Back this Gabbar

Nonika Singh

Gabbar is back and how! The notorious dacoit of blockbuster Sholay, the father of all screen villains, finds a new avatar, as a namesake only, of course. Kaam hero ka aur naam villain ka ….does that sum up our one-man-Army, the anti-corruption crusader, Gabbar?
Well, actually this new Gabbar is not alone but has an army of faithful who abide by his philosophy and have no hang-ups in publicly hanging the corrupt. An inherent flaw in the storyline one would think. Indeed, like most formula Hindi films Gabbar… too has a rather simplistic premise. Thus it goes— punish the corrupt in a manner so fearful that others would fall in line. Yes, in many ways Gabbar’s fight against corruption is reminiscent of many films of yore. Clichés abound too but where the film scores is how it packages its anti-corruption message in an entertaining almost thriller like fashion.
You and me know who Gabbar is and no prizes for guessing it’s Akshay Kumar for it is evident in the very first frame. That there is a back-story lurking behind this professor- cum-vigilante’s mission vendetta is hinted at too and is more than obvious when he bumps into young lawyer Shruti. But director Krish’s  dexterity lies in serving a more than palatable and engaging fare even though one can fairly guess the climax and to some extent the anti-climax too. The manner in which he mounts the cat and mouse game between the police and Gabbar (as well as Gabbar and his bête noire, a power drunk real estate developer) is creditable. Among the bunch of policemen, the credit goes to our dear and delightful Guthi (of Comedy Nights with Kapil fame) aka Sunil Grover. Here he sheds his comic skin, turns a new leaf and puts up a fairly decent performance as an earnest police constable.
In an Akshay Kumar film, of course, you can only expect the greying (onscreen too) superstar to lord over each and every frame. And he does with aplomb and is rather endearing as the somewhat middle-aged Gabbar. However, other actors--be it Shruti Hassan as Gabbar’s romantic interest looking refreshingly pretty or the antagonist (Suman Talwar) or the CBI officer (Jaideep Ahlawat)—all add to the film with their screen presence. The film’s length, judicious by all means, as well as fine editing and many deft touches ensure that the film doesn’t become yet another ‘also ran’. The sequence in which Gabbar takes on the private medical hospital in particular is infinitely amusing despite the gravity of the underlying serious issue. In fact, the biggest strength of the film is that it handles a grave subject but at no point does it become somber or dreary. The finale where Gabbar gets atop the police van to address his admirers could have been a complete washout. Yet, by interspersing his sermon reposing faith in youth power with follow-up sequences of his ensuing fate, once again the director scores a winner.  
Gabbar is without doubt one of the most iconic characters on Indian celluloid screen we all have loved to hate. The chances are bright that you will love this one too though his shelf-life can’t possibly match the original one.  So, while Akshay Kumar may say that it’s not his call whether the earnings of the film should go to Nepal earthquake victims or not, but you can certainly take a call on spending your money. And we think this one is paisa wasool. In short, here is a formula film with an item song and some lilting romantic numbers to boot that despite some banal interjections and suspension of disbelief is more than watchable.