When I went for this movie, I had heard a lot of good things about this movie & was sceptical coz the same ppl told me great things about Shaurya which was a copy & a lousy one at that..But they were right this time..Boy oh boy, what a film ! For the first time ever, I have seen a Muslim film-maker(I don’t like to mention caste anywhere being an atheist but its relevant here) has come up with a hardcore, realistic take on Islam..It takes guts to do that..Especially in Pakistan.
The script addresses the divide between the fundamentalists & liberals oh so beautifully..Even the plight of women in a religion that discriminates against them so brazenly is well brought out..The ironic ending is just too poignant & it is one of those rare movies that provokes you to think about a life other than your own..Superlative script & screenplay..Alas, the casting & the direction(sometimes) is a big let-down..Naseeruddin Shah is mind-blowing in a ten-minute cameo..But the rest of the cast fails to do justice to the script..They have their moments occasionally but sometimes they just seem amateurish for a movie of this calibre.
The actors seem out of place in this hard-hitting story..The director & the person in charge of casting are responsible for performances that are too mellow & restrained..Personally I felt that with a powerhouse cast, this movie would have been one of the top five films of the year, no doubt about it..Still a film thats very good just for the story..Overall a must watch if you appreciate good cinema..