JAANWAR

WAKING UP THE WILD ANIMAL IN MAN

At some time or the other man is tempted to fall for the baser instincts of life. Some surrender, some don’t. Producer-director Suneel Darshan has made a major attempt at studying this phenomenon. The result — his film Jaanwar which is an adventure, an experiment, an experience in entertainment which has rarely been tried before. Suneel who believes in making only what he believes in has put all his best as a maker to make a film that will be remembered for a long time because it is something for human kind for all time. “It is not a boast but a humble effort to do what others have not done yet. My team and me have done our best to come up with something new in the realm of Hindi film entertainment. My entire unit realised what I wanted to show and say in Jaanwar and they genuinely went out of their way to give me better than the best they have been capable of till now. And the satisfaction is all mine. The film has shaped up just the way I wanted and the rest is in the hands of the people and destiny, those two powerful elements which give the jitters to the greatest filmmakers,” Suneel says.

The film is all about human feelings at conflict with one another under strange, wild circumstances. The story starts in a rural heartland where food and everything else needed by man is scarce. This place is taken over by a ruthless monster of a man (Shakti Kapoor) who gives the people food in return for an orphan. He takes him under his control and makes him Badshah (Akshay Kumar). Shakti trains Badshah in all the wild ways a young man can be trained in. Soon Badshah lives upto his name. He becomes the master of all he surveys. His word is law. He becomes a criminal who spreads the kind of fear that makes the greatest and most ruthless criminals shudder, shiver, surrender. The law, however, doesn’t give up easily. It chases Badshah. Ashish Vidyarthi, the tough and ruthless police officer is put in change of getting Badshah and his accomplice, Ashutosh Rana, dead or alive. Somewhere in time, the wild Badshah comes across Sapna (Karisma Kapoor). They fall in love. Her love forces him to change his wild ways and he promises to marry Sapna. But his past forces him to commit a murder. He is shattered. It is while he is in this desperate condition that he finds an innocent child. He wants to get rid of him but the child clings to him. The child is soon down with fever. Badshah has no other way out. He takes the child to Sapna. She sees Badshah with the child and hurls all kinds of accusations at him. He tries to explain but it is too late. Inspector Ashish is on his trail again. Badshah is on the run. Badshah’s conscience however doesn’t allow him to leave the innocent child alone. He doesn’t want another Badshah, like him, to rule the world around.

He plays a new game. He changes his name to Babu Lohar to give the child a good future. Years later his past catches up with him again. He confronts the past, fights it. Inspector Ashish too doesn’t give up. He keeps running away from the reality but how long can he escape the long limb of the law? One morning the child’s real parents confront Babu. They want their child back. They ask him to return the child to them. Will Babu return the child who has brought light, love and laughter in his life? Will the child leave Babu? How long will Babu evade Inspector Ashish? Will he be able to fight the mighty forces of Shakti Kapoor who are also after him? The answer leads to a series of questions which find answers which lead to some more delicate questions. The answers to these ultimate questions is what Suneel’s Jaanwar is all about.

Suneel Darshan who has proved himself as a director who knows his job, the job to give the masses enlightenment blended with entertainment has taken some rapid strides this time according to Akshay Kumar, the leading man who is desperately looking for that one hit he needs in Jaanwar. He has literally left no stone unturned to make Jaanwar, a landmark in the lives of everyone associated or involved with it.

Akshay plays the title role and Karisma Kapoor is his leading lady Shilpa Shetty is another key female character. Mohnish Bahl, Shakti Kapoor, Johnny Lever, Ashish Vidyarthi, Ashutosh Rana, Master Aditya Kapadia and Kader Khan, in a special appearance, play key roles. The film has been shot on locations which have never been touched before. “There are many other highlights but what’s the fun if I tell you everything about my most ambitious film?” Suneel says. So we let his highlights stay the secrets he wants them to be. The film is based on a screenplay by Robin Bhatt and has dialogue by KK Singh. Lyrics by Sameer, music by Anand-Milind, cinematography by Sameer Reddy and editing by Sanjay Sankhala are other credits. If Suneel succeeds in his mission he will do the world going wilder as the new millennium draws closer a great service.

APJ