This gangster knows his business

Jasmine Singh

Stories about gangsters in Punjab enjoying a fan following on social media are not new, and this is what we get to see in Amardeep Singh Gill’s directorial venture Jora 10 Numbaria. Well, one can even call this one the first film that depicts gangsters in Punjab, how they operate and how they enjoy a huge fan following. 

The script is written by Amardeep Singh Gill and it depicts the story of an innocent boy who becomes a gangster due to circumstances. The story might come across as a ‘done to death’ one, but interestingly, it isn’t, because Amardeep, both as a writer and director, has given a new and fresh face to the story. As a director he has etched out all his characters ‘beautifully’, giving shape and importance to each one of them. The story moves at an interesting pace, unfolding exciting events, one after the other. Amardeep builds the story in such a way that you are glued to every single frame. No unnecessary songs and forced romantic angle and that add to Jora 10 Numbaria’s appeal. 

Then comes Jora, played by actor Deep Sidhu, who was last seen in the Punjabi film Ramta Jogi. Comparing his acting in his debut film and this one, one only has words of praise for him. He has not only worked and improved his dialogue delivery; he has also come out of the forced ‘macho’ image. In fact, in one of opening scenes, Deep sounds like Sunny Deol, which isn’t bad because he slips into the character as if he was born to be Jora! Another artiste, Hobby Dhaliwal, shows that he is more than a regular on-screen father or father-in-law. Jora is one of Hobby’s finest films where we see him act, and act in a way that his climax scene sums up the end of the gangster era. Yaad Grewal has also given a fine performance and the same holds true for Sardar Sohi and Mukul Dev. And then there is Dharmendra, in a short and befitting role. However, it is actress Kul Sidhu with one or two dialogues who seems to be wasted, but then this film was all about gangsters! At the same time, the director should be credited for not bringing in a romantic angle just for the heck of it. 

Sachin Ahuja, Sunny Bawra and Inder Bawra’s music gels with the gangster theme. Jora 10 Numbaria has a good work of cinematography, more than this it highlights the present state of events, especially where it shows how the youth of Punjab consider young gangsters as heroes, aping and following them on Facebook! The director has also included one real life incident where two young boys were caught posing as hijras, though in this film, the director has given a twist to it. Jora 10 Numbaria can beat any Bollywood gangster movie, and with the director ending the film with a ‘to be continued’ tagline, it is certainly something we’d be eagerly waiting for.