“Is kaal kaal mein hum tum rahein”… the music haunted us for days. Then my cousin landed humming the same tune from the US. My neighbours were humming it. The milkman, the paperwala, the rickshawala was humming it. I even felt the pigeons that come on my balcony humming it one day. Now wait a minute. There is something about this film. Never before has a film caught my imagination so vividly as Kaal. What’s it then? The promos had ShahRukh Khan and Malliaka Arora look hot. The music was great. But what’s kaal about? We decided to explore kaal. I haven’t been before to a movie during the first two weeks of its release.
Sunday was ideal so we picked up the phone to order tickets on the phone the previous day. The Internet was not so helpful. As all tickets for the weekend were sold out. Meanwhile we were watching News, listening to Radio FM and all that made our inquisitive levels reach an altogether new high. Fortunately, we managed to get through gold seats and that too for the 10.15 p.m. show. All through Sunday, we felt: should we or shouldn’t we- watch kaal. The reviews that were streaming through were not so impressive. But, then the inquisitiveness had to be conquered. With hopes and aspirations we entered the multiplex.
The opening sequence was truly a dramatic experience. Shahrukh sizzled the audience. The audience went crazy. Whistles of all decibels rent the air. Malliaka looked endearing. So this is what the milkman, paperwala, my neighbours, even the pigeons were humming about. Sad it came as the opening credit sequence. A girl sitting next to me was murmuring to her friend “can’t believe she’s just delivered.” I said to myself “poor Shahrukh he’s again hurting his back” One row down, a couple was recording the entire song on their camera phone. Gosh! The industry is working so hard to curb piracy. So what’s kaal?.
The screen now turns eerie. Unnatural sounds greet you. Monkeys snarl at you. Owls looked friendlier than haunting, bats swoop down in the manner my top floor neighbour chucks her waste out of the window, sometimes. You have just entered Orbit Park. It reminded me of phantom comics where you get to read: an old jungle saying - here only animals do the talking. But for us we have Krish (John Abraham) who is a researcher with the National Geographic Channel along with his photographer wife Riya (Esha Deol). They have been now assigned a mission to find out what’s happening at Orbit Park, with so much killings by tigers. The forest is going to be closed down for tourists. Krish suspects that there’s something more than what’s happened and is about to investigate. On a parallel track a group of friends – Dare devil Dev (Vivek Obeori), Superstitious Ishika (Lara Dutta), funny Vishal (Vishal Malhotra) and sleeveless Sajid (Kushal Punjabi) is on their way to holiday at a farmhouse. Dare devil Dev is experimenting his new land cruiser and hits a black cat. The car is rendered useless and they get a lift from a strange looking man called Bagga. He lures them to a new adventure game and they enter Orbit Park. Enroute they bump into Krish and Esha. After a lot of rattling, they end up as dependents. Mysterious deaths happen. They are worried. Man-eating tigers are on the prowl. They have to get out. It starts raining. They hold on to their guns. The forest officer warns them that they have to leave immediately.
Suddenly they find themselves confronted with tigers (I loved the entry sequence of the tigers) who are raging at them in such a force that you believe with a swift of a second all of them would go kaput. The girls shriek and wail. But, no. You are greeted to divine shots of the Aum and a shloka recital in the background. The tigers actually walk the ramp. Then a man in black with a strange looking baton walks in. That’s Kaali (Ajay Devgan). The tiger’s vanish- forever. He warns them that this place belongs to him. And tries to explain that there’s a spirit who is after humans who don’t follow the rule of the jungle. Death rules now. The driver is gone; next their friend Sajid is also dead. Headless bodies are found. The road is a dead end. Dare Devil Dev keeps on nagging “cut the crap” or “dil karta hain tera khoon kar doon”. Next Vishal is killed. I think this is one of the very long death sequence ever shot. Poor fellow, he could have been saved in that time. Esha, always seen with water bottle and ever-thirsty goes to a well, which kaali has forewarned not to venture near it, that eventually leads to her death. All unholy or supernatural things happen around them. Finally they manage to know who this mysterious Kaali is and make their way out of the jungle. And kaali says “kaal aur bhi ayenge.” God you run for cover.
Well as we came out of the auditorium, people looked as though they were made a joker of something. I was trying to figure out answers to so many questions. Firstly, Esha happens to be a photographer, but seldom seen with a camera. How on earth can Esha and Lara wear such scanty clothes that too in the jungle? Secondly, why was so much footage wasted between John and Vivek’s suspicions? Thirdly, why wasn’t the Ajay Devgan mystery deftly handled, which to me is the films turning point and the film would have had a strong base. Fourthly, debutante Sohams’ direction is worthy but becomes worthless due to bad storyline, some dramatic and scary scenes made us laugh. Fifthly, John is good, Vishal proved his acting genre- watch his performance when he hears Sajid is dead, Esha and Lara are totally wasted, Ajay Devgan as Kaali was nothing so interesting, Fifthly, the music is gripping at times and the sound direction was awesome at some places- jungle scenes and Sixthly, my sixth sense tells me its kaal to end this by saying “Is kaal kaal ne kardiya humko bekaar, Tauba tauba is ne to hamein loot liya”.