Stoutor
It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.
Juana
what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.
Sarita Rafferty
There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.
daorestes
Ok what i write? this movie could be a masterpiece but it couldn't. First half of the movie is excellent but ending is so typical ! I mean you arises a question then suddenly you changed the plot. so typical hindi film. you were talking about quota system, then suddenly moved to free coaching system ? how man, really how? totally disappointing. But I must say Mr. Amitabh and Mr. Bajpayee acted very well.
Biswajit Tripathy
Aarakshan is a well made movie from Prakash Jha on the subject of reservation based on caste. Dr. Prabhakar Anand (Amitabh Bachchan) is the Principal of a very well known college and his request for approval for reservation is rejected by standing committee of the institute he works for. So he resigns from his job. The new Principal Mithilesh Singh operates a parallel coaching institute. Story takes a different turn when Prabhakar Anand is thrown out from his home by Mithilesh Singh and he goes and stays in a Tabela and starts his own free coaching institute for everyone. His role has been borrowed from mathematician Anand from Patna who is running Super 30 and his coaching institute is named as Super Tabela rhyming with the Super 30 of Anand Kumar. The climax is very poor with entry of a Hema Malini whose only role is for just 5 minutes and story ends as if there was no issues at all. Bad acting & presence by Hema destroys the climax else the movie is well made. Saif, Amitabh & Deepika including Manoj Bajpayee have done justice to their role.Prakash Jha has written a very nice story with a very weak climax otherwise which the story is much better. Sachin's cinematography and Shankar's music makes it a memorable experience. A must watch for everyone.
Murli
This is precisely the kind of movie that should come out of the part of Bollywood that thrives on making real movies. Movies that don't have massive explosions or heroes beating up thousands of villains or dancing with 50 people on the beaches of Sydney or in night clubs. In the hands of a director with good vision this could have become one of the top movies of the year. But instead with some bollywood clichés and melodrama the movie sinks into mediocrity, but with one saving grace.This is an actor's movie, a thespian's movie so the casting of Amitabh and Manoj was a clever move. Amitabh can be forgiven for starring in rubbish like Buddha Hogaya Tera Baap or some stupid movie where he's dancing with and romancing girls less than a third of his age. His performance as a teacher is highly credible and his purity is equally matched by Manoj's sleaziness. It would be hard to find anyone better than these two men when it comes to proper acting. Nasserudin Shah, Om Puri and Nana Patekar are the only others I can think of.Saif Ali Khan gives a subdued performance but it's not bad. Sadly he doesn't look very convincing as a Dalit and no amount of makeover can take off the bollywood glamour shine that always surrounds him. He was miscast here. Deepika was decent. There's another poster who was complaining about her Hindi or her acting skills but I find that she's one of the rare few young women out there who can act and she's getting better each time.While the upside was the casting of Amitabh and Manoj the downside was the script and character development. The topic of "untouchables" and rights is a serious issue and it deserved to be treated with respect and given the center of attention, something Prakash Jha failed to do. Instead the focus goes on Amitabh's woes and troubles and his enmity with an increasingly sleazy Manoj which took it away from the main issue. Even the underlying sub theme of ministers abusing the value of education for their profit was briefly touched upon and then forgotten so that we, the audience, could anguish over where Amitabh was going to live. The hordes of students that he suddenly starts teaching nonstop becomes a silly competition between him and Manoj's venture, a typically stupid Bollywood melodramatic move. The ending is a huge let down, contrived to give it a feel good moment. Yet, the main issue is never once broached nor resolved.Despite my negativity I'd still recommend the movie for several reasons: Amitabh and Manoj's acting, and the lack of numerous typically cheesy song and dance numbers. I sincerely hope that another, more focused director tackles this sensitive issue and gives it more consideration with a more driven story and scope. Look at Black Friday. That was a brilliant movie with little commercial success but that wasn't the aim of the director of that gem. He stuck to the main issue and there's no reason why another director can't do the same with this topic.
Shilajit Das Gupto
The story is based on effects of The Reservation Bill on Dr. Anand's world. The Bill is passed, people of different standings and positions put forth their perspective and those are shown unabashedly. Unfortunately, audience does not seem to settle for anything less than a typical brouhaha. The story goes along the lines of what Dr.Anand has to face after his indirect stance on the whole matter and then ultimately following the un-noticed but the precious advice of his better half, to give ample opportunities to all to create equal chances for everybody of every financial status. That may not solve the whole problem but at least can set a small example. You have to do what you can do in your circumstances and everybody is not Sivaji, The Boss!!
