Director: Jitendra Tiwari, Pawan Kumar Singh
Cast: Jimmy Sheirgill, Suha Gezen, Hiten Tejwani, Ashutosh Rana, Narendra Jha, Sanjay Suri
A film, based loosely on Muzzafarnagar riots, begins with sending out a heartfelt thanks to the honourable Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav. While it speaks volumes about the current situation of our nation - where a film gets into trouble because it is set in a land which was unfortunate to witness communal killings - the similarities between the reel and real life characters are unmistakable.
The film delves so deep into the innocent friendship between Raghu (Anirudh Dave) and Zainab (Suha Gezen) that it ends up creating unrest in the small UP town and in our lives for the running time. Zainab is betrothed to Salim (Hiten Tejwani) but Raghu’s feelings start creating a mess for her. The friendship slowly escalates to becoming a political minefield and weaves other characters into the story including Raghu’s father (Ashutosh Rana), who essays the role of a pacifist trying to calm down the mean streaks of both Hindu (Jimmy Sheirgill) and Muslim leaders.
‘Shorgul’, for the most part, has been reduced to a clichéd-driven film trying hard to give away a message of peace but ends up losing its essence amid its complicated narrative. Rana shines in this political fiasco covering up for over-the-top performances of other actors. It’s only Rana’s dialogue delivery that keeps bringing you back to the loosely weaved story. Sheirgill is impressive with his words but one feels that he should have been given more screen time. Running-crying-blushing; Gezen will often remind you of a heroine from the 60s era which by the way, doesn’t work well for the film. While Tejwani’s acting takes you back to his daily soap days, Khan’s cameo will leave you wishing for more of him!
From an unfortunate inter-community romantic tale to the opportunist leaders trying to grab power at any cost; the movie is a cluttered misinterpretation of the 2013 riots. You may want to give this one to the filmmakers for the little plausible plotline that came out of their minds but the poor execution will have you taking it back instantly.
Also, the underlying causes of the petition which was filed against the makers alleging that it featured characters inspired by BJP legislator Sangeet Som, UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and cabinet minister Azam Khan will be understood by many once you’re over with this one.
Of the many things you’ll like to forget from this loud depiction, notable ones include the song and dance routine accompanying the opening credits and a poorly done scar on Eijaz’s neck and hands. Even the make-believe pattern of making you believe fails here.
They may have had a noble intention of spreading peace through this one but the reference to the human tragedy as blaze as Muzaffarnagar riots should have been taken a tad-bit seriously before creating such an ordinary piece. Looks like the makers took the title too seriously and ended up losing the plot in its own din!
Rating: 1.5/5