The corruption in the present-day scenario is at an all-time high and so is the discontent among the citizens. The unearthing of scam after scam and blatant violation of laws by a section of elite population has fueled the anger. In fact, a mere newspaper article is capable of igniting the fire within people. Hence, one expects a film titled Satyagraha, directed by Prakash Jha and inspired from the very popular Anna Hazare movement to make the most tremendous impact. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Satyagraha is strictly an average fare and riddled with avoidable goofs.
The story of the movie: Dwarka Anand (Amitabh Bachchan) is an honest, righteous school principal who lives with his son Akhilesh (Indraneil Sengupta) and daughter-in-law Sumitra (Amrita Rao) in Ambikapur. Sadly, tragedy hits the Anand family and Akhilesh’s sincere-but-money minded friend Manav Raghavendra (Ajay Devgn) pays a visit to support them in the time of grief. A bitter personal experience at the Collectorate then leads Dwarka Anand to lose his temper and pay a heavy price as a result. But when public comes out to support him, he decides to fight not only for himself but for all those whose files have gathered dust since years thanks to red tape. This brings Dwarka Anand in direct conflict with the corrupt and manipulative home minister Balram Singh (Manoj Bajpayee).
Satyagraha boasts of an ensemble cast and a very relatable storyline. If made well, it could have struck a chord with viewers a la Rang De Basanti, Nayak: A Real Hero, A Wednesday etc. Unfortunately, there are just a couple of scenes that give the goosebumps-inducing feeling to the viewers. The film begins well and one really doesn’t mind the subtle commencement to the narrative. The tragedy that strikes the Anand family, the manner in which Dwarka Anand blasts a public servant and the manner in which Manav gathers public support for Dwarka Anand make for a great viewing. By the time the first half culminates, one has a nice experience of the film though it hasn’t been extraordinary as one hopes that Jha has reserved the best for the second hour. But again, nothing of that sort happens.
The ‘anshan’ sequence, shockingly, also doesn’t move the audiences. Only respite is Raghupati Raghav song that turns out to be the best moment of the film. The climax seemed totally unconvincing and is too hurried. One wonders why. Moreover, Jha and his team touch upon the road mafia episode and delve slightly into it as well but then forget all about the angle later on. Something similar was also seen in Jha’s Aarakshan in which the reservation issue gave way to the coaching class ‘mafia’ and the former was all forgotten. But Aarakshan was a well-made film and one doesn’t mind since the coaching class angle too had its moments. The same doesn’t happen with Satyagraha. The road mafia angles remains on top of viewer’s mind and when the film ends without giving any logical conclusion to it, it makes a bad impression.
Performances are fine but again, not as brilliant as one expects from a Prakash Jha film. However, Amitabh Bachchan is an exception and does total justice to his character. Especially in the end when he looks really convincing as someone who is on fast unto death. If there is any kind of empathy from the audiences for the film, it will be because of his character and performance. Ajay Devgn is natural and effortless and looks dashing in the Raghupati Raghav song. Kareena Kapoor Khan (as Yasmin) looks stunning and plays her part well. However, the manner in which she ‘bunks’ her journalist job and becomes a part of Dwarka Anand’s team was very unconvincing. Manoj Bajpayee was excellent as the conniving politician and also raises laughs with his dialogues. Arjun Rampal (Arjun Singh) gives in his best but his character is half-baked and has nothing significant to do in the film. And this is really sad since off late, he has given some brilliant performances in films like D-Day, Inkaar and Jha’s Chakravyuh. Indraneil Sengupta leaves a mark in a small role while Amrita Rao plays her supporting role well. Sahadev Gireesh (Collector) looked every inch a corrupt babu. Vipin Sharma (opposition minister), Vinay Apte (Kalakanth Babu), Raj Arjun Singh (Sangram Singh), Shireesh Sharma (Chief Minister) and others do a fine job. Watch out for Prakash Jha in a special appearance!
As for the songs, Raghupati Raghav is undoubtedly the best of the lot. Other songs fail to contribute to the storyline while Raske Bhare seemed wasted. Sachin Krishn’s cinematography as always works big time in such socio-political films. Sets are convincing and locales of in and around Bhopal are beautifully captured and utilized. Editing was incoherent at few places. Dialogues are fine and story did have the potential even though it had few loose ends. But screenplay could have smartly covered up these minuses which sadly don’t happen. Prakash Jha too wasn’t at his best when it comes to direction. Few scenes made an impact but overall, he failed to give the goosebumps to the viewers and charge them which he could have done since the topics taken in the film are very relatable. Climax was hurried and unjustified. Jha, off late, has faced brickbats for coming up with ‘mass-friendly commercial films’ and moving away from films like Apaharan, Mrityudand, Gangaajal etc that got him prominence. I didn’t have problems though and I thoroughly enjoyed Raajneeti and Aarakshan. But with Satyagraha, it seems that it’s time for Jha to do a rethink!
Some of the best scenes:
Dwarka Anand confronts Manav on the terrace.
Tragedy strikes Anand family.
Dwarka Anand slaps the Collector.
Manav starts a campaign for Dwarka Anand.
Dwarka Anand’s speech outside the police station.
The intermission point.
Dwarka Anand decides to go on a fast.
Sangram Singh arrested.
The song ‘Raghupati Raghav’.
On the whole, Satyagraha takes up topics that are highly relocatable. But the script and direction fail to charge the viewers with exhilaration and excitement. Kareena Kapoor Khan and Arjun Rampal’s character seemed half-baked, climax is unjustified and Jha’s attempt to take up the issue of road mafia and then leave it mid-way was highly disappointing. On the positive side, few scenes are well executed, Amitabh Bachchan is fantastic while Raghupati Raghav song is spellbinding!
*As for the film, it’s an average fare!
My rating-* * ½*