Gritty mainstream masala

He is an orphan in Mumbai. By sheer hard work and a natural flair for winning hearts,the young boy,named Sultan by a needy lady to whom he gives his hard-earned money,grows up to be a smuggler. He is also a messiah of the people,for whom he is like Robin Hood.

Sultan Ajay Devgn has a philosophy 8211; when goals can be achieved by friendly measures,hostilities are superfluous. The dons of 1970s Mumbai are brought together by him and taught to live in harmony,with each allotted zones in the city. Sultan takes up the sea 8211; and rises to be an ace smuggler. He loves the city of Mumbai and the people,never carries a gun and refuses to do anything that will threaten the metropolis. For example,he refuses to deal in drugs with the memorable comment,I deal in things that the government does not permit,I do not deal in things that my conscience does not permit! Sultan also has several legal businesses.

The smuggler is also in love with filmstar Rehana Kangna Ranaut. Not able to think of an expensive gift for her,he buys her a single guava for Rs 400 and gifts it to her. From here begins a love affair.

ACP Agnel Wilson Randeep Hooda,however,has vowed to clean up the city,and he begins with putting pressure on Rehana to nab Sultan. Meanwhile,ambitious but unscrupulous Shoaib Emraan Hashmi,the delinquent son of a cop,lands into frequent trouble to the despair of his girl Mumtaz Prachi Desai. His desperate father wants Sultan to employ his son in one of his legal businesses.

But gradually,Shoaib enters Sultans illegal business,and becomes his right-hand man. At one point, Sultan wants to leave his illegal businesses and get into politics and serve people. He appoints Shoaib to carry on his affairs till he returns from Delhi,but Shoaibs ambition hits the skies. When Sultan returns, he slaps Shoaib for his irresponsible actions in his absence. And Shoaib realizes that a city cannot have two rulers. For him,power and money are supreme,the end justifies the means,and so Sultan must die.

Technical Expertise:

To state that this is Milan Luthrias best work as a director is to mention the obvious 8211; the director seems inspired by the subject and the gripping material in his grasp. Rajat Aroraas story is clearly inspired by the saga of 1970s smuggler Haji Mastan and his deviant deputy Dawood and investigates the crime scene in Mumbai city three decades back that has formed the foundation for Mumbais current underworld scenario.

Once Upon A Time In Mumbaais biggest triumph lies,however,in its gritty realism that does not have a conflict of interests either with a contemporary pan-Indian appeal or with its format of a classic,entertaining mainstream masala Hindi film. The film moves at a smart pace all through,and yet the detailing and characterisation are done unhurriedly.

Milan imparts a real feel to the characters,who are not larger-than-life figures but are instantly relatable. The 70s ambience is meticulously created,and Milan does not make the fatal mistake of creating this feel and then diluting the entertainment quotient of the blockbusters of that era. Among the sequences that stand out are those of Sultan wooing Rehana and his birthday sequence,the jail sequence of Shoaib,the sharp clash between Sultan and Agnel,the train sequence in the beginning and also the various sequences that highlight Sultans love for the city.

The background score stands out and Pritams music is also a strong point. But the aspect that will truly have the audiences,especially the masses,rooting for this film,is what we can call old-fashioned dialoguebaazi or Hindi and Urdu lines that play to the gallery. Apart from appealing to the hardcore Hindi film buffs,this will also be a novel feature for the youngsters used to the blandness of real today dialogues and liberal English.

But while the first half is truly gripping and razor-edge besides being fresh,the second half moves well but later starts getting into stereotypical mode. As the Shoaib-Sultan tussle intensifies,the standard format of revenge and enemies joining forces does make us wonder if the film could not have had a fresher end or a twist irrespective of the reality-inspired base. The climax and post-climax are a shade abrupt and the negative aspect a bit dissatisfying. The performances are good,Ajay towering as Sultan,and Emraan and Kangna doing great jobs. Prachi is wasted and Randeep is adequate.

RATING: A star each for direction,script and performances.