Youngistaan (2014)

If I hadn't already labeled one of the films that I watched as the worst one ever, this one might have easily taken the spot. To start off, this film is about the romantic life of the PM of the country, and has a singular agenda - to awaken people to the fact that having a live in relationship is the choice of two individuals and nobody else's business. What a deeply coherent and nuanced plot! So we have a very brooding protagonist whose expression seldom changes in the film, except when he attempts to portray joy and ends up reminding us of the last sickly person we've met. He is apparently a superbrain (he wears glasses, duh!) So, this guy arbitrarily gets chosen as the leader of the nation, despite having no relation with politics, which begs the question of his credentials (his girlfriend discusses the same!) The girlfriend is a typical character out of contemporary Bollywood - aggressive, demanding and basically, immature. Still, she's more likable than the hero and acts much better too.So the PM goes around in supposed catwalks (he's too dead to even do that well), making youthful gestures and appealing to his 'youngistaan'. His lack of trust in the 'oldistaan' is never touched upon. The hero is a shrewd one, having a definite vote bank in mind, one that constitutes the majority and will be impressed by his interest in sports, his software career background, his live in relationship, his electronic voting system and his PDA. But let's not forget that he is the Bollywood guy who never does things for selfish reasons. So, true to his role, he makes a farce of leaving the dirty political game while secretly planning to enter the system from behind. He also does his song and dance routine while giving bhashans on unity and prosperity out of the blue while mainly focusing on the demarcation between person and professional living.The hero then flings his invisible magic wand and in a matter of seconds (the rest of the film is about 'live in relationships'), solves issues of youth finances, farmer suicides, collision politics and not to forget, people's opinions about personal and professional lives of other people. Basically, one good person = one good nation.This film is inappropriately titled youngistaan. It barely refers to the youth of the nation, and is neither based on a popular soft drink, but more to the choice of living in versus marriage for the young. I've never despised the living in concept, but now that it's been associated with this film, well! In sum, the film is too superficial to be either meaningful or funny. It tries hard to take a comic take on the everyday life of a most prominent personality. It flops miserably, because it is not daring enough to explore, to get away from the typical heroic image in bollywood. Besides, the less said about the performances, the better. What a waste!

I have looked at several movies based on Indian politics (Raajneeti being the best) This is by far the most boring. It was an interesting premise: about a young man who is thrust into Indian politics and becomes the leader of one of the world's largest democracies. However, I believe that shoddy direction resulted in an uninspiring movie. The acting left a lot to be desired.Jacky's attempt to pull of the role of a serious politician fell flat, and I am yet to figure out what Neha's role in this movie was. Farooq Shaik's role wasn't bad, but it was brief.The music was totally lacklustre, the only "good" song being Suno Na. All other songs came across as noise. Final Rating 3/10

