The basic plot is simple: 3 sisters living with their mother, two of them twins (played by kajol) different as day and night. Sonia is the outgoing, bold, brash twin while Naina is the subdued, reclusive one. Despite their differences they share a deep love and are content in the ups and downs of their small world. A world which gets turned upside down when a ruthless serial killer Gokhul (Ashutosh Rana) brutally rapes and murders Sonia and tears the family and her twin sister to pieces. Thus begins a cat-and-mouse game between the killer bent on destroying Naina and a sister shaken with fear.
But fueled by a mad need for revenge. The entire plot of this movie is carried up by 3 factors: brilliant acting, well-written characters and Kajol. Though the actual murder is a bit hard to stomach, the movie strikes a perfect balance between love and pain and makes you laugh and cry as though you were in the movie yourself. Kajol is Naina. The most subtle actress in Bollywood, she gets into the skin of her character so deeply that you can’t help but feel her pain and think that no other heroine could do the role more justice.
Ashutosh Rana is the only Hindi villain (since amjad khan’s Gabbar) who can make your hairs stand on end and keep you horrified but glued to the screen all the same. Newcomer? could’ve fooled me. Sanjay Dutt’s small but significant role as Naina’s confidante and teacher works because it does not seem forced into the screenplay and is acted brilliantly by Sanjay Dutt. Several scenes stick with you after you finish watching the movie, among the topmost being: - Naina/Sonia’s conversation in the bedroom after Kabir and Sonia are engaged The court scene every scene b/w Ghokul and Naina
And the climax. Usually that ’’someone’’ is the girl’s brother, but since this is a Pooja Bhatt film, this time the avenger is the victim’s sister and the two sisters happen to be twins with contrasting personalities. So what’s the big deal? Dushman is just going to be another film with lot of gush and gore but very few chills and thrills. These were my thoughts while I made myself comfy at home to watch it and have a pizza on top of that and I couldn’t have been more wrong. After being treated to an overdose of mush and violence, the Hindi film audience has finally got what it deserves:
A film that keeps one engrossed until the closing credits roll. Brilliant performances all around. Kajol is bang-up isn’t she always? Be it the confused lass in Sapnay, or the villainous girl in Gupt, or the conventional heroine in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. Kajol plays each character with ease. She seems to slip into the two roles the crop haired Sonia and the long haired Naina without putting any extra effort and no, she doesn’t have to overact to create two different identities for the twins (attention Shah Rukh Khan!). It’s not often a producer employs an actor to rope in the audiences.
But Pooja Bhatt, a smart producer she is, has done just that. She knows that even two Kajol’s cannot carry a film to box-office success. So she uses Sanjay Dutt to provide the mandatory glamour in Dushman. Sanjay has no problems playing the role of a blind ex-armyman. As for Jas Arora, what this bloke needs is a good role. He does have a good screen presence, maybe because of that wide-angled smile of his. The real hero of Dushman is the villain. Ashutosh Rana gives an award -winning performance as the merciless serial killer (very unlike the stereotype villain).
He really makes the audience detest him and that’s what acting is all about, right? Convincing the audience that you’re really the character you portray. Ten out of ten to this debutant. The flaws? Well, there are times when director Tanuja Chandra does succumb to the pressures of commercial obligations, like having a clichéd ending à la Mahesh Bhatt. While one is on the edge of the seat for most of the first half, one tends to relax a bit through the second half. But then I could fit all the cons in two sentences. Which is commendable stuff for Tanuja Chandra, who wields the megaphone for the first time. This young lady is a welcome addition to an industry where there is a dearth of capable directors.