on. So there is some friction between Vakil and Lakhna about the baaaghi ka dharam - baaghi code of honor - in the beginning but it does not surface again till the end, and even then it is forced. Indumati appears mysteriously enough, carrying a girl to hospital, but all mystery about her vanishes soon, only to return at the most unexpected moments. The doctor of the baaghi sets the ball rolling with the caste frictions between a Rajput and a Dalit, followed by later by one more friction between a Rajput and a Gujjar, but then again, these dissolve and are never brought up again.
To be honest, each of these points would not have been so evident had a better actors been essaying the roles, The present cast, though talented, fail to mesh together to be convincing. The actors seem to be emoting in a vacuum without playing off each other. As a result, there are some fine performances but no cohesion. Manoj Bajpai as the head baaghi who is willing to accept the will of the goddess is good but doesn't convince is place in a group of hardened dacoits on the run. Seriously, he would need more wits about him since he is running away from the law.
Sushant Singh Rajput delivers what is expected of him suitably. As the baaghi who questions the baaghi dharam, he portrays his doubts quite well. But other than that he can't portray friction against Ranvir Shorey or any sort of connection with Bhumi Pednekar, wirh whom he spends a lot of time on road. He is Manoj Bajpai's blue eyed boy, but even here, he doesn't sow chemistry with Manoj. It is at best a servicable performance.
Bhumi Pednekar too is in the far end of the pool as Indumati Tomar. Her one expression is one of being dazed, with intermittent shows of emotions. Her Indumati is not convincing as a woman running away from a deeply misogynistic society after committing a crime, the onus falling on the narrative instead.
Ashutosh Rana is a real treat in this movie apart from Ranveer. He brings a certain ruthlessness and sense of rustic morals to his characters. He has his own motives for going after the baaghis, which is revealed quite later in the narrative and adds another layer to his character. From being ruthless to cunning to impulsive to displaying sadness when alone, he brings out the humanity in what would have been a one dimensional villian.
Where the movie fails miserably is the characters of the two girls. Thematically, both girls are meant to be the plot devices that move things forward; innocence lost and about to be lost respectively. One haunts Manj Bajpai and Sushant Singh, while the other is the reason Bhumi is on the run, but neither shows any emotion n their faces. Just the presence of kids in a frame does not signify innocence. The girl whom Bhumi carries is supposed to be fatally injured, but does not show any signs of being in pain, maintaining instead just a poker face. Done well, both of these girls could have been the pivots for the major character arcs in this film. Instead, they just act as place holders.
Sonchiraiya is a film that tries to tackle a lot of things without resolving them. Its shows ambition but fails to achieve them.
Instead it doesn't.
The trailers of Sonchiraiya had me excited for a good daaku film after Paan Singh Tomar in 2012. A nice blend of the good vs evil formula, with some interesting characters. While this film does have interesting and memorable characters, it suffers from the inconsistencies in its direction. Director Abhishek Chaoubey can't seem to decide which way he wants to steer the film, whether it is to be about a contrast between Vakil Singh (Ranvir Shorey) who wants to carry on being a baaghi and Lakhna (Sushant Singh Rajput) who is looking to surrender and thus turn a new leaf. Or is it to be about the baghis and Indumati (Bhumi Pednekar), who is on the run with a child. Into the mix is the whole caste interplay between Rajputs, Gujjars and Dalits. The movies touches on all these points barely before moving on. So there is some friction between Vakil and Lakhna about the baaaghi ka dharam - baaghi code of honor - in the beginning but it does not surface again till the end, and even then it is forced. Indumati appears mysteriously enough, carrying a girl to hospital, but all mystery about her vanishes soon, only to return at the most unexpected moments. The doctor of the baaghi sets the ball rolling with the caste frictions between a Rajput and a Dalit, followed by later by one more friction between a Rajput and a Gujjar, but then again, these dissolve and are never brought up again.
To be honest, each of these points would not have been so evident had a better actors been essaying the roles, The present cast, though talented, fail to mesh together to be convincing. The actors seem to be emoting in a vacuum without playing off each other. As a result, there are some fine performances but no cohesion. Manoj Bajpai as the head baaghi who is willing to accept the will of the goddess is good but doesn't convince is place in a group of hardened dacoits on the run. Seriously, he would need more wits about him since he is running away from the law.
Sushant Singh Rajput delivers what is expected of him suitably. As the baaghi who questions the baaghi dharam, he portrays his doubts quite well. But other than that he can't portray friction against Ranvir Shorey or any sort of connection with Bhumi Pednekar, wirh whom he spends a lot of time on road. He is Manoj Bajpai's blue eyed boy, but even here, he doesn't sow chemistry with Manoj. It is at best a servicable performance.
Bhumi Pednekar too is in the far end of the pool as Indumati Tomar. Her one expression is one of being dazed, with intermittent shows of emotions. Her Indumati is not convincing as a woman running away from a deeply misogynistic society after committing a crime, the onus falling on the narrative instead.
Ashutosh Rana is a real treat in this movie apart from Ranveer. He brings a certain ruthlessness and sense of rustic morals to his characters. He has his own motives for going after the baaghis, which is revealed quite later in the narrative and adds another layer to his character. From being ruthless to cunning to impulsive to displaying sadness when alone, he brings out the humanity in what would have been a one dimensional villian.
Where the movie fails miserably is the characters of the two girls. Thematically, both girls are meant to be the plot devices that move things forward; innocence lost and about to be lost respectively. One haunts Manj Bajpai and Sushant Singh, while the other is the reason Bhumi is on the run, but neither shows any emotion n their faces. Just the presence of kids in a frame does not signify innocence. The girl whom Bhumi carries is supposed to be fatally injured, but does not show any signs of being in pain, maintaining instead just a poker face. Done well, both of these girls could have been the pivots for the major character arcs in this film. Instead, they just act as place holders.
Sonchiraiya is a film that tries to tackle a lot of things without resolving them. Its shows ambition but fails to achieve them.
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