Sumit Bajracharya "Gulaal" starring too many unknown faces like Raja Singh Chaudhary, Abhimanyu Singh, Deepak Dobriyal, Jesse Randhawa along with the brilliant Kay Kay Menon, is unusually bold for a fictionalization based on real events. Using the plot on pursuit of power, betrayal and hypocrisies, the movie explores those corners that have never been attempted before. The remarkable thing about this Anurag Kashyap directorial is the way different layers accumulated into one solid drama. Presenting diverse characters form John Lennon fan Piyush Mishra to a minor role of Tabu fan Mahie Gill, every character is well refined. Anurag Kashyap has shown the enthusiasm in each scene with experimental cinematography like continuous use of red filters and yellow light.SPOILER ALERT:: Initiating from the college ragging, the movie takes several turns into various interesting issues. The scene of Ransa mocking Karan after being kidnapped and Karan killing him is terrific. Also Raja Chaudhary was stunning in a particular scene giving an awkward speech. But the final scene where blinded by his love for Kiran, the violent and aggressive Dilip reminds me of Travis Bickle getting outraged in the final scene of the "Taxi driver".While each individual performance is of high standards, Kay Kay Menon shines as Dukey Bana, while Raja Chaudhary showed the innocence of Dilip very naturally. In a relatively small role, we have Piyush Mishra, as the eccentric poet Prithvi Bana successfully showing his presence. Also he gave the music for the movie which complements the movie in every way.In the end we get a dish served with various character and cooked by the brilliant Anurag Kashyap who knows the world he's showing making this movie an engaging watch. A huge impact of theater can be seen in the movie due to Anurag Kashyap's theater background but still it's a great show that shouldn't be missed.

achyutsingh Its surprising that the Director who gave us Dev D, comes up with Gulaal in the same year. True to Anurag kashyap's style, the movie is dark, rough and hard hitting. KK as Dukey bana who has his secret political ambition to revive "Rajputana" rule in Neo-Nazi style. Then the Brother sister duo with own political agenda and the student politics in the backdrop of Rajasthan. There is a plot and sub plots but the director keeps them all together and never goes off track. Gulaal shows all colors of Human nature.The strong performance by all characters is the highlight of the film. For me Piyush mishra as KK menons brother with his satirical poems steals the show.

sumanbarthakursmailbox Gulaal, directed by Anurag Kashyap is an endlessly fascinating movie about politics and the youth, about love and betrayal, about reform and revenge. It's a film with many layers, and one with solid drama at its core, which makes it such an engaging watch. Kashyap knows the world he's showing us in this film and takes us through it with an assuredness that I found missing in his last picture, Dev D.He serves up a palette of diverse characters and flirts with interesting issues like campus ragging, student activism, caste biases and the thirst for legitimacy. Set in Rajasthan, Gulaal's central premise involves the efforts of the erstwhile royal community to claim back their Rajputana province from the democratic government.The film follows meek law student Dileep Singh (played by newcomer Raja Singh Chaudhary) who arrives on campus to pursue graduation and falls into the company of an older student and royal sprog Rananjay Singh (played by Abhimanyu Singh) which changes the course of his life completely. When the local kingpin Dukey Bana (played by Kay Kay Menon) convinces Rananjay to contest college elections on behalf of his Rajputana party, little does our protagonist Dileep realize he too will get sucked into a world of corrupt politics and crime.Without going into too many details, let's just say Dileep ends up standing for and winning the college elections in place of his friend and roommate Rananjay, and discovers subsequently he's just a pawn in Dukey Bana's larger plans.There is also the matter of a girl; in this case the ambitious, illegitimate daughter of a royal who loses the campus election to Dileep, but finds another more deceitful way to realize her ambitions. Much of the charm of Gulaal lies in its setting; Rajasthan's varied landscape - a clash between tradition and modernity, becomes as intriguing a character as any, and Kashyap shoots this terrain realistically, rough around the edges even, sucking us into his dark, brooding drama from the word go. Rich with characters and sub-plots, Kashyap opts for a straightforward narration, making this film his most accessible since "Black Friday". Gulaal is remarkable also for the brave manner in which it mirrors the dangerous political scenario in Mubai by using the Dukey Bana character played by Kay Kay Menon as a metaphor for fundamentalist leader Raj Thackeray and his MNS party. The masterstroke in Gulaal however, is its music. Piyush Mishra, as the eccentric poet Prithvi Bana - an outsider in this violent world - delivers evocative numbers that are hard to get out of your head for the sheer honesty and brutality of their lyrics. By way of indulgences, there is the unexplained character of the Ardh Narishwar, and also the film's sluggish pace. At two-and-a-half long hours, Gulaal is loose and meanders in places which is a pity because it has the potential to be a taut thriller. Nevertheless it's eminently watchable for its characters and the actors who play them. Of the ensemble, it's Kay Kay Menon as Dukey Bana and particularly Abhimanyu Singh as Rananjay who stand out with powerful performances that remain etched in your memory. I was a little unconvinced by Raja Singh Chaudhary's performance as Dileep, who plays his part adequately but fails to internalise the catharsis he goes through in order to reach upto the film's horrific end. Similarly underdeveloped was Jesse Randhawa's track as the young teacher whose life changes permanently after a shocking incident of ragging.These are, however, mere nitpickings in a competent, compelling film that is in equal parts humorous and courageous. Unlike No Smoking and even Dev D to an extent which alienated some audiences because of their indulgent storytelling style, this one is not a difficult watch.It is a provocative yet poignant, and that rare kind of film that transports you bang in the middle of its action. Watch it to understand why Anurag Kashyap is one of the most exciting voices in Hindi cinema today.

