Film: Azhar
Director: Tony D’Souza
Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Prachi Desai, Nargis Fakhri, Kunaal Roy Kapur
Azhar lacks spine. It is evident in the long disclaimer preceding the film in which the team seems to be making a claim on cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin’s colourful life as a source material, yet maintaining that it is a fictional account. Azharuddin (Emraan) is a fascinating character to have built a dispassionate film on. A man, who rose meteorically because of his game. He is a man of frailties both in cricket and in the arena of love.
But instead of exploring the many shades of grey in him, Tony D’Souza attempts to defend him. Such is the bias that the other players—Manoj, Ravi, Navjot (only first names, no surnames mind you)—get the wrong end of the stick. Manoj comes across not just as jealous and vengeful, but also selfish, and crude to boot. Ravi is nothing but a rake. Such is the eagerness to justify him that D’Souza makes it seem as though the whole bad world is out to get him.Even his walking away from an ostensibly fine marriage into the arms of actress Sangeeta Bijlani (Nargis Fakhri) is turned into a soppy inevitability.
The film irritates to the hilt.
Namrata Joshi
