May 05, 2013 09:59 AM
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Sanjay Gupta-Apoorva Lakhia’s Shootout At Lokhandwala (2007) was a landmark film that gave birth to the idea of providing a fictional angle to the real-life events that happened in the history of Bombay underworld. Thus was born Shootout At Wadala which attempts to deal with the events that led to the first encounter orchestrated by the Mumbai Police. Resting on a brilliant premise, Shootout At Wadala does pack a punch at several places but a few glitches here and there prevent the film from being in the league of Shootout At Lokhandwala!
The story of the movie: Manohar Arjun Surve (John Abraham) has seen tough days. His brother Bhargav (Vinit Sharma) is an absconding criminal and his enemies and the cops are always at Manohar’s doorsteps to harass him and his mother. He plans to pass his graduation exams with flying colours, secure a good job and thus move away from the world of crime and insecurity. Fate, however, has different plans. He is falsely implicated in a murder case and sentenced to life imprisonment. The prevailing circumstances and jail life change the outlook of Manohar aka Manya. He befriends Sheikh Munir (Tusshar Kapoor) and Veera (Sanjeev Chadha) and once out, he forms his own gang in Bombay. In doing so, he gets into the wrong books of underworld dons Dilawar Imtiaz Haksar (Sonu Sood) and his elder brother Zubair Imtiaz Haksar (Manoj Bajpayee), and also Inspector Aafaque Baagraan (Anil Kapoor), the latter who plans to eliminate the underworld at any cost.
While Shootout At Lokhandwala had a crisp and fast-paced narrative, Shootout At Wadala is dragging and stretched at places. Except Laila, the rest of the two item numbers (Ala Re Ala and Babli Badmaash) and the song ‘Aye Manya’ were needlessly incorporated and acted as roadblocks. Those familiar with Manya (especially after reading S Hussain Zaidi’s bestseller novel Dongri To Dubai) will realize some of the key qualities of the gangster were not touched upon at all in the film. For instance, the manner in which Manya used to read western crime novels extensively while planning an operation or the way in which nobody used to know his whereabouts, not even his key accomplices. Thirdly, one also fails to understand why was Manya depicted as a victim of circumstances from start to finish. Surely, what happened with him initially was wrong but Manya in real life is known to have ruthlessly killed innocent people and terrorized one and all. Again, this aspect was hardly taken into account by the makers. In fact, one sympathizes with Manya when the shootout takes place!
However, being a fictional tale, one can ignore the aforementioned points and also on the grounds that its director Sanjay Gupta’s interpretation of real-life people and events and that it’s his creative freedom to interpret the incidents according to his will. And the film does have its share of strengths too. Barring the songs, the film keeps one hooked. The dialogues are brilliant and sustain the interest. Few scenes take the film to a high, one of them being the entire hospital mourning when the body of a gangster assassinated on streets of Bombay is brought there. The action is real and brilliantly captured that enhances impact. And lastly, the performances are simply bravura!
John Abraham gets an opportunity of a lifetime and makes great use of it. This is unlike what John has done in the past and believe it or not, he seems absolutely convincing as a Maharashtrian goon. And it’s not only the action scenes, even in the confrontational and dramatic moments, John shines! Needless to say, Shootout At Wadala ranks as one of the top-class and memorable performances from the stellar actor!
Anil Kapoor is at his best and looks dashing as the righteous inspector, out to eliminate the wrongdoings of the mafia. After delivering some not-so-great performances and not-so-good films, Anil finally packs a punch and how! Great going! Tusshar Kapoor looks odd initially but does an overall decent job as Manya’s faithful aide. Manoj Bajpayee is dependable as usual. Sonu Sood too does great, more so in the second half. Kangna Ranaut (Vidya) is hardly there in the first half but gets to prove her worth in the later part of the film. She provided the apt expressions in the intimate scenes.
Mahesh Manjrekar (Bhende) plays his part well and provides laughs too. Shakti Kapoor’s son Siddhant (Gynacho) makes a confident debut. Arif Zakaria (Sadiq) is great as always. Aju Kher (Inspector Ambolkar) is a great in his small role. Same goes for Ronit Roy (Rajan Ambat). Other actors who leave a mark are Sanjeev Chadha, Vinit Kalra, Raju Mawani (Yakub Lala), Pankaj Kalra (Batla), Chetan Hansraj (Potya), Karan Patel (Jameel), Sangeeta Khonayat (the raped lady) and Ranjeet (Bhaskar Dada). Jackie Shroff does well in the cameo scene. Sunny Leone sizzles and was the apt as the item girl.
Talking about songs, only Laila and Ala Re Ala are memorable ones. Amar Mohile’s background score however is effective. Sameer Arya-Sanjay F Gupta’s cinematography is slick while Tinu Verma-Allan Amin’s action is stylized but quite violent. Sunil Nigwekar’s sets are more or less authentic.
Sanjay Gupta and S Hussain Zaidi’s story-screenplay had all ingredients for an effective gangster drama. Sanjay Gupta’s direction was gripping and one of the best aspects of his execution is the manner in which he handled so many characters with ease. There are places where a major character is missing on screen for as long as 10-15 minutes while the focus is on other supporting characters. Yet, one doesn’t mind as the narrative keeps one hooked. However, one wishes if the film was not too long and so many songs weren’t incorporated in the film. Also, Manya-Aafaque’s conversation in the police van, though very interesting, looks over the top especially when the character is gravely injured. Nevertheless, a fine effort and great to see a Sanjay Gupta-directed film after ages!
Some of the best scenes:
Manya saves his brother
Manya gets arrested
Manya escapes from jail
The song ‘Laila’
Aafaque nabs Yakub and Batla
Manya teaches a lesson to Bhaskar Dada and Ambolkar
Manya confronts Dilawar
Manya attacks Zubair
Zubair in hospital
The last 20-25 minutes
On the whole, Shootout At Wadala is a gripping crime saga embellished with some exhilarating scenes, clapworthy dialogues and brilliant performances. The film, sadly, is too long, riddled with unnecessary songs and projects Manya as the victim, which maybe could had been avoided. It’s definitely a must watch for those who savour crime films, and also for John Abraham fans. The actor excels and how! Go for it!
