Jun 11, 2008 03:49 PM
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2008 is easily the most surprising year! Movies on which a lot of expectations were riding disappointed a lot. And Aamir, from which expectations weren’t much prove to be one of the best film of 2008! Raj Kumar Gupta’s sharp direction and Rajeev Khandelwal’s master performance makes it a fantastic flick!
The story of the movie: Dr Aamir Ali (Rajeev Khandelwal) returns to his hometown Mumbai from London after a long time. As soon as he comes out of the airport, two strangers forcibly hand him a cell phone and run away. The phone rings in no time and when Aamir picks up, the caller (Gajraj Rao) tells him that he has taken his family hostage and that Aamir will have to do whatever he tells him. Scared, Aamir does whatever the caller tells him.
The word ‘Aamir’ means leader. So will Aamir be true to his name and become a leader? Or will he let others write his destiny just for the sake of the well-being of his family?
Aamir is dark, shot mostly by hidden cameras. Comparisons can be made with Black Friday since it was also similarly made. What sets Aamir apart is the brilliant execution. The film captures your attention from the first scene itself. Right from the first frame, you’ll get the hint that Aamir is not only brilliant, but also unique!
Also the director uses some contrasting moments in the film. Take for instance the first scene. The typical scenes of Mumbai are being shown (overcrowded local trains, dhobis doing their job at Dhobi Ghat etc) and a retro English song “It’s a good day” is being played in the background! This clearly shows that Raj Kumar Gupta knows his job very very well! And when Aamir bashes up the goons, a Qawaali “Ha Raham” is played! Truly unique and creative, isn’t it?!
The only shortcoming is that the film gets little slow in the 2nd half. But actually it can’t be termed as a shortcoming since the slow pace was necessary to describe Aamir’s situation clearly.
Aamir is just 100 minute movie but it packs in a lot in such a short duration. The visuals of the dingy areas of the city, the overcrowded narrow lanes and the filthy toilets in old dilapidated buildings truly shock and disturb the viewers.
The climax was slow but it was a complete shocker. The movie ends on a disturbing note, but then that’s what the motive of the movie was!
The movie has lots of debutants! Rajeev Khandelwal, Raj Kumar Gupta (director/writer), Alphonse Roy (cinematographer) and Amit Trivedi (music director) are all debutants and surprisingly, these four have done their job outstandingly!
Rajeev Khandelwal’s performance cannot be described in words. He went totally into the skin of the character and his performance was so good and natural that we, for sometime, forget that he is actually Rajeev Khandelwal, not Aamir! In each scene, he was brilliant! Kudos to UTV and Raj Kumar Gupta for selecting a debutant and not an established star for the role of Aamir! Kudos to Rajeev too for choosing such an offbeat subject for his debut!
Gajraj Rao (who was wonderful as Dawood Phanse in Black Friday) also did his job quite well. Jhilmil who played the prostitute didn’t have much to do but did a good job. Others were okay.
Amit Trivedi’s music suited the dark mood of the movie. All songs of the movie ‘Ha Raham’, ‘Haara’, ‘Chakkar Ghumyo’ and ‘Phas Gaya’ were very unusual but excellent! The background score was simply outstanding!
Alphonse Roy brilliantly captured the locales of Mumbai. Some scenes were taken from hidden cameras, and those scenes were also properly shot. Aarti Bajaj’s editing was topnotch.
Raj Kumar Gupta did an equally job as a writer as well as a director. The story was completely flawless. And the direction was unique and unusual which kept the viewers engrossed throughout the film. Excellent work, Mr Gupta!
Some of the best scenes of the movie:
1. The first scene of the movie
2. Aamir and his encounter with the cabbie
3. Aamir searching for ‘National Restaurant’
4. Aamir in the old filthy dilapidated building ‘Gulistan’
5. The intermission point
6. Aamir ordered to take a briefcase
7. Aamir bashing up the goons
8. The powerful climax
On the whole, Aamir is a brilliant film and easily ranks as one of the best films of 2008! The film has unfortunately not drawn much audience due to its release with a biggie, Sarkar Raj. But the film deserves to be watched and should not be missed at any cost!
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