Raajneeti Movie Reviews

To me, RAAJNEETI is a human drama, a complex game that people indulge in to achieve power and how this greed envelopes them and transforms them into ruthless and conniving humans. I admit, it takes time for the story to sink in, but slowly and steadily, you get sucked into a world that's dark, dangerous and demonish. The attire may be white, but the deeds are grey or black.

Welcome to the return of story and plot to popular cinema. Of late, Hindi cinema had been floundering in a plotless marshland, where you either had to merely laugh at madcap situational goof-ups, which were mostly unfunny, or gawk at action cuts, loosely strung by a paper-thin one-liner posing as the plot. By and large -- exceptions notwithstanding -- the good, old-fashioned 'kahani' had gone missing in mainstream lore. Raajneeti marks the return of twist-and-turn drama to contemporary cinema, which indeed is a refreshing turn of events.

Raajneeti is not all Mahabharat, nor is it the Gandhi family saga. Raajneeti is a sharply cynical, gripping and violent story of the politics of politics. And what sort of politics is it? The character of Nana Patekar describes it in one line: “Raajneeti main faisle galat ya sahi nahin hote. Unka mole toh maksad pura karna hota hai”. Raajneeti works, mostly, because we all love the story of Mahabharat and because to catch glimpses of Gandhi scions in Arjun, Draupadi, Karna and Kunti is intriguing, and very clever.

In the end "Raajneeti" is thrilling and gripping for the most part, even though it does lose steam in its final act. And as far as politics goes, it doesn't tell you very much more than you didn't already know. Still I'm going with three-and-a-half out of five for director Prakash Jha's "Raajneeti". For the superb acting, and for the exciting dramatic highs, it's a film I recommend you do not miss.

After seeing Raajneeti, one understands why censor bodies and political parties have been variously scrutinising the film. At 2 hours 45 minutes, Raajneeti is a long, hard’ relentless look at the typical dynasty style politicking in north India, powerfully documented by Prakash Jha, clearly a director who has ridden the rough campaign trail himself and perhaps attended sordid backroom meetings where power and pelf are proportioned out.

The epic tale of Mahabharat has been repeatedly adapted on the small screen ever since B.R.Chopra first did it more than two decades back. But barring Chopra’s version, all other direct derivatives have been shoddy and forgettable. All those losers and other aspirants can take a lesson or two from Prakash Jha about the politics of the trade. Raajneeti is the most effective cinematic interpretation of the Mahabharat since Shyam Benegal’s Kalyug (1981). Prakash Jha’s Raajneeti is a politically correct tribute to Mahabharat. Absolutely recommended!

What does the film in more than slightly is, but, the sheer commercial relentlessness of its drama. There’s absolutely no relief, respite, rhythm, or ‘thehrav’ (for lack of a better English word). Impact of no tragedy calms this picture down. Introspection is wasteful; redemption, unnecessary. Eventually, when deaths become so cheap, so should your cinema ticket. All characters finally discover for themselves their own awkwardly lame conclusions within enough sub-plots to pack in an entire Godfather trilogy. A state poll is the ultimate Armageddon.

Raajneeti starts off slow and it takes a while before you connect with the film and its characters. But once you do, Rajneeti makes for a compelling watch. And while it suffers from being very predictable, due to the fact that it's been based on the epic characters of Mahabharata, the director keeps you involved with a complex plot and his very effective way of storytelling. Just when you being to connect with the characters and feel their pain, the movie does tend to get a little over-the-top with back to back murders and cheesy masala moments.

Raajneeti is a character-driven story with a multi-star cast. Jha doesn't get intimidated by that. Each character is laced with betrayal and deceit. The director also adds purpose to their actions so there are no loose ends. It takes a while to get a grip on the narrative but once that's done, the first half offers the necessary punches. The high points are the varied relationships between each of the characters.

Raajneeti, writer-director Prakash Jha’s sprawling portrait of a political family, is a mixed bag. The film has moments of ferocious power and just as many flaws.The narrative has a propulsive movement in the first half but becomes dramatically inert in the second. Jha, who has fought elections in Bihar himself, creates a real sense of the machinations and sordid deals that fuel politics but then hobbles it with outlandish twists and some decidedly ‘filmy’ moments – like a ridiculous love-making scene that is triggered because the characters get wet in the rain.

Prakash Jha's multi starrer political drama Raajneeti hits theatres today. Jha's love for socio-political and cast based issues isn't new in the least. While his film Mrityudand exposed gender biases, Gangajal brought to the forefront corruption in the police machinery. His latest offering Raajneeti, a much talked about controversial film, aims to take us through a thorough journey of politics, selfish interests and betrayals.

'Raajneeti'' could have been the film of the year. It had the potential, and the actors, but it comes together only intermittently. This is not the Prakash Jha who has made some of the most politically resonant films in Hindi cinema.

Raajneeti, essentially Sarkar Raj minus Amitabh Bachchan, is a hyperactive drama given to much yelling and little thought. The screenplay is weak, manipulative and every possible kind of lazy, with an omniscient narrator who vanishes after a while, a slew of unbelievably one-note characters, clunky dialogue that often lapses into something from period cinema, and bloody deaths thrown in every few scenes to kickstart the drama in this exhausting 3-hour film.

On the whole, Raajneeti suffers on account of a dull, boring and overly lengthy second half. Considering its very ...