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Darbaan (Zee5)

Starring Sharib Hashmi, Sharad Kelkar, Rasika Dugal, Flora Saini and Harsh Chhaya

Directed by Bipin Nadkarni

There is something about Rabindranath Tagore’s stories that lends itself to great cinema. Darbaan is not a great film. But it’s a very good piece of cinema. Artistically imagined and gently executed, it has the very accomplished Sharib Hashmi playing a simple caregiver in a feudal family (the story is translocated from the end of zamindari to the takeover of the coalmines in Dhanbad in the early 1970s) whose life is a litany of subservience.

Hashmi immerses himself in the role with a furious passion that reminded me of Ashok Kumar in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Aashirwaad. Sharib Hashmi is a great actor destined to secrete his greateness in small meaningful films while actors with not even a grain of his talent are strutting around as stars in Bollywood.

Without moving...

Darbaan (film on Zee5); Cast: Sharib Hashmi, Sharad Kelkar, Rasika Dugal, Flora Saini, Harsh Chhaya; Direction: Bipin Nadkarni; Rating: * * and 1/2 (two and a half stars)

By Vinayak Chakravorty

It is easy to make a film if your material at hand is Tagore. Then again, it is just as hard, think of the purists. National Award-winning Marathi filmmaker Bipin Nadkarni enters Hindi films straddling those pros and cons.

Nadkarni's film rides a second asset besides the hallmark emotive nuances that come with a Rabindranath Tagore classic. Sharib Hashmi may still not draw immediate recall for many Bollywood buffs, but chances are if you recognise him from Filmistaan or the web series The Family Man, you know him as an actor who doesn't need much of an effort to light up a scene. With a title role in Darbaan, Nadkarni gives Hashmi an entire film to flaunt his skills.

Nadkarni and co-writer...

The critic review of movie Darbaan is here. The 2020 Indian Hindi, drama film directed and produced by Bipin Nadkarni stars Sharib Hashmi, Sharad Kelkar, Rasika Dugal, Flora Saini and Harsh Chhaya in pivotal roles. The film was to be theatrically released on 3 April 2020, but postponed later due to Covid-19 pandemic. Darbaan will premiere on Zee5 on 4th December 2020. Darbaan is produced by Opticus Picture Company with Yogesh Beldar as co-producer.

Watch a Zee5 original film Darbaan official trailer premiering on 4th Dec, 2020

Darbaan movie review

Darbaan (Guard) the adaption of a 