bobbysing Delivering what was expected, here is another quality abstract art movie from Anurag Kashyap. And as the case always is, the movie may win over the critiques but it fails to make a direct contact with the common man coming in theaters for entertainment. Anurag is brilliant in his own form of film-making and will definitely satisfy his fan following, which has reached a higher graph after "Dev-D", but on the entertainment quotient movie scores quite low.The movie puts an intense, dark, disturbing and even shocking portrayal of College Politics in Rajasthan locales but lacks the depth we had seen in "Haasil". The sequences are all well conceived, intelligently directed and superbly shot capable of satisfying the thinking viewers in a big way. On the other hand, for the people coming in looking for the comic factor equivalent to "Dev-D" may find it disappointing on that track. This time, Anurag strictly sticks to the intense narration in the complete movie with no relief moment at all.The story revolves around young college students who become victim of cruel local politics and it also has an angle of conspiracy being planned against the government by the Rajput families. The first half shows the rusty college campus in Rajasthan, still obsessed with brutal ragging of new students and even lady teachers. It reveals the youth election back-up sources, which include still called Maharajas, local politicians and a hidden Rajputana rebellion force. Later the emphasis shifts to how a brother uses his sister in getting his due name, respect and leadership. Anurag clearly shows how a female character can win anyone and anything in the world if she is willing to forget her dignity and limits. He represents the power of woman in the man's world in his own unique and captivating way.In the acting department, the best comes from Abhimanyu Singh as Ransa and Ayesha Mohan as Kiran. Ahimanyu though dies in the first hour only but has the power to light up the screen with his presence. Kiran gives an impressive performance as the girl using her feminist qualities in the best possible manner. Pankaj Jha as Jadhwal, Deepak Dobriyal as Bhaatti and Raj Singh as Dilip are effective. Kay Kay and Aditya Srivastav are first rate as always. Two characters who stay in your mind are Piyush Mishra as the mentally retarded elder brother of Kay Kay and Jesse Randhawa as the ragged teacher who has got no one to help her.The find of the season undoubtedly is Mahi Gill in a special appearance. She was loved by everyone in "Dev-D" and here also she gives a splendid lovable act as the lover of Kay Kay. She dances and acts equally well with conviction and depth. An actress who deserves more good projects and directors like Anurag Kashayp. A good find indeed by Anurag.Coming back to the movie, it has some worth mentioning sequences which include the one when Dilip is stripped and thrown in a room where he finds his own lady lecturer also stripped and locked. The conversation scene between Ransa and Aditya, just before he is killed and hanged in the market place. And the sequence where a policeman is shot sending all his accompanying policemen back in their jeep.The dialogues are strong and hard but also use abusive words in an overdone manner. Many times, abuses are used where they were not needed at all. Cinematography is brilliant capturing the intense moments in the right ambiance. But the script has many loopholes which could have been avoided easily keeping stress on the main plot only. There are too many stories moving in at the same time which take away the real meaning of the title "Gulaal". The main plot of the rebellion force of Rajputana gets lost in other stories and gets attention only toward the climax.The writer tries to point out the stress felt by all the Rajput Kings, who had to surrender their areas to the government after independence. But at the same time he also dangerously suggests another kind of fire which still may be hidden in those areas of the country. Luckily it's only a fictional thought of the writer, quite away from the reality.Piyush Mishra comes up with some good meaningful lyrics and composition just apt for the feel of the movie. The songs are not for everyone but they do deserve a serious listening by all music lovers and chances are that many would like the score a lot.The movie was in the making for more than 4-5 years and several reasons were responsible for its delay. The project was recently revived, when it was taken over by ZEE Group under its ZEE Limelight Movies. The movie may find itself recognized in the New Wave Cinema but it would be difficult for the film to make huge profits for the production house.In simple words, GULAAL is not for all and is strictly for the people who know that they want to see this out of the box kind of cinema. Viewers going to the cinema having that in mind will not be disappointed, but it's not as engrossing as it promised to be.