Raajneeti (Politics) [2010]

Prakash Jha’s Raajneeti, as the name suggests, is a no-holes-barred indictment against dynasty-based, votebank, dirty politics that is quite prevalent in India, in general, and in the North Indian states, in particular. This Mahabharata-weds-Godfather epic shows two warring political families who would go to any lengths necessary, including blackmail and murder, in order for them to win the Chief Minister-ship of the state. The film boasts of a packed, powerhouse starcast – Nana Patekar has given the best performance of the lot, with able turns by Manoj Bajpayee, Ajay Devgan and Arjun Rampal; Ranbir Kapoor has turned out to be a surprising revelation as the cool, sinsister Michael Corleone-esque protagonist; even veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah has shone in his cameo as a firebrand Communist leader. Katrina Kaif, however, is predictably horrendous, and her horrible accent has turned out to be a hilarious parody of Sonia Gandhi, intentionally or otherwise. Though eminently watchable, at the end of the day, the film has turned out to be rather a mixed bad courtesy, largely, the overblown length. A more compact script and tighter editing might have made this reasonably effective film a far more powerful piece of work.





Director: Prakash Jha
Genre: Drama/Political Drama/Ensemble Film
Language: Hindi
Country: India