The first few shots in any movie somehow sets the tone of what’s to follow. You either shift into a comfortable posture or squirm in discomfort. It’s an instinct probably developed over decades of watching movies. The ergonomic ease that ‘Mardaani’ induces is surprising because it’s a YRF production. Their films boast of the biggest marquee names, opulent sets, a relentless background score and characters clad in designer wear even when they seem to have just woken up. Here we have the camera peering over the shoulder of two cops in a jeep, capturing Mumbai at night through an unwashed windshield. They pick up a senior, lady cop who joins the banter easily, establishing camaraderie rather than authority. The lingo is generously peppered with Marathi. They’re on their way to ambush a criminal in a crowded apartment complex.
Pradeep Sarkar’s ‘Mardaani’ is crisp and tautly told. The characterization, be it the lady cop, her husband or the kingpin of a child trafficking network are believable. They speak rather than delivering dialogues. The protagonist walks the tightrope between family and a demanding job pretty efficiently. There are no complaints even though she returns at unearthly hours. She’s looking after a niece and has also helped rehabilitate a girl on the threshold of teenage. It’s when the latter is kidnapped by traffickers that the pace picks up. It’s poignant when the niece asks her aunt how she can smile when there’s no clue of the destitute whereabouts. As the sleuthing starts a can of worms is opened. The cop realizes her adversary is no ordinary goon. He calls her from an untraceable number, refers to her as ma’am and tries to cajole her from chasing him. It turns into an interesting cat and mouse game. One disconcerting thing is the cop demanding the release of only her ward rather than all the kids kidnapped and forced into the flesh trade. It’s near the climax that the film turns into a ‘Singham’. The baddie has been cornered but the cop drops her gun and challenges him to a physical combat. She’s outwitted him but wants to prove that she’s not the physically weaker sex. She suddenly spouts fiery rhetoric, bashes him up and walks away in slow motion, leaving him at the mercy of his victims even as a ‘shloka’ is recited in the background, Ram Gopal Verma style.
Well, nothing can take away from the overall quality of the film. There’s not one recognizable actor other than Rani Mukerjee in the film and they’re all brilliant, right down to the tiniest part played. Rani is terrific, comfortable while mouthing cuss words and touching in the scene where her hapless husband, accused of molesting a patient is paraded with a garland of footwear. Tahir Bhasin as the kingpin is simply riveting, be it his body language or his dialogue delivery. Karthik Raja proves that he’s imbibed the importance of silence from his father Ilaiyaraja. Arthur Zurawski captures everything unobtrusively, without screaming for attention. That’s the hallmark of a great cinematographer.
‘Sharan Adhyaksha’, so named because of problems with film titles is one of the few genuinely funny Kannada films in recent times. It’s a remake, but translating a dialogue based comedy is difficult. Director Nanda Kishore pulls it off with élan and the producer is laughing all the way to the bank. It’s Sharan season now after the brief success of Komal. The film works, probably because Sharan is a generous star. The film depends on the relentless gags mouthed with superb timing by Sharan and Chikanna. Well the film works and people are thronging the theatres for a few laughs. Producers will now be busy hunting for comedies that have done well in other languages. Remakes will reign for some time to come in Kannada cinema. Creativity is a casualty because re-creating is easier.
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