A thriller to watch

AUG 24 -
Shoojit Sircar, the man behind such critically-acclaimed films as Yahaan and Vicky Donor, has come back to the box office, and he's brought a political thriller along this time around. In this second collaboration with actor-turned-producer John Abraham, Sircar delivers a powerful thriller that will keep you glued to your seats from the get go, with things getting more exciting as the film heads toward the climax. Leading man Abraham—who is better known for his inability to emote and his flat expressions—gives the best performance of his career in the film. And the director has also managed to extract a decent performance from Nargis Fakhri, whose debut in Rockstar was nothing short of terrible.

RAW agent Vikram (Abraham) is deployed to Sri Lanka where the civil war has reached its peak. His wife has no idea of the real dangers agent Vikram is in. She's not even aware that her husband is, in fact, an RAW agent. In Sri Lanka, Vikram comes across revolutionary characters and his encounters with them forces him to re-evaluate his team members. A gradual unveiling of the shocking truth follows and all of this adds up to create a riveting watch.

The film's plotline seems to draw heavily from the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case (1991), widely deemed one of the saddest chapters in Indian political history. The filmmakers also adeptly incorporate other elements into the basic storyline to keep the consistent thrill in Madras Café alive. There is hardly any moment in which the movie loses pace.

Credit for the film's success should go to writers Somnath Dey and Subhendu Bhattacharya, for writing a unique and engaging script, and to director Sircar for handling the material so sensitively. The transition from Vicky Donor, a rom-com, to Madras Café, might have been an awkward one, but Sircar handles it masterfully. His new film might not work for those who like a little bit of masala in their movies, but it is really quite a delightful watch.

Labels: Entertainment, Highlight