Vasu Bhagnaani's production Youngistaan starring his son Jacky Bhagnaani in lead role was released on 28.03.2014 telling the story of a 28 years old youth becoming the prime minister of India. Less than two months later, the rulers of India changed and we got a new prime minister who is not 28 years old but 64 years old. However the Indian masses have voted him to power with an absolute majority with a lot of expectation. Let's see what he is able to do during his tenure. However the story of Youngistaan is somewhat similar not to that of the current prime minister of India but to that of Late Rajiv Gandhi who had accidentally become the Indian premier at the relatively young age of 40 years on 31.10.1984 after the brutal murder of his mother and the then prime minister of India - Mrs. Indira Gandhi. I watched Youngistaan quite late (after the general elections and the change of rule at the centre) but this movie impressed me so much that I decided to write its review.Abhimanyu Kaul (Jacky Bhagnaani) is the son of the prime minister of India - Mr. Dashrath Kaul (Boman Irani) but having no interest in politics, has always stayed away from it and is pursuing his career as a computer game developer in Japan when he has to rush to India due to his father's being on his death-bed. In order to fulfill the last wish of his father, he has to enter Indian politics quite reluctantly and wear the thorny crown of Indian premiership. His girlfriend Anwita (Neha Sharma) who never wanted him to join politics, is quite unhappy at it but she has to yield before his decision. How Abhimanyu is able to don this role and checkmate his opponents with his deceased father's secretary Akbar Uncle (Farooq Sheikh) being the only trustworthy person for him in this cobweb, forms the remaining part of the movie.After watching I am surprised that most of the professional reviewers have trashed this movie like anything as if it's a very bad product. This is one more illustration of the various biases maintained and nurtured by the Indian film reviewers. Youngistaan may not be a great movie but it's by all means a good, well-made and admirable movie. The movie clearly conveys what it purports to convey without any confusion, ambiguity or digression. The heart of the movie is in the right place and despite being an imaginary and improbable story, the things happening in the corridors of Indian politics have been depicted with a highly realistic approach. In my humble opinion, Youngistaan is a completely no-nonsense movie and the efforts of the team behind its making deserve to be appreciated.Due to the realistic approach only, the movie appears to be monotonous and boring at places. The climax is, therefore, dull and unappealing. However the filmmaker has shown better sense by not inserting too many regular Bollywood formulae and undue melodrama in the narrative and kept the things shown on the screen as straightforward and reliable as possible. Entertainment does not appear to be the motive of the filmmaker though such movies are usually made for entertaining the audience and thereby hauling box office collections. Hence this paradoxical approach of the filmmaker is strange but laudable.The whole milieu of the movie mainly that linked to the corridors of power in India, appears to be out and out real. The body language of the different characters is quite apt according to the assigned roles and the mood of the movie. Sets are impressive. Ditto for cinematography. Dialogs are not theatrical but quite appropriate according to different situations and the characters uttering them. Background score is in order.Music director Jeet Ganguly hasn't composed any super hit numbers for this movie but his musical score alongwith the lyrics of Arijit Singh is certainly good.I have been an admirer of Jacky Bhagnaani since his debut movie Kal Kissne Dekha (2009). He is a handsome as well as talented actor who deserves the right break to give a boost to his career. He has rendered a controlled performance in the lead role of Abhimanyu whose years are tender but personality is mature. Another highly admirable performance has come from Late Farooque Sheikh in the role of the PM's secretary. All others have also fitted the bill.The word Youngistaan represents the youthful part of the Indian population who is open-minded, progress-oriented, free from bigotry and does not believe in any undesirable discrimination among people. This Youngistaan badly needs a youthful, dynamic and open-minded leader at the helm of affairs. The hero of Youngistaan is an imaginary character but we, the right-thinking Indians, wish that it were real.

'Youngistaan' may not be flawless or a razor-sharp political satire, but its A Well-Made, Honest Film. Its potential cannot be denied, despite its visible minuses!'Youngistaan' Synopsis: Abhimanyu Kaul - a young, independent, Games Developer, living in Japan & the love of his life, Anwita Chauhan - a bubbly, passionate & full of life, summer intern. Their happy and content life faces the test of time, when blood ties & the pressure of being born into the first family of India tears a young Abhimanyu between his love for Anwita & a promise made to his dying father, the Prime Minister of India. Being a public figure, by reluctantly accepting to represent the governing party, much against his own wishes & at the cost of his private life, is a double-edged sword that Abhimanyu must walk on.'Youngistaan' explores an underdog's story with honesty. It begins well, it progresses well, as the humor works, the political portions work & so do the performances. But, the second-hour begins to lose pace. Once our protagonist, turns into the most powerful man of the country, his journey grips you completely. But, the subplot, the romantic-angle, acts as a deterrent, more-so in the second-hour. Its stagnates the pace as well as the overall impact. Another thing, the length could've been trimmed, by at least 15-minutes. Syed Ahmad Afzal's Screenplay does justice to an interesting premise, but could've been sharper. His Direction, on the other-hand, is controlled. Cinematography & Editing are good.Performance-Wise: Jackky Bhagnani enacts the protagonist, with sincerity. He's controlled, mature & believable all through. This has to be his best work till date. Neha Sharma does an okay job. The Late/Great Farooq Sheikh is a joy to watch, as always. Boman Irani is wasted.On the whole, 'Youngistaan' is a good watch.