Sarkar Raj – Struggle for Power

It all happened on an otherwise tiring Sunday with Ram booking the tickets to Ram Gopal Varma’s Sarkar Raj, the sequel to Sarkar. Reached the theatre in the nick of time before the movie started.

First impressions: RGV is back. He commands the attention of the audience in this two-hour long thriller that makes extensive use of close-up shots, a consistent sepia tone, brilliant background score that all add to the excitement. The story in bits and pieces is inspired by The Godfather.

It is the first time I have watched a movie made by Ram Gopal Varma in a theatre. I haven’t watched RGV’s Aag but have seen Satya, Shiva and Gayam and have to say that the film has RGV written all over it.

The plot in short is about how people struggle for power and where it can lead them to. The plot is woven around a power plant proposal to set up in a rural area of Maharashtra. How this proposal is used by the power hungry people to realise their personal objectives forms the crux of the movie.

Shankar (Abishek Bachchan), hailed as the successor to Sarkar, takes charge of the situation and when convinced that the larger good of people lies in setting up the power plant goes all out to support the plant. A very calm and patient Sarkar lets his son Shankar handle the proceedings. On the other hand plans to topple the dominance and the very existence of Sarkar take a violent shape resulting in a lot of bloodshed. Shankar driven by the passion to serve the society at all costs understands quite late that there is something amiss in his analysis of how people respond to the lure of power. Sarkar who remains silent and supportive of his son till the very end correctly analyses the situation. However, it is too late by the time Sarkar takes corrective action.

RGV should be appreciated for the way he has handled the twists and turns in the story. The background score and the cinematography take over in scenes that deal with the violent side of the characters. The Govinda Govinda interlude has been made good use of in these scenes.

The father and son duo (Amitabh and Abhishek) dominate with their excellent portrayal of the characters. Aishwarya is wasted in a character which has nothing to say except remain alongside Abhishek. Apart from the actors, the music and the cinematography deserve special praise. RGV should be happy with Sarkar Raj.

The concluding scene does indicate that a sequel could be in the offing soon.

Verdict: Worth a watch.

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