One wondered why Rajeev Khandelwal was indulging in ‘desperate’ self-promotion after the completion of Aamir. You won’t blame him when you see the film.
Like a seasoned actor, this newcomer, Rajeev Khandelwal displays the frustration a man goes through when his family is kidnapped and the ransom he has to pay is to become a terrorist. The frustration grows as the film progresses.
About four decades ago, Sunil Dutt made song-less Yaadein, in which he was the only actor. Another such film was Achaanak starring Vinod Khanna. In 2008, we have this gripping and practically one-actor film Aamir, meaning leader.
The first-timer Raj Kumar Gupta handled the project very well which is based on a Filipino movie Cavite. But the topic is hot and current and better suited in the Indian context. However, the one-and-a half-hour movie made on shoe-string budget salutes the sacrificing secular spirit – not always convincingly but the climax, is likely to stir the social conscience of every viewer.
All this was made possible by some brilliant cinematography by Alphonse Roy – reportedly executed with hidden cameras. Street shots, head-on walks through Mumbai’s mean streets and mohallas are lensed with extraordinary stealth. Inside sources reveal there were two factors that made Aamir the Aamir— the girl discussing her marriage plans with her boyfriend and toddler in his mother’s lap in the bus. Editor Aarti Bajaj’s precise work retained only one — the child and made a passing reference to the girl.
Rajkumar Gupta wades through the streets of Mumbai which no other film has ever done — all actual streets and no expensive sets were used. The plot: it’s about an England-returned doctor (Rajeev Khandelwal), who on landing in Mumbai, is threatened to follow instructions over a cell phone. And then, what next? Gupta keeps you guessing. The source, like it or not, is a Gratifyingly, Rajeev Khandelwal affirms that he’s a first-rate actor. A born natural, he’s a welcome addition to the quality conscious Actors’ Club.
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