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It is no wonder why Madhur Bhandarkar’s films make news.
Hard-hitting and raw. The essence of life one can easily relate
to. Third in the trilogy of his Mumbai- centric movies after
Chandni Bar and Corporate comes Traffic Signal. A film which
deals with a lot of realism. It tells the tale of sixty-odd
people whose world revolves around the traffic signal. Come
to think of it one never realized that a thriving business
do exists at such as inconsequential place as the traffic
signal and those who rule the place include gangsters and
politicians. Madhur Bhandarkar's new offering takes us into
a world we thought never existed. A world we see every single
day at the traffic signals, but forget all about it the moment
we are out of its sight.
Silsila (Kunal Khemu), a young orphan, who was born at the
signal is now its manager. He has a mentor, named Jaffar.
Both he and Jaffar work for the local Mafioso, Haji. Inherent
in the social structure, lies a nexus between the local mafia
and politicians. And invariably, Silsila gets drawn into the
bigger game and finds himself to be responsible for the total
destruction of his own world, something to which he’s
dedicated his life. And now his only purpose in life is to
challenge the nexus.
Hats of to director Madhur Bhandarkar. For films belonging
to such a genre, it is quite a task to maintain its originality.
He has succeeded in not only entertaining the audience but
also in enlightening them. His choice of subject is commendable.
The climax is brilliant. He has got the best performances
from all its actors.
Dress-designer Shefalina deserves special mention. Her choice
of clothes for the characters is out of the world. The same
goes for the makeup. Music is passable, except of course for
‘Aai Ga’, which will be an instant hit with the
masses. Also, the situational sound track, is sure to make
an impact. It keeps up the pace with the film.
Kunal Khemu is first rate. He lives the role. This film will
definitely take him places. Konkana Sen Sharma is yet another
actor who is capable of handling every role with ease. There
is no doubt, she is talented and versatlile. Ranveer Shorey
is a big surprise. He is superb. Upendra Limaye is fabulous.
Neetu Chandra does reasonably well. D. Santosh is alright.
Director Sudhir Mishra is impressive. Manoj Joshi is good.
On the whole, Traffic Signal, is a true-to -life film and
that is enough to pull in the crowds. What’s hot about
the film is that it kind of exposes the life of politicians
and gangsters who would go to any length to make money. With
identifiable characters and some good technical insight the
film makes a decent watch for sure.
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