Amazon Prime Video has been on a high. Just a couple of days back they released around 69 titles which they shall be releasing over the next few months. Now, they바카라™ve released one of the last titles from their titles announced last year, 바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™. The film takes you back to pre-independence times in India. It promises to give you a glimpse of the era when the Britishers were trying to do everything possible so as to make Indians suffer in their own land. But among the numerous freedom fighters, there were even some who had gone unrewarded, yet they kept on doing their duty towards the nation quietly without anyone noticing. 바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™ tells the story of one such unsung hero.
바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™: Story
In the midst of India바카라™s freedom struggle in 1942, when the Quit India Movement was at its peak, Britishers tried to stop all forms of communication between Indian freedom fighters. That was done so that Indians couldn바카라™t plan an uprising or do any activity against the British government. However, a brave young girl (Sara Ali Khan) starts an underground radio station taking a huge risk of life. She uses this radio station to spread the message of unity among people. Also, she tried to pass on important messages to the freedom fighters who couldn바카라™t otherwise communicate with each other due to the sanctions by the British government. This sets off a thrilling chase with the British authorities who try to figure out how their plans were getting quashed and how Indian freedom fighters were able to co-ordinate and know each other바카라™s plan so perfectly. The rest of the story revolves around this cat-and-mouse chase between the two parties involved.
바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™: Performances
Sara Ali Khan gives her career best performance in 바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™. As I mentioned in my review for 바카라˜Murder Mubarak바카라™ as well, Sara Ali Khan needs to get consistency in her performances or rather, in the films that she picks up. She can바카라™t be giving us such a brilliant performance in 바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™ and then ruin that entire hype with a terrible performance in the next film. She has been doing this throughout her career. She does a 바카라˜Kedarnath바카라™ and 바카라˜Simmba바카라™ which get her accolades, and then does a 바카라˜Love Aaj Kal바카라™ and 바카라˜Coolie No 1바카라™ which gets her brickbats. She makes it up once again with a good act in 바카라˜Atrangi Re바카라™ but puts everything in vain by doing a 바카라˜Gaslight바카라™. She then gives a great performance in 바카라˜Zara Hatke Zara Bachke바카라™ but throws all that goodwill down the drain by doing a 바카라˜Murder Mubarak바카라™, which was her absolute worst. However, she has ably made up for it by giving a lifetime best performance in 바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™. The way she has brought the innocence in the character is what makes you like the character even more. The look and all is okay, but it바카라™s the innate sense of patriotic feeling that Sara Ali Khan is able to incite in the audience바카라™s minds and hearts is brilliant.
I바카라™ve always believed that Emraan Hashmi is much more than the serial kisser tag that made him famous. Films like 바카라˜Shanghai바카라™ and 바카라˜Awarapan바카라™ have proved that. But with a small yet memorable performance in 바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™, he proves himself once again that he is an actor who is utterly underrated and needs to be celebrated much more. His subtlety is what makes you like the character in 바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™ even more. It바카라™s through his performance that you understand the depth and importance of what Sara Ali Khan바카라™s character was doing. Looking forward to seeing Emraan Hashmi break shackles and do more such characters.
Sparsh Shrivastav takes the cake with a performance that you바카라™ll feel so related to. He makes the character so real that you don바카라™t feel as if an actor is playing it. You genuinely feel that he is the real person who went through all of those emotions in real life. That level of intensity Sparsh Srivastav brings to the table. He has been getting lauded for 바카라˜Laapataa Ladies바카라™ already, and 바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™ is just another worthy addition to his long list of accolades.
The other supporting characters have done their parts decently. Sachin Khedekar could have had a bit more screen time, I feel, but he churned the maximum out of the character. Alexx O바카라™Nell, Anand Tiwari, Abhay Verma and others were also decent in their limited screen time.
바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™: Script, Direction & Technical Aspects
Writers Darab Farooqui and Kannan Iyer바카라™s writing is something that helps the movie go beyond the performances. Their writing tells a story that probably not many Indians know even today. We all have read about the Quit India Movement in text books, but no one knows what the scenario of the country was around that time. There are books that talk about those times, but let바카라™s be honest, how many of today바카라™s generation reads books as a pastime? So, when a similar narrative is picked up by a film and showcased onscreen, it leaves a lasting impression in the minds of people from today바카라™s generation as to how those times must have been. I am not contesting the fact that there must have been some inaccuracies in the storyline, some of them may have been added in accordance with cinematic liberties, but the overall writing helps you as an audience get a view of the pre-independence times. Darab Farooqui and Kannan Iyer바카라™s honesty towards the subject shows in the writing. They바카라™ve picked up instances from Usha Thakkar바카라™s book 바카라˜Congress Radio: Usha Mehta And The Underground Radio Station Of 1942바카라™ along with some bits which have been showcased in plays like 바카라˜Kharr Kharr바카라™ which was written by Pritish Sodha and Amatya Goradia.
The best part about Kannan Iyer바카라™s depiction is that he hasn바카라™t picked up a character that people know of and therefore they could toy along with the narrative really well. Even though he has tried to keep things as accurate as possible to real events, he has definitely taken a few liberties here and there, as there are not enough records talking of such unsung heroes of the freedom struggle. Also, another thing that Kannan Iyer has managed to do so brilliantly is keep the narrative engaging. He takes on the lion바카라™s share of the story as a thriller and tells it as if a bank robbery is in progress. You바카라™re kept on the edge of your seats in those scenes and towards the climax you just feel it getting on your nerves. Managing to evoke that feeling in the audience is a brilliantly done. Another thing that he manages to keep in check is the jingoism. You do feel patriotism run through your blood while watching the film, but at no instance does it goes overboard. A tricky balance to maintain, and a lot of the credit for that definitely goes to the actors as well.
Amalendu Chaudhary바카라™s cinematography is one of the key highlights of the film. Within the first 5 minutes of the movie starting, you바카라™re transported to that pre-independence era. There is not a single frame where you get a feel that they바카라™ve missed out on something. Also, the touch of the sepia filter that he has used makes the film come out even more authentic.
The editing by Sangeeth Varghese was good, however, it could have been crisper. Kannan Iyer has shown it as a thriller, and therefore getting the nuances right was important. The cuts had to be seamless and yet give you the sense of a chill. It came out nicely. What바카라™s slightly disappointing is the length of the film could have been shortened a bit. A little bit of pruning here and there could have made this even more taut and wrapped it up under 2 hours.
The weakest link of the entire film is the music by Mukund Suryawanshi, Akashdeep Sengupta and Shashi Suman. Don바카라™t get me wrong, the background score was decent and was able to get you to the essence of the film really well, but the songs didn바카라™t have much impact. In films depicting the freedom struggle, you바카라™re compelled to watch the film after you get a sense of patriotism by listening to the songs before the release of the movie. Sadly, the makers missed out on that aspect as they weren바카라™t able to elicit that feeling out in the audiences.
바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™: Cast & Crew
Direction: Kannan Iyer
Cast: Sara Ali Khan, Anand Tiwari, Sachin Khedekar, Abhay Verma, Sparsh Shrivastav, Alexx O'Nell, Benedict Garrett, Godaan Kumar, Emraan Hashmi
Available On: Amazon Prime Video
Duration: 2 Hour 13 Minutes
바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™: Can Kids Watch It?
Yes
Outlook바카라™s Verdict
바카라˜Ae Watan Mere Watan바카라™ will be remembered for Sara Ali Khan바카라™s performance and for how Emraan Hashmi once again tried to break his image and do something strikingly different from whatever he has done in the past. The performances speak volumes and make the film worth your time. Not to forget the way the writers have managed to get the nitty-gritties of the Quit India Movement nicely. The setting of the film also is brilliant and gives you the thrills at the exact necessary points. You may debate over the correctness of all the information that바카라™s given, as the interpretation of history always differs from eye to eye. Despite that, just as a thriller, this is a great One Time Watch. I am going with 3.5 stars.
