A very stylish movie. Review on Rajkumar

Rajkumar is a movie that is not a true classical period drama like the recent Shah Rukh Khan starrer Devdas.

Nevertheless, it is more exciting than Devdas because of its stylish cinematography that can be truly termed revolutionary for a 1996 release.

The story is about a Rajkumarwho seeks revenge for his widowed queen mother (Reena Roy). The enemy in this case is perceived to be the Rajkumari(Madhuri Dixit) who is framed by her Minister and ardent admirer, Durjan Singh (Naseeruddin Shah). How the Rajkumar finds justice and wins the heart of the Rajkumariis the crux of this story.

The plot may not hold much substance. But the acting by Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit truly deserves mention.

Anil Kapoor plays the noble prince who is trying to tread on the path of righteousness between Dharma and Karma like Vivek Oberoi in the recent Kisna.He acts well and excels in the superbly crafted action sequences.

Probably, the single biggest disappointment was the villain Naseeruddin Shah. His acting and dialogue delivery was ordinary. We have seen him too often in these kind of stereotypical roles like in Mohra and Krrish.

Aruna Irani as the witch appears in a brief role and many will find it hard to recognise her in her "chudail" disguise. She only appears briefly.

As for Madhuri, she really lives her role of a Rajkumariand looks one too. Here I would also like to comment on her costumes for the film. They are no doubt very glamourous and very revealing for an actress of her standing. They are designed to showcase her assets!!! if you know what I mean. But she nevertheless comes across as very sensuous. A truly great actress and a real Rajkumari.

Another minus point for the film was LP's music. They were not great by their illustrious standards. Many of the songs were very boring to listen to. "Payal meri..." was the pick of the lot for me. The song picturisations were awesome and compensated to some extent for this musical flaw.

The direction by Pankuj Parashar was ahead of its time and truly inspiring. This film truly counts as one of his best works alongside Jalwa and Tumko Naa Bhool Paayenge.His shot taking is excellent and demonstrates his knowledge of superb camera technique.

In this film, the director has incorporated special effects that were novel for the time for which it was made. Few films were made in the 90s with special effects. Now after Krrish, special effects are now the in-thing.

Pankuj singlehandedly with his novel camera techniques tried to compensate for the basic weakness of this film - the script. The story is as old as the hills and only the stylish camerawork and the superb acting by Anil and Madhuri hold your attention. Perhaps that is why this film did not do well as expected.

Rajkumarwas truly a film that was ahead of its time. If it had released today, it might have done better. This movie is highly recommended for the acting and the camerawork. Go watch it on DVD!