Raees

Imagine watching a film where the only audible cheer for Shah Rukh Khan comes at his entry point and then the supporting actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui steals the show. As inspector Jaideep Majmudar, whose mission is to nab the bootlegger Raees (Khan), Siddiqui entertains not just in his entry - beating the earlier best in Bajrangi Bhaijaan - but in later scenes with his wry delivery, perfect timing and looks. There is one in particular where standing in front of his superior he looks flummoxed, just about hiding a smile, after he is outsmarted by Raees.

Shah Rukh Khan in and as RAEES has finally hit the screens, clad in well stitched pathanis, the all time on screen sawariyaa of many females around the globe has a restricted nazariya (problem in vision), he wears those gold rimmed glasses on his kohled eyes, speaks in that deliberately toned baritone borrowed from Mr. Bachchan's iconic Vijay Chauhan from AGNEEPATH and gets terribly angry when someone calls him battery (a slang used for those who wear specs).

There's tremendous speculation about RAEES... That the story is inspired by true events... That it's based on a real-life character... Frankly, I am not the right person to comment on the authenticity of characters/episodes depicted in the movie or verify the speculations, but as a moviegoer, I must confess, RAEES did transport me to its world. A majority of films that highlight the lives of criminals/gangsters have a set template vis--vis the plotline: An ordinary person takes to crime, becomes a hotshot criminal, hobnobs with the rich, influential and powerful, but, eventually, the law decides to get even with him. RAEES follows a similar graph as well... the only difference being, this one is more realistic in approach than several films of this genre.

Remember those films from the 70s, which often had the protagonist playing an anti-establishment gangster with a heart of gold, who finally falls prey to a righteous cop's bullets? Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Raees, which releases this weekend, is more or less the same plot all over again. Raees (SRK) grows up in 70s Gujarat believing that crime does pay and starts working for a bootlegger, who nurtures him. However, Raees and his sidekick Sadiq (Mohammad Zeeshan Ayub) grow too big for their boots and this brings them in conflict with upright cop Jaideep Majmudar (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), who makes it his life's mission to bring down Khan's illegal empire.

It would be so wonderful to get into Shah Rukh Khan's head and figure out his thought processes behind choosing a role or a film. I'd certainly like to know why he'd choose a film like, say, Dilwale, at a time when his peers are doing far more interesting work. And, after seeing Rahul Dholakia's Raees, I am very, very curious to know what was it about the director's narration that made him agree to do the film.

Shah Rukh Khan first burst onto the scene with negative shades and much before he became one of the world's most loved romantic heroes, he'd made career out of anti-hero roles. Going back to the intensely satisfying environs of movies like Darr and Baazigar, SRK continues the trend he'd picked up in last year's Fan. He's the bad boy in Raees albeit with the proverbial golden heart.

Raees Alam (Shah Rukh Khan) is an Arun Gawli-like criminal and bootlegger based in Fatehpur, Gujarat. From childhood itself, he had a knack for illegal liquor business, and when he grows up, his love for Dhanda gets him into crossroads, first with his mentor (Atul Kulkarni), and later with ACP Majmudar (Nawazuddin Siddiqui). With his best friend and confidante (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) and his lover and later wife (Mahira Khan) by his side, Raees sets along to build his empire in Fatehpur. But as the history of civilisations goes, empires get built and fall, sometimes within a day.

Aggressive promotions, big league stars, battle with the censor board; Rahul Dholakia's 'Raees' has seen it all. Being one of the most controversial films in recent times, 'Raees' has nothing exciting to offer, unfortunately. Guess the makers have tried hard to make a film on the famous bootlegger of Gujarat and his illegal business but ended up making a quintessential Shah Rukh Khan film instead.

Raees (Shah Rukh Khan) is a bright child, who early on in his school going years learns the trade of alcohol in a dry state (Gujarat). After working under a popular liquor smuggler (Atul Kulkarni) in his early years, he soon decides to start his own business. His only rule, "Koi dhanda chota nai hota, aur dhande se bada koi dharam nai hota, jisse kisika bura na ho."

"Pabandi hi baghawat ki shuruat hai (restriction is the starting block of rebellion)," says the voiceover at the start of this film, while commenting on prohibition in Gujarat. It is a simple line, yet so effective within this story and in the larger current national context as India reels under bans, prudishness, increasing censorship of the arts, eating habits and life choices, and prohibition in states where governments are well aware of flourishing gray markets.

A boy with humble beginnings sets up an empire by smuggling contraband. All he has going for him are his wits and insatiable ambition. He has a loyal sidekick, a brother, almost. As he grows powerful, he makes rivals. He wants to head a "syndicate" of other more-despicable smugglers. He bribes, kills, goes to jail, turns benevolent towards locals, and decides to run for elections. Add tapped phones and kids who act as eyes on the ground.

Shah Rukh Khan returns in and as Raees , a golden hearted mobster who does bad things for a good cause. It is a role constructed to grab back his pole position, and to that end Shah Rukh Khan strains at fulfilling every single point of the In and As trope. He sings and dances, he fights and romances: he also tries to fulfil the outlines of a character.

Gear up for a throwback to the great Salim-Javed blockbusters of the Seventies, where the hero grows up mid-action, every second line is meant to show off the character's swagger, a Helen song (Sunny Leone here) breaks the tension and action sequences compel you to whistle. Carrying that legacy forward, is Raees. Shah Rukh Khan plays the titular character of a spectacled goon who hates being called "battery"; he starts from harmless Ponzi schemes but graduates to pre-planned rackets and becomes the top bootlegger of his town.