Sardar Udham

Rarely felt like this to a movie. Best bollywood movie i have seen since i dont remember the last i watched. Last 45 minutes took away my sense of clock ticking away. F.......g brilliant.

Shoojit Sircar delivers yet another nuanced, offbeat yet impactful cinema experience after Vicky Donor (2012), Madras Cafe (2013) and Piku (2015) in Udham Singh, riding on an immense performance from Vicky Kaushal.

The biopic tells us the relatively unknown tale of Shaheed-i-Azam ('greatest of martyrs') Sardar Udham Singh, who gunned down one of the perpetrators of the Jalianwala Bagh massacre, Michael O'Dwyer, audaciously in the center of London.

A harrowing character portrayal of a man scarred by the massacre of his people, Vicky Kaushal delves deep into the anguish, the motivations and the resolve of the legendary freedom fighter, portraying each stage of his life with dignified conviction.

A story that would be unbelievable if it were not true, the film shows us the steely determination of a freedom fighter hell bent on revenge, who embarks on a perilous journey through Afghanistan and USSR to strike at his enemy's heart in London.

The film never meanders to jingoistic levels instead quietly yet profoundly putting across the messages of freedom and equality propagated by Udham and a fantastic Amol Parashar who essays the role of Shaheed Bhagat Singh.

Director Sircar has taken an unconventional non-linear narrative style, a format rarely used in nationalistic films. He leverages it to astutely put across not just the freedom fighter's perspectives but that also of the British administration.

While the British officers are often portrayed as evil, maniacal tropes in most freedom fighter movies, Sircar again refuses to follow the norm. Shaun Scott is terrific as the banal, even dispassionate Michael O'Dwyer while Stephen Hogan is impactful as the detective charged with extracting Udham's confession.

Sardar Udham is a firm reminder that our country's freedom was won by a group of men and women who were made of sterner stuff, who sacrificed everything for their motherland.

The film, at 2 hours and 42 minutes will require a patient watch. But I promise you, the experience is well worth it. Recommended!

This is a story that will make your blood boil, regardless of where you reside, your home soil; as injustice and terror and slaughter ensues, with trespass, oppression, cruelty and abuse; the instruments used by tyrannical force, their weapons deployed, politicians endorse; to control and to quell, dragoon and coerce, a nation enveloped by despotic curse.

A far from uncommon telling of a story based on facts, one of so many resulting from imperialism, empire building, slavery and the theft of another countries people and resources, that invariably results in the oppressed fighting back and receiving the unforgiving force of the invasive foe in return.

Almost as heart breaking as the events portrayed here is the unflinching resistance of the oppressor to enlighten its civilians through education, of the reality behind considerable portions of its recent history - even today.

I was crying the whole second half of the film. The core emotion of that last hour was so heavy that your tears will automatically fall out. The documentation style of approach to the story definitely made the viewing experience very personal and interactive. The screenplay in the first half does confused me a bit but it did the job of making me invested in the actuality.

This is not an easy movie to recommend. I was on the verge of turning it off unable to take it any more but out of respect, somehow kept going. Never ever has Jallianwala Baug massacre portrayed this way in history of cinema. This is however the most important film to come out in recent times.

Yes this is about Sardar Udham Sign but it is also about millions of Indians who sacrificed themselves for the freedom we enjoy in modern India and take it for granted. It is very intelligently written, the production design is on a level Bollywood hasn't seen in a long long time. The sound design and background score is skillfully done and the editing is just how I like it. Shoojit Sircar has obviously worked with DoP to capture every frame masterfully. Technically this is near perfect.

I would've given minus stars but didn't have heart to give it to the marketing department, producers and distributors. This movie should be screened in all the film festivals and has potential to be India's oscar entry for this year. Wake up people.

Finally, I just want to say this movie should also be in British high school curriculum. Of course, it's wishful thinking.