Swatantrya Veer Savarkar Movie Review
Star cast: Randeep Hooda, Ankita Lokhande, Amit Sial, Anjali Hoodfa, Jay Nano Patel, Rajesh Khera, Santosh Ojha, Russell Geoffrey Banks
Director: Randeep Hooda
What is good: Lesser-known facts about a man, most of them shocking, who wanted independence from the British and an inclusive India
What is wrong : Too many chapters from Savarkar’s illustrious life crammed into an overlong narrative that fails to captivate and engage the viewer.
Toilet break: From time to time, especially during the too long “Kala Pani” phase
To watch or not? : Your choice, but be prepared for boredom at many points
Language: Hindi
Available on: Theatrical release
Duration: 178 minutes
User Rating:
Swatantrya Veer Savarkar Movie Review: Screenplay Analysis
The storyline is the biggest handicap of this biopic. It may be permissible to judiciously insert a dose of dramatic fiction into the cinematic sketches of life, but the current film dwells too much on non-essential subjects like the hangings of numerous freedom fighters and the multiple incidents of the fight for freedom throughout the country. He lingers too long in the Andaman and Nicobar Cellular Jail area and thus strays too far into areas he should have stayed away from. Furthermore, it shows Savarkar as someone who inspired even Netaji to take up the fight against the British, which seems a bit far-fetched.
We all know the ideological clash between Gandhi and Savarkar, but Gandhi is presented as a one-dimensional pro-Muslim leader, who may be based on studied facts but who may antagonize a section of the audience and cause the film to be labeled as ” election propaganda,” a common complaint against the fact-filled historical films of recent times.
On the other hand, I for one did not know that Savarkar’s brother Ganesh (played by Amit Sial) was also in the cellular jail, nor some other interesting facts about our freedom struggle and Savarkar. I was also shocked to learn that he was arrested even for conspiring in the assassination of Gandhi.
The screenplay makes a commendable attempt to show the true definition of the word ‘Hindutva’, as many still term it as an anti-Indian and anti-secular term. It also underlines Savarkar’s passionate belief that Indians are the first and last Indians, regardless of their religion. We also see all freedom fighters, including Sikhs, Parsis and Muslims, fervently pronouncing ‘Vande Mataram’ when it is now wrongly considered a Hindu mode of worship and considered a chant “community”!
Overall, the storyline, while balanced in its research and content, becomes too convoluted. Unfortunately, the debutant director also wrote it with Utkarsh Naithani, but it hardly amounts to something people will enjoy at the box office.
I always believe that a film with a message or a film on an icon (like Veer Savarkar here) must first and foremost succeed in spreading the right knowledge and delivering a timely message. And in this aspect, the writing proves to be woefully insufficient.
Swatantrya Veer Savarkar Movie Review: Star Performance
Such a film relies heavily on its performances, but even here, Swatantrya Veer Savarkar is a mixed bag. Randeep Hooda is absolutely brilliant as the freedom fighter and clearly passionate about the man he etches onto the screen. I particularly admired the reflections in his eyes, fluidly reflecting various emotions like anger, frustration, irony, love and of course pain. Amit Sial, as Ganesh Savarkar, shows the same passion in every role, and it’s nice to see him in a positive and unadulterated role.
But the supporting cast finds very few essays memorable. As mentioned, Gandhi is portrayed in a negative light and Rajesh Khera is probably not a good choice either. Ankita Lokhande is completely exhausted. Actors playing key roles like Lokmanya Tilak, Subhash Chandra Bose, Madam Cama, Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal Nehru, Jinnah and Gopal Krishna Gokhale get sketchy roles, while the actor playing the role of Dr. Ambedkar actually appears as a non -entity.
And Russell Geoffrey Banks as the Andaman Warden and the actor who plays the Muslim jailer Ham to the Guard.
Tendency
Swatantrya Veer Savarkar film review: direction, music
Randeep Hooda puts too much on his plate to make an impressive mark as a director. It also alienates the audience with something avoidable: incidents, statistics, events and locations are highlighted on screen only in English, which should have been reproduced in Hindi as well. His love of dark shots (often unnecessary and exaggerated) in crucial sequences exposes possible undue influence from his dull acting vehicle, Sarbjit. Too many treatments based on “reality” can completely destroy a good film.
The songs are functional and unimpressive. But kudos to Sandesh Shandilya and Mathias Duplessy for the background music, which rarely goes wrong.
Swatantrya Veer Savarkar Movie Review: The Last Word
It is a sadly still sketch of the life of a vital player in India’s freedom struggle and its post-independence significance. Watch it if you must, but I would rather highly recommend the 2001 authentic Hindi biopic Veer Savarkar to know what a fiery individual Veer Savarkar was and how (actually) entertaining and full of fun his life was. ‘action !
Two and a half stars!
Swatantrya Veer Savarkar Trailer
Swatantrya Veer Savarkar released March 22, 2024.
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The post Swatantrya Veer Savarkar Movie Review: High Aim, Lukewarm Result Mark This biopic appeared first on Koimoi.
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