1. Sarkar Raj.

The Nagres are back and this time they aren’t alone. The only regret I have about Sarkar Raj is I witnessed it a bit too late. Nonetheless, this one is a high-profile political drama on the backdrop of a “power” project. It’s a magnificent piece of work by the man who is so very sure of what he is making (kindly unread Aag and Naach). If RGV is reading this, I need to tell this – “Please finish the trilogy”. The climax hints in that direction too but as RGV is quite unconventional on professional front, it’s hard to forecast.

The best part is without any kind of narration the drama gradually explains the link with the former part. The first half is pretty gripping. The plot-building activity is accomplished in a profound manner. Although the head-spinning close-up camera moves are at times a bit annoying, they append the intensity. The post-interval drama is more of a bloodbath. In an edge-of-the-seat thriller like this one, the thrill loses a bit when the spectator starts suspecting the usual and un-usual characters. Here, one gets no time to even think of suspecting anyone.

The casting is far-fetched. No words for AB & AB Jr. as Sr. and Jr. Nagre respectively. They simply excel. Particularly during the second half Sr. AB outshines as a rebellion. Excellent output delivered by new comer Rajesh Shringarpore as Sanjay Somji. Dilip Prabhavalkar as Rao Saab is at his second best after Lage Raho Munnabhai. Of course he is a seasoned performer with many golden feathers in his cap. ARB as Anita Rajan is ok. A nice surprise performance by Govind Namdeo as Hassan Qazi (Thank god he is not roaring this time) is visible. Ravi Kale as Chander is clichéd but not too bad. Sayaji Shinde as Karunesh Kanga is too hyper for his role. Tanisha, Victor Banarjee and Upendra Limaye mark their presence in a small but vital role.

Technically, the sturdy areas are the dazzling direction and charismatic cinematography. The sturdier ones are the exceptional editing and debonair dialogues where Prashant Pandey has done an outstanding working with his pen. The sturdiest though in my view point is the breathtaking background score by Amar Mohile.

On the whole, this high intensity feat is worth a watch.

My verdict – 8/10.