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By Taran
Adarsh, June 5, 2008 - 22:35 IST
 Sequels are dicey business. No matter how much you
improvise on your new script, you cannot escape
comparisons. And when you attempt a sequel of a
critically acclaimed film that's a huge box-office
grosser as well, it's akin to walking on a tight
rope.
Most importantly, post RAMGOPAL VARMA KI AAG,
Ramgopal Varma was everyone's favorite punching bag
[till TASHAN dethroned RGV KI AAG]. “Finished”,
“spent force”, “has-been”, “Pack up” were commonly
used terms for RGV.
Now here's great news! SARKAR RAJ supersedes the
prequel and most importantly, RGV bounces back like
never before. If you felt SHIVA and later SATYA were
his finest efforts, you've got to watch SARKAR RAJ.
An outstanding film in all respects, this film has
all it takes to emerge a major success story at the
box-office… and a landmark film in everyone's
careers.
When Anita [Aishwarya Rai Bachchan], CEO of Sheppard
Power Plant, an international company, brings a
power plant proposal to set up in rural Maharashtra
before the Nagres, insightful Shankar [Abhishek
Bachchan] is quick to realize the benefits the power
plant can bring to the people.
After convincing Sarkar [Amitabh Bachchan], who is
against it for various reasons, Shankar undertakes a
journey along with Anita to the villages of
Maharashtra to mobilize support from the masses.
However, things are not what they seem to be and
Shankar's dream project gradually becomes a
political minefield. The evil forces, mightier than
ever, mushroom and gang up to bring down the regime
of Sarkar and obliterate Shankar's name from the
political horizon.
 SARKAR RAJ exudes a lot of power from the word 'Go'.
But let's not categorize SARKAR RAJ as yet another
“political film”. Emotions and relationships run
concurrently in those 2+ hours. What works in favor
of SARKAR RAJ is its tight writing. It's not
difficult to decipher the power play, but more
importantly, there's meat in the script. It leaves
you awe-struck as the plot thickens. The film throws
a number of surprises, but the best is reserved for
the penultimate 20/25 minutes. The culmination to
the story is simply fantastic!
RGV shines like never before. He takes to SARKAR RAJ
with a vengeance. He has to prove that the sequel is
better, he has to prove the detractors wrong too.
While RGV has handled the subject with great
expertise, you cannot ignore a few scenes that leave
a lasting impact…
* Ash's first meeting with the Bachchans to explain
the power project;
* Govind Namdev trying to bribe Abhishek;
* The Bachchans' visit to Dilip Prabhawalkar's
residence;
* The Bachchans' discussion over Kay Kay [who was
shot dead by Abhishek in the prequel];
* The turning point in the film [not to be
disclosed];
* The penultimate reels when the real culprit stands
exposed. It hits you like a ton of bricks.
Besides its strong content, SARKAR RAJ has been
filmed exceptionally well too. In fact, SARKAR RAJ
has the trademark RGV stamp in every sequence. The
review would be incomplete without giving the due
credit to writer Prashant Pandey's incredible and
almost flawless script. Amar Mohile's background
score is topnotch. The by-now-famous 'Govinda' chant
in the background only enhances the impact. Amit
Roy's cinematography is exceptional. The DoP
succeeds in giving the film the raw-n-rustic look,
which works very well. Action [Allan Amin], in
minimal doses, is perfect.
SARKAR RAJ is embellished with superb performances!
Amitabh Bachchan, expectedly, comes up with a
terrific performance. He's as ferocious as a wounded
tiger in the finale and takes the film to great
heights.
 First YUVA, then GURU, now SARKAR RAJ. Abhishek
Bachchan is cast opposite the finest actor of this
country, yet he sparkles in every sequence. This
time, the father and son go neck to neck as far as
acting honors go. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is fabulous
and delivers her career-best performance in SARKAR
RAJ. Enough has been written about her looks, but
not much space has been devoted to her performances.
HUM DIL DE CHUKE SANAM, DEVDAS, PROVOKED, GURU,
JODHAA AKBAR and now SARKAR RAJ - she's only got
better with every film.
Every supporting actor in SARKAR RAJ stands out -
Dilip Prabhawalkar [superb], Govind Namdev
[first-rate], Sayaji Shinde [perfect], Ravi Kale
[terrific] and Supriya Pathak [good]. Tanisha is
alright. The actor enacting the role of Dilip
Prabhawalkar's grandson makes a strong impact.
On the whole, SARKAR RAJ is an exceptional film in
all respects. At the box-office, it has all it takes
to set new records in days to come!
Rating * * * *
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