Ram Gopal Varma was without doubt, one of the best directors in Bollywood till he created the atrociously bad RGV ki Aag, and then delivered one flop after another. But as they say in cricket, form is temporary, but class is permanant. Rangeela, Satya, Company, Sarkar and Nishabd, which according to me are his best films, are no flashes in the pan or flukes. Hence, I look forward to his films with eagerness and anticipation that he will return to form sooner than later. Thats the same thought which ran through my mind as I stood at the ticket counter trying to decide whether to watch Rann or Ishqiya. As you must’ve guessed, being an RGV fan, I went for Rann.
RGV had handled sensitive topics like Nishabd beautifully, with some amazing background score (Amar Mohile) and breathtaking cinematography (Amit Roy) which transported me to another world. I was looking forward to a finely dissected view of the media. However, Rann shows that the master director hasn’t yet regained his midas touch. To put it simply, Rann suffers from many flaws, but most importantly, it looks and feels like Sarkar too much to be called an ’original’ film, both in terms of script or presentation. RGV in a recent interview said that he was exposing the media in Rann. I think he has exposed his lack of knowledge about the media thru’this atrocious film.
Rann’s poster is quite suggestive of the film. AB with folded hands looks like he is apologizing to in advance subjecting us to this film!
Rann begins with repetitive images of various ’semi-real’ TV channels talking endlessly about various topics ranging from showbiz gossip, villager deaths, etc. The background music keeps pounding on your ears, trying to create a sense of horror. Yes, its a kind of horror being subjected to all that news, most of which is sad and bad, but the music can be subtler and let the visuals do the talking. Just as you’re about to yell "Ënough!", AB appears on screen as a news presenter, and gives you the biggest shock of your life. He goes "Blah Blah Blah" about bomb blasts and other banes in our society. Is this news, you ask yourself....no it isnt. Its some kind of lecture, and you wonder if Bachchan stepped out of a college classroom.
Ritesh Deshmukh stays glued to the TV watching AB’s lecture and jotting down some points. Like his girlfriend, you too wonder why he’s so crazy about AB. Seems AB is the only clean soul in the media world, where everyone else is trying dirty tactics to stay ahead. I’m referring primarily to Mohnish Behl, ex-employee of AB’s channel, who starts his own news channel and beats AB to the top. He tells his people, "News ko masala banake becho", which means "Add some spice to news and sell it". He asks them to hire models to read news in skimpy clothes in exotic locations. We’re not even 15 minutes into the film, and you already start wondering which world RGV lives in, because news seems to take on a totally different meaning and form in his world. Cartoon characters like Rajpal Yadav, who irritates the hell out of the viewer, also has a place in it.
The film never takes a serious look at the media industry, instead staying happy to stay in its own imaginary world. You begin to feel that you know much more about the real media than the makers themselves. Suchitra, the COO of AB’s channel, recruits Ritesh and discusses business plans with AB, but also leaks the plans to Mohnish, who happily pays her and stays on top in TRP ratings. Also, AB’s family itself is full of crooks or would-be-crooks. Sudeep, who plays his son, looks depressed, moody and somewhat constipated thru’ the film and freaks out when he realizes that his ideas of reviving the channel have got thwarted due to the leakage channel i.e. Suchitra. He worries about paying his creditors, but we dont understand how or where he spent all their money. He gets this super suggestion from his brother-in-law, whose story resembles the Ambani’s rivalry. He wants to overtake his elder brother as biggest businessman, and is friends with a politician. The politician here is shown to be a dangerous and scheming person who aspires to become the next PM. Haven’t we seen this in a million movies...Yawn! Paresh Rawal plays the politician but there’s zero novelty in his characterisation or dialogues. If you want to see innovative and interesting politicians, watch Sayaji Shinde in "Shool".
So, they cook up a story, and desperate son convinces his depressed father to break it to the nation. AB turns his channel into one of the "Breaking News" channels with this, and the nation believes every word AB says. PM steps down, wily crook wins the elections and is on his way to becoming PM. AB’s channel climbs to the top and wins all awards, but Ritesh can’t help but smell a rat. He becomes a detective and tries to open Pandora’s box. You begin to snore as he fits all the blocks together, because you’re aware of what’s going on. Its too predictable, and all brickbats for this go to some "Rohit Banawlikar", who takes credit for the poor story-screenplay. Bad choice of Story writer, RGV. Ritesh’s quest for the truth looks similar to junior AB’s quest for her father’s opponents in Sarkar. The ending is plain terrible. AB breaks down in front of national television and admits his mistake, as if it was a confession box. Listening to him, the swearing in ceremony of the new PM i.e. wily crook is halted. He hands over the baton to newcomer Ritesh and quits.
AB stands out in terms of performances, but its nothing that you haven’t seen before. Sudeep acts less, and reacts more to others statements and comments. His mannerisms are very similar to KK’s character in Sarkar, which robs the character of originality or impact. Ritesh too looks tensed and nervous thru’ the film, and always wears a sweater. Wonder if they shot the entire film in Delhi’s winter season. Neetu Chandra is a nice prop, roaming around in lingerie and exposing cleavage. Rajat Kapoor and Mohnish Beh; pitch in sincere and convincing performances.
Amit Roy’s cinematography is inventive in the fact that it chooses very different and unique angles to capture the protagonists and situations, but inventive doesn’t always mean great. Its quite distracting actually.The music is very poor. None of the songs have any impact and even when used in the background, intrude unnecessarily into the proceedings, when plain background music would have sufficed. After watching this, you realize how amazing Dev D’s tracks were, and beautifully integrated into the film. Amit Trivedi and Anurag, you guys rock!!
Rann’s success, or lack of it, is easily judged by two things,
The ads focus solely on reviewer ratings
The film is already available in DVD, barely 2-3 weeks after release!!
RGV, I am running out of money and patience. Better deliver quality films fast! I really wonder if its so difficult to make a good film. Almost always, English films exceed my expectations while Hindi films leave me disappointed and furious! Perhaps because they base their movies on good novels. And why are corporate like Religare putting their money on such duds. Can’t they clearly see that this is a guaranteed flop?