''Balle Balle'' all the way!. Review on The Legend Of Bhagat Singh

Flicks based on period sagas (Lagaan, Asoka) and the Indian freedom movement (Gadar and Bhagat Singh) are the current toast of Bollywood. While the Indian audience is receptive to such movies, the sagacity and practicality (not to speak of the financial feasibility) behind five movies being simultaneously made on one of the greatest freedom fighters of India eludes my comprehension. Is it pure coincidence or the plain mania of cashing in on the “subject of the season”?

The Movie

Hundreds of people are clamouring in front of the Central Jail even as three bodies, tied up in bags, are taken away clandestinely from the hind side of a prison and burnt after being mercilessly hacked to pieces with axes. The background music that starts off on a sedate note, progresses and ends in an interminable roll of drums as the people realize the ruse played by the police. The people of India are outraged with the incident and Bhagat Singh becomes a martyr.

The movie then lapses into flashback mode and traces the life of the Bhagat Singh (Ajay Devgan) from the time he was a little kid. His hatred for the Britishers are brought out very well through a series of incidents that show Indians being stripped and mercilessly beaten in broad daylight and also through the Jallianawala Bagh massacre engineered by the tyrannical General Dyer.

Initially a staunch follower of Mahatma Gandhi, Bhagat Singh’s conviction in his (Gandhi’s) means of fight for freedom is shaken when he realizes that the Congress is only a party that is passive in its approach and is flaccidly reactive in its approach instead of being proactive. It’s this feeling of despondency that prompts him and Sukhdev (Sushant Singh of “Jungle” fame) to join “Hindu Socialist Association”, a body of patriotic revolutionaries who believe that violence is the only gateway to freedom for India.

The rest of the story is all about Bhagat Singh’s fight for freedom that includes the daring killing of General Saunders and the methods adopted by him to educate and awaken the sleeping mass of India like throwing a bomb in the parliament and getting himself (along with Batukeshwar Dutt) arrested willingly. Quite refreshingly, the dialogues are not complicated political harangues but short and simple speeches with caustic comments on the deficiencies of the Congress party, their lack of passion in getting Purna Swaraj (complete freedom) for India and his concerns on the volatile political tensions prevailing even at that time and his dreams for unifying all the people, irrespective of their religion, caste or creed to build India into a great country after getting Independence.

Quite strangely, Mahatma Gandhi is projected as a man unsure of what he wants to do, a man so disgusted with Bhagat Singh’s methods of violence that he doesn’t even try to get his life sentence commuted (which he easily could have before signing the “Irwin Pact”). In fact, Gandhiji is painted as a mere caricature in the opening sequences itself and whenever he appears on the screen thereafter, one can almost feel the audience letting out a chuckle or two at the way he has been presented. That, I’m sure, does not present our “Father of the Nation” in good light at all!

The second half seems a bit too stretched and deals with a lot of courtroom and jail scenes. Bhagat’s fight for better living conditions for the prison inmates and the ensuing hunger strike (for 55 days!) are very well shown. The movie ultimately ends with Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru (D. Santosh) being condemned to death by hanging. The final moments are perhaps the movie’s finest and the manner in which the three heroes react to the announcement of their punishment (with a smiling visage) is really very touching.

Cheeky says..

The movie very aptly lives up to its title, “The Legend of Bhagat Singh”. The active involvement of Kultar Singh (younger brother of Bhagat Singh) in writing the story results in a realistic depiction of the great man as he was - fearlessly daring, patriotically obsessed and surprisingly mature for his age (he was only in his early 20’s when he was hanged). A tremendous amount of research has been done on the story as is evident on the screen. Raj Kumar Santoshi does an excellent job (as usual) of wielding the megaphone and succeeds in sending across a strong message to the audience.

The sets and costumes have been meticulously designed keeping in mind the period to which they belong. The music by A.R. Rahman is pleasing and jells well with the movie. The tunes and the usage of various instruments are admirable. There are about 6 songs in the movie and all are situational, except for one romantic diversion (with newcomer, Amrita Rao), which could have been avoided but I guess the director had to cater to certain commercial compulsions.

The acting honours well and truly belong to Ajay Devgan who dishes out a very sincere and heart rending performance in the role of a lifetime. Sushant Singh (my nomination for the “Best Supporting Actor” of the year), Santosh, Raj Babbar and Farida Jalal (as his parents) and the rest of the cast chip in with good support. The movie is an outstanding effort from all those involved in its making. Except for a few minor glitches (editing defects), the movie hardly has any discernible drawbacks worth mentioning.

Had the movie been released shortly after Bhagat Singh’s hanging, it would have easily galvanized the whole country and led to a renewed fight which could have resulted in us winning our freedom a good two decades earlier than what we did – that’s the ultimate tribute I can pay this movie.