Sarkar (2005, Varma)

Gritty, admirable retelling of the Godfather saga set in the crime riddled streets of Mumbai. Director Varma is a natual film maker, who, unlike his more contemporary peers, does not shy away from making a film based on his vision or his love for another film. The story is familiar, yet it never becomes uninteresting. Like Scorcese or P.T. Anderson, the gift of fusing the entire running time of a picture with a sense of deep, relentless urgency throughout, is highly apparent. The performances are more than adequate, especially of the three leads - Bachan senior as the titular, shrewd, familial Sarkar; Bachan Jr as the son who will face his destiny and lead the family ’business’ when required in the most untimely manner and especially scene stealing Kay Kay as the menacing, nefarious eldest brother (who is fused with the characteristics of both hot headed Sonny and ultimately cheating, Freddo).

Falters in a few places, especially in its storytelling - there is nothing saga like about the setup, neither its running time, nor its time span (the Copolla original spanned a decade from rise to fall to memorable rise). Also, the odd mix of pundits and punter crime lords are never challenging enough as criminals to ever feel as real threats. The Katrina Kaif character who should be a the voice of reason, only comes across as a distraction. Yet, the film manages to be an intriguing mix of politics, personal vendetta and the seedy muck of India’s criminal underworld. Never reaches the heights of the more potent, and slightly more original Varma venture "Company" from a few years ago, though this is still a great watch.

Rating: 3.5/5