When was the last time a mainstream film played a cat and mouse game with the audience and still managed to succeed. I cant recall, if you can, please feel free to remind. Coming to Khakee, although it is in no ways the next best thing to Dil Chahta Hai or Lagaan in recent times, it certainly easily closets itself in the category of Koil Mil Gaya, Gadar and Kal Ho Naa Ho. It is entertaining and it may just about be the universal hit everyone is waiting for.
Statutory Warning - Major Spoiler Ahead: Read at your own Risk
Khakee is the color of the police dress in India. It stands for a whole lot of things, which you can perhaps enjoy best when Amitabh ji tells it on the screen. But the movie Khakee is not about Police Force as such. It tackles tons of socio-economic issues. Some of them are:
How are Muslims treated in India?
How do politicians use Police Force for their own ends?
What games people play at the back end?
Who can be trusted and who not?
Are all terrorists men?
Can there be redemption in India?
Khakee not only answers those questions, but it also goes beyond. Its not really a formula film in the sense we know of it. It obviously has a lot hidden beneath the glamour of hand picked star cast and taut screenplay jugglery for major part of the movie. It is entirely ala Shakespeare, completely beyond the obvious. And that for a commercial Hindi movie is a major achievement.
The story is fine, the screenplay is exquisite and just for some parts in the middle, it stays good largely. The camera work is just about ok and the background score is just about decent as well. Art direction, well works because the light man does a good job and the dialogues rock at most places. Music although as relevant to the film as christmas tree to diwali is good also. The editor also gets it right till about post interval where he manages a few goof ups. Overall, nothing brilliant technically, but screenplay and dialogues save the day, which other than hurried climax (including Aish’s killing - lady complain, conviction of all three etc.).
Screenplay deserves some more clarifications it seems (these are not flaws but what I think the movie was trying to say) ....
The whole thing was planned. The file was the big issue and not Ansari. He went to the court, he would have spoken the truth, but he could not be killed as well, since he did not revel anything, so there could have been trouble. How do you get the things out? Thats what it all is about.
Ajay Devgan killing his photographer friend and Aish telling them of the Telephone Bomb? Does that not help Aish’s credibility? Another thing that supports 1.
The selection of all three cadres of police? Why those three? I mean come on, was that all a simple random selection or carefully planned one?
The whole roadblocks, village fair and then the secluded house scene, all were planned or were they?
Aish was plan number 2, just in case number 1 does not work.
Now a question - Was Ajay Devgan’s murder planned by Amitabh ji as well? Just check that three guys were sentenced and only one went with Tushar. Keep figuring that one out. And till when was it planned and when the plan went haywire in the first place? Answer that and you get Khakee.
The performances are of high order primarily. Akshay Kumar despite his limitations, manages to steal hearts with a most prolific mainstream character written in recent times. He is brilliant in comic scenes and the one scene he has showdown with Amitabh ji, he does reasonably well. Aish as usual manages to look beautiful, dance just about ok and act major fake. She had one of the best scene of her life, when she kills Akshay and she screws it all up. Tushar Kapoor also passes muster and fits his role to the hilt. He gets two outstanding scenes in the movie and that should keep him happy. Other side characters like Tanuja, Constables wife, Jaya Prada all provide some moments to remember as well. Ajay Devgan goes on highs of super skillful acting to lows of boring monotonous dialogue delivery. Watch him in the slapping scene and watch him when he kills Aish; looks like we got two different actors here. Amitabh ji is just superb. He is also not in true form through out but in about 5 scenes that he is in, he is just out of this world. Period!
Although I dont agree with an idea of film carrying social political message but the power of this movie is such, that even I salute it. Its perfect as cinema and perfect as carrying message. There are some minor flaws like Aishwarya Rai’s bolt from the blue death and then not even showing her dead, I mean come on there is something called courtesy, lol. Ajay Devgans last fight with Amitabh ji looks so plain jarring and over the top. But largely it is effective.
~~~~Now time for answers~~~~
Muslims are treated like all Indians - as pawns in the big game.
Politicians use us all as gunny pigs and we are happy with that as well.
I wonder if it is planned as well that hijackings and wars happen with such a close call to elections somewhere?
Who can be trusted - the most openly corrupt.
No, women are as rotten as men.
Yes, there can be redemption in India, what it needs is one voice and constant effort. Dont sit and complain, do something about it in your own way.
JAI HIND