Aye Aye Captain

Jasmine Singh

Looks like Punjabi cinema has set its eyes on a new genre- Courtroom Drama. The opening of it happened with Judge Singh LLB, and now we have Kaptaan taking it forward, pretty much interestingly. Directed by Mandeep Kumar, Punjabi film Kaptaan starring Gippy Grewal, Pankaj Dheer, Naresh Kumar, Kanwaljit Singh, Prince KJ, Monica Gill and Karishma Kotak is a courtroom drama that without fail will remind you of ‘Taarek be tareek’ Sunny Deol in Damini and ‘Judge ko pehli hi sunvaaye pe hota hai ki mujrim kaun hai’ Saurabh Shukla and Arshad Warsi of Jolly LLB.

Despite going by a rehashed, been-there-done that plot, Kaptaan still has some original, exciting and funny moments. The credit for this should also go to the screenplay writer Dheeraj Rattan, who despite throwing in a mashup of ‘courtroom dramas’ left some tiny original scenes.

For one Kaptaan starts on a racy note, with everything falling in place pretty soon. However, certain scenes a way too dramatic, and stretched way too far! Director Mandeep Kumar, thankfully hasn’t remotely brought in any love triangle in the film despite pairing Gippy opposite two pretty faces, Monica Gill and Karishma Kotak. The director in fact has tried his best to keep the films pace even, with a very predictable storyline. 

Kaptaan has ample comedy to entertain the audience, this will come as a respite for those movie watchers who predict every move of this courtroom drama!

The movie has some good cinematic shots though! For a film that is solving a case through a court proceeding, Kaptaan doesn’t have that vigour or suspense that would keep you on your toes. Nevertheless, you can enjoy this film if you are a Gippy Grewal fan. The actor plays Kaptaan in the film. And he definitely reminds you of Sunny Deol of Gadar- Ek Prem Katha. Sunny Deol goes down in history with the handpump he uprooted in Gadar, and Gippy will repeat the same feat by plucking the hooter of a tractor! Gippy has a fine comedy timing, which makes some long scenes bearable. The singer- actor slips from light to intense scenes nicely, yet again reminding one of Arshad Warsi. His accomplice in all this Umang Sharma is the next thing in comedy, only if he doesn’t go by Chankaata style. Pankaj Dheer plays the tough and bad advocate; it is good to see such a talented actor on Punjabi screen. The actor however could not bring out the villainy of his character. He is too mellow to be a conniving advocate!

Rest, Kanwaljit Singh as Judge doesn’t has much to offer except for some witty one-liners that yet again will remind you of the intelligent-smart-witty judge, Saurabh Shukla of Jolly LLB. Now for the pretty faces. First up is Monica Gill, the actress shows scope of going a long way in Punjabi cinema. As for the Hindi television reality face, Karishma Kotak, this special appearance was okay as long, as she doesn’t say a word on screen!

Kaptaan’s music by DJ Flow is something original, especially the song Redua. With a been- there- done that plot, Kaptaan brings in humour in courtroom, more than suspense!