By Ashok Nayak
Eklavya – The royal guard, directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra is the story of a solitarian. Eklavya (Amitabh Bachchan) a royal guard, is an oriental man whose only objective is to protect the Devigarh family. He spends his entire life serving and guarding the family. As he grows older his deteriorating eyesight begins to worry him.
The unfortunate demise of Suhasini Devi (Sharmila Tagore) forces, heir to the throne, royal prince Harshwardhan (Saif Ali Khan) to return from London. His return brings joy to his sister princess Nandini (Raima Sen) and childhood friend Rajjo (Vidya Balan). But as in most stories, their joy is short lived. Farmers were being robbed off their lands and this creates strife in the kingdom. King Rana Jaywardhan and his evil brother Rana Jyotiwardhan (Jackie Shroff) support the atrocities being forced upon the helpless farmers. The ruler’s mentally challenged daughter’s Nandini (Raima Sen) recollection of a crime brings a storm in the tea cups. The king receives a death threat and he informs the police. Pannalal Chohar (Sanjay Dutt) is called in to investigate the matter. What unfolds is an action thriller which is worth a watch.
Direction: Back to direction after 7 years, Vidhu Vinod Chopra has given his best shot in narrating the story full of twists and turns excellently well. The director deserves credit for a few sequences. The Blindfolded Eklavya testing his archery skills and the attempt to murder just before the interval are hair raising.
The music is above average. There is just one song in the whole movie and its well shot. The background score is very good. Cinematography by Natarja Subramanian is great. The palace has been beautifully shot.
Acting: Amitabh Bachchan – The legendary Bachchan delivers a powerful performance. Will rank amongst his best performance ever.
Saif Ali Khan – Saif has grown into such a fantastic and consistent actor. It is hard to believe this is the same Saif of the 90s. He stands up to the Big b and in some scenes even outshines him. Every single act of his, this decade has been nothing less than Brilliant. The most consistent but underrated Khan.
Vidya Balan – Looks sweet and acts well. A very limited role.
Jackie Shroff, Jimmy Shergill, Sanjay Dutt have roles which suit them to the T and they do very well. Boman Irani as the Rana is brilliant yet again. Sharmila Tagore has nothing much to do. Raima Sen is wasted.
Overall:
Positives – Thrill, action, murder, mystery, romance. There is a bit of everything in the movie and its best said as you get to watch it all in less than 2 hours. Yes you read it right; this is one of the very few movies from Bollywood with a runtime of less than 2 hours. The movie is well worth a watch just for Amitabh Bachchan and Saif Ali Khan.
Negatives – The second half, especially the ending could have been much better. That’s about it!
Box office prediction: The first week should be huge for the hyped multistarrer. Business will be best at Multiplexes, especially in the metros. A good word of mouth always helps. Anything less than Rs 50 crores total net gross will be a disappointment.
Now Running Rating: 4/5
Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
|
