Jail (2009)

Considering most of the Bollywood films with imaginary stories, songs as well as dance sequences in the gardens, I was pretty much reluctant for this movie. But happened to see it on TV. Really impressive work, later found out the director is Madhur Bhandarkar, no doubt there are really very few directors to create such kind of magic.Very real and strong script, with superb direction. The movie progresses stage by stage with a charm. It was such a treat to watch this movie. Loved every part of it and the best part is touching one of the most sensitive areas in India. Never had so much sympathy for Indian jail convicts so far. This is for sure a movie of international standards.A must watch.

This is a really good movie. The premise is simple as it is a classic prison drama. The plot builds momentum from the beginning; the director captures the life and soul of the jail to great effect. I was impressed by this unknown actor, and thought it a good idea that someone new got a chance as opposed to the money-grabbing usual line-up. His performance was of a high standard, as was the rest of this little-known cast.The Bollywood Shawshank Redemption? Possibly better. An intelligent, emotive movie that celebrates the strength of the human spirit and highlights the virtue of not giving up.

The premise of this film is one that the average individual must have seen once of twice in their lifetime (in the wildest dreams/nightmares). Mr A and Mr B are traveling along when suddenly they are stopped by the police. Mr A (a law abiding citizen who just got promoted at work and is engaged to his girlfriend another happy-go-lucky individual) is instructed by Mr B (his shady room-mate) to outrun the cops but when they are caught, Mr B tries to make a run for it and is shot leaving Mr A at the mercy of the police who soon find a stash of illegal drugs in the vehicle. This is the sort of thing that everybody prays never happens to them. I kept having the feeling that this was 'Ek Haseena Thi' with a male protagonist but as the movie progressed I saw that while it had shades of the afore mentioned film then again it was so much more. The movie carries the message of false imprisonment and illegal conduct that takes place in India (I can't remember the exact statistic but it was something like 70%-80% of inmates in Indian jails are either men or women taking the fall for someone else or still awaiting trial for a crime that they have yet to be convicted of). Neil Nitin Mukesh proves once again with this one that he is not only an actor, he is a serious one. Mugha Godse seemed disinterested in her role and it showed but not enough to take away from the film.

If any one can depict a "bewildered" "why-me?" look, that would be clearly-Neil Nitin Mukesh as Parag Dixit. The look is familiar since his Debut in "New York". He takes the look further with some depth and dexterity under the baton of Madhur Bhandarkar. The other good actor is Arya Babbar-as Kabir. The look he gives when Parag tells him, that he could kill, is fine piece of acting. Mughda Godse's who made her Debut in "Page 3", as Parag's fiancé has acting skills akin to Konkana Sen Sharma, with buxom expressive eyes. The movie has a thriller quality to it with sub-plots that keep you on the edge. Manoj Bajpai as Nawab, comes across like a Halloween scary character on the surface appears to have a devious agenda but he is one character that the viewer will have most sympathy for-even though he is in for a serious crime. He also has the best diction for narration in fact he should have narrated the whole movie as Morgan Freeman did in "Shashank Redemption". The movie has few similarities to "Shashank Redemption" but the similarities are more generic since the theme is a Jail irrespective of the geography. Madhur Bhandarkar has a flair for showing the raw-edge of the society, where as the other film makers would shun away from. He is one of the best self made "Casting Agent" in India. He would never hire meat-head actors like Salman Khan, Aamir Khan who have absolutely nothing to offer to the Indian Cinema.Bhandarkar,invariably has a deep message ("behind bars but not beyond justice") as in "Traffic Signal", "Chandini Bar" "Satta" and other fine movies. I am sure he has other "Themes" in the pipeline that would wake up the Society from Slumber. Suffice to say, I have become a devote fan of this director-more so after this movie.