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Raajneeti

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Raajneeti
File:Ranbir Kapoor snapshot - Rajneeti.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPrakash Jha
Written byScreenplay
Anjum Rajabali
Prakash Jha
Story
Prakash Jha
Produced byPrakash Jha
Ronnie Screwvala[1][2]
StarringAjay Devgan
Ranbir Kapoor
Arjun Rampal
Manoj Bajpai
Katrina Kaif
Nana Patekar
Naseeruddin Shah
Sarah Thompson
CinematographySachin Krishn
Edited bySantosh Mandal
Music byWayne Sharpe
Pritam
Aadesh Srivastav
Shantanu Moitra
Distributed byPrakash Jha Productions
Walkwater Media
UTV Motion Pictures
Release date
June 4, 2010 (2010-06-04)
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Budget₹60 crore (US$7.2 million)[3]
Box officeRs. 71 Crore (Nett)

Raajneeti (Template:Lang-en; Template:Lang-hi) is a 2010 Bollywood political thriller directed and produced by Prakash Jha, with a screenplay by Anjum Rajabali and Prakash Jha, and starring Ajay Devgan, Manoj Bajpai, Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Katrina Kaif, Naseeruddin Shah and Nana Patekar in the lead roles.[4] The film was originally produced by Prakash Jha Productions, and was distributed by UTV Motion Pictures and Walkwater Media. The title translates literally as "Politics" and contextually as "Affairs of State".[5] The film draws parallels to the epic Mahabharata where shades of Krishna, Arjuna, Bheema, Duryodhan and Karna can be seen in the characters portrayed by Nana Patekar, Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Manoj Bajpai and Ajay Devgan respectively.

Rajneeti was released in theaters worldwide on 4 June 2010,[6] after some controversies regarding similarities between real-life people and the characters in the film, as well as issues about the national anthem. Raajneeti was elevated to Blockbuster status by the end of it's first week.

Plot

The film begins with a flashback into the life of Bharti Rai (Nikhila Trikha), the daughter of Chief Minister Ramnath Rai (Darshan Jariwala). Influenced by leftist ideology, she rebels against her father and joins the rival party of leftist leader Bhaskar Sanyal (Naseeruddin Shah). Bharti develops an illicit relationship with Bhaskar, who, guilt-ridden over taking advantage of the younger woman, leaves for parts unknown, having unwittingly gotten Bharti pregnant. Upon the child's birth, he is abandoned in a boat by Brij Gopal (Nana Patekar), Bharti's brother. Bharti later marries Chandra Pratap (Chetan Pandit), the younger brother of Bhanu Pratap. Bhanu leads the Rashtrawadi political party. The government in the state collapses and Bhanu suffers a stroke. In the hospital, he hands over power to his younger brother Chandra and to Chandra's son, Prithvi Pratap (Arjun Rampal) — sidelining his own son, Veerendra Pratap (Manoj Bajpai). Veerendra, who believes power is his birthright, demands his uncle's position, and after being rebuffed, enlists support from a Dalit leader, Sooraj (Ajay Devgan) — who, unknown to both, is Bharti's abandoned son.

Veerendra with the help of Sooraj, has Chandra assassinated in his car, while he is returning from the airport after seeing off his younger son, Samar Pratap (Ranbir Kapoor). In an ensuing drama, Prithvi is arrested by police under the influence of Veerendra and had been on trial for a case of raping a woman party worker (Shruti Seth). Samar comes to the rescue and promises that if all charges upon his brother are dropped, his brother will resign and that he is ready to move with his family to the U.S.. Veerendra agrees but the newly released Prithvi begins rallying public support despite his resignation from the party. After Bhanu officially expels Prithvi, the latter splits from the Rashtrawadi party and contests elections under "Jana Shakti party", a new party with Brij Gopal as his mentor and Samar as the executive. Meanwhile Samar's American girlfriend Sarah (Sarah Thompson) arrives in India to see the situation. To raise funds for the new party, Samar shrewdly ensures Prithvi's marriage to their childhood friend Indu (Katrina Kaif), the daughter of a powerful businessman.

The film gets murkier with both sides trying every trick to ensure their victory in coming elections. Allegations and counter-allegations are made. Subsequently, Samar uncovers that the real murderer of his father is Sooraj and Veerendra, and decides to take revenge. On the other hand, Prithvi executes the former police officer, who had arrested him and the woman worker at a farmhouse. This infuriates Veerendra and he hatches a plot to assassinate Prithvi. A car bomb kills both Prithvi and Sarah, who was to be dropped at the airport in that car. Devastated by the loss of his brother and girlfriend, Samar decides to retaliate. He suggests Indu to take the reins of the party and arranges the election campaign single-handedly.

Meanwhile, Sooraj is revealed to be the first child of Bharti, who implores him to join his younger brother Samar. Sooraj refuses to part ways with Veerendra and asks his mother to leave. Exit polls predict a victory for Indu's Party and on the counting day, Samar lures Veerendra and Sooraj to an unused factory by spreading a rumor about electronic voting machine being hacked. Veerendra and Sooraj fall in the trap and Veerendra gets shot by Samar and his men. Sooraj requests Samar to leave him and Veerendra till they reach the hospital, but Veerendra dies on the way. Gopal prompts Samar to shoot Sooraj who questions the morality of the act. But Gopal convinces him to take the revenge. Samar shoots Sooraj and takes the revenge for the destruction of his family.

Later the election results are declared, and Indu emerges with majority and is made Chief Minister. Samar is seen asking forgiveness and attempting reconciliation. Explaining his decision to return to America, he reflects that he always wanted to stay away from politics as politics is a game that brings out the "inner devil" . Indu is also revealed to be pregnant with Prithvi's child, while Samar leaves India to look after Sarah's mother and settle there.

Cast

Actor/Actress Role
Ajay Devgan Sooraj Kumar
Manoj Bajpai Veerendra Pratap
Nana Patekar Brij Gopal
Ranbir Kapoor Samar Pratap
Katrina Kaif Indu Pratap
Arjun Rampal Prithviraj Pratap
Naseeruddin Shah Bhaskar Sanyal
Sarah Thompson Sarah Jean Collins
Nikhila Trikha Bharti Rai[7]

Reception

Critical reception

In the Indian press, Rajneeti received mostly positive reviews from critics and scored 6/10 on the critic ratings aggregation site Reviewgang.[8]

In India, Mayank Shekhar of Hindustan Times rated it 3/5 and said, "None of the actors assembled on stage let him (the director) down; right from an unusually inspired Rampal to his powerful, polar opposite Bajpayee".[9] Nikhat Kazmi of The Times of India rated it 4/5 and said, "The film basically anchors its plot in two classic tales — The Mahabharata and The Godfather — to create an engrossing diatribe on India's political system where democracy may prevail, but not in its purest form."[10] Anupama Chopra of NDTV rated it 3/5 and said "Jha 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".[11] Rajeev Masand of IBN said, "Raajneeti is thrilling and gripping for the most part, even though it does lose steam in its final act. For the superb acting, and for the exciting dramatic highs, it's a film I recommend you do not miss."[12]

In the U.S., Rachel Saltz of The New York Times said, "[T]he film — full of romance, intrigue and fraternal strife — is too diffuse to score political points. Or to have much impact."[13] Robert Abele of the Los Angeles Times found that while it aimed "for something trenchant about thwarted destiny and ugly ambition in modern Indian democracy", it "mostly winds up with a convoluted and tonally awkward Godfather rehash, with nary a character worth rooting for," and that "Kapoor's performance is stony rather than calculating...."[14] Frank Lovece of Film Journal International said, "More pulpy than political, this Godfather-ripoff Hindi electoral drama is a candidate for oblivion in U.S. theatres. ... [I]t all eventually becomes so ridiculous and over-the-top violent that there is nobody, nobody, to root for."[5]

Box office

The film recorded an opening of nearly Rs. 10.50 crore net on its first day.[15] The film had the second biggest Friday opening in India after 3 Idiots, and the biggest Friday opening in the first half of the year, beating Kites.[16][17][18] In Australia and New Zealand, Raajneeti beat the opening weekend record set by 3 Idiots.[19] It collected Rs. 34 crores at the end of the weekend and set a record for biggest weekend in the first half of the year, beating Housefull.[20][21] Overseas, the film opened to weekend business of $2.25 million.[22] It showed no major decline in business on Tuesday and collected Rs. 5.85 crore.[23] At the end of the first week, the film collected Rs. 54.75 crore and set a record for biggest week in the first half of the year beating Housefull; overall it is on the third position after 3 Idiots and Ghajini.[24]. Raajneeti sustained well in the second weekend and collected Rs. 16.25 cr.'.[25].

In the U.S., the film played well for a limited release, noted Ray Subers of BoxOfficeMojo.com, grossing $850,244 on 124 screens its opening weekend, "which was good for first among limited releases and 11th place on the overall weekend chart." He specified that Raajneeti "became the third Bollywood movie this year to lead all limited releases in its first weekend," following My Name is Khan and Kites.[26]

Controversy

Raajneeti was first denied a censor certificate by the censor board of India for what they have thought as that the lead character played by Katrina Kaif, in the film is inspired fully or partial from the Congress Party's chief Sonia Gandhi. Director Prakash Jha dismissed this allegation, saying his only inspiration was Mahabharata, an epic from ancient India.[27] References to electronic voting machines and parts of the film suggesting that women have to compromise to get ahead in politics, crude dialogues about the Muslim community and some intimate scenes and excessive violence were also removed before giving the film a U/A censor certificate.[28]

Soundtrack

Untitled

The background score of the film was composed by Wayne Sharpe while the soundtrack was composed by Wayne Sharpe, Pritam, Aadesh Shrivastava and Shantanu Moitra. The lyrics were penned by Irshad Kamil, Gulzar, Sameer and Swanand Kirkire. The soundtrack consists of four original songs and four "remixes". The soundtrack was released on 14 May 2010.

Tracklist

Track Song Artist(s) Composer Lyricists
01 Bheegi Si Bhaagi Si Mohit Chauhan, Antara Mitra Pritam Irshad Kamil
02 Mora Piya Aadesh Shrivastava, Shashi, Rosalie Nicholson Aadesh Shrivastava Sameer
03 Ishq Barse Pronob Biswas, Hamsika Iyer, Swanand Kirkire Shantanu Moitra Swanand Kirkire
04 Dhan Dhan Dharti Shankar Mahadevan Wayne Sharpe Gulzar
05 Mora Piya Mo Se Bolat Naahin (Dhol Mix) Kavita Seth Aadesh Shrivastava, (Remixed by - Deep - DJ Chantz) Sameer
06 Ishq Barse (The Bombay Bounce Club Mix) Pronob Biswas, Hamsika Iyer, Swanand Kirkire Shantanu Moitra, (Remixed by - DJ Lloyd - Discreet) Swanand Kirkire
07 Mora Piya (Twilight Mix) Aadesh Shrivastava, Shashi Aadesh Shrivastava, (Remixed by - Deep - DJ Chantz) Sameer
08 Dhan Dhan Dharti (Call of the Soil) Sonu Nigam Wayne Sharp Gulzar

References

  1. ^ Iqbal Punnhttp, Goher. 'Movie Review: 'Raajneeti'", BuzzTab.com, June 3, 2010
  2. ^ "Press Conference of Movie – 'Raajneeti'" BollyNewz.com, May 8, 2010
  3. ^ Raghavendra, Nandini (9 June 2010). "Raajneeti comes up trumps at box office". The Economic Times. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
  4. ^ "Raajneeti: Complete cast and crew details". Filmicafe Media Inc. Retrieved 2010-01-13.
  5. ^ a b Lovece, Frank. "Film Review: Raajneeti, Film Journal International, June 7, 2010
  6. ^ "Trailer, Cast and Crew, Preview of 'Rajneeti'", Moviewood.net
  7. ^ Jha,Subhash K. "Ranbir's mom in 'Raajneeti' is 30-year-old Nikhila", Bollywood.com, May 31, 2010
  8. ^ "Raajneeti". Reviewgang.com. Retrieved 2010-06-11.
  9. ^ Shekhar, Mayank. "Mayank Shekhar's Review: Raajneeti". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 3 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  10. ^ Kazmi, Nikhat (2010-06-03). "Raajneeti". The Times of India. Retrieved 2010-06-11.
  11. ^ Chopra, Anupama (2010-06-04). ""Review: Raajneeti"". NDTV. Retrieved 2010-06-11.
  12. ^ Masand, Rajeev (2010-02-03). "Masand: Raajneeti is thrilling and gripping". India Broadcasting Network. Retrieved 2010-06-11.
  13. ^ Saltz, Rachel. "Prakash Jha’s 'Godfather,' Bhopal Version", The New York Times, June 4, 2010
  14. ^ Abele, Robert. "Movie review: 'Raajneeti'", Los Angeles Times, June 4, 2010
  15. ^ "Raajneeti Rocks The Nation". BoxofficeIndia.com. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  16. ^ "Top First Friday Nett Grossers". Box office India. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  17. ^ "Top Openers Delhi/UP". Box office India. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  18. ^ "India update: 'Raajneeti' collects Rs. 10.5 cr. on Friday". Bollywood hungama. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  19. ^ "Australia update: 'Raajneeti' takes bigger start than '3 Idiots'". Bollywood hungama. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  20. ^ "Raajneeti Has Earth Shattering Weekend". Box office India. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
  21. ^ "Box Office: Raajneeti in power; opening weekend numbers skyrocket in 2010". Business of cinema. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
  22. ^ "Raajneeti Also Scores Overseas". Box office India. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
  23. ^ "Tuesday update: 'Raajneeti' collects 5.85 cr., total 46.1 cr. Nett". Bollywood hungama. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
  24. ^ "Box Office: Raajneeti's opening week collections third highest after 3 Idiots, Ghajini". Business of cinema. Retrieved 12 June 2010.
  25. ^ "Raajneeti Sustains Very Well Over Second Weekend". Box office India. Retrieved 14 June 2010.
  26. ^ Subers, Ray. "Arthouse Audit: 'Raajneeti' Continues Bollywood Blitz", BoxOfficeMojo.com, June 7, 2010
  27. ^ Kumar, Anuj (May 27, 2010). "Fact of the matter". The Hindu.
  28. ^ Sharma, Kartikeya (May 26, 2010). "Politics over Rajneeti: Cong plays censor board". India Today. Headlines Today Bureau.
Official
Database
  • ‹The template AllMovie title is being considered for deletion.› Raajneeti at AllMovie
  • Raajneeti at Box Office Mojo
  • Raajneeti at IMDb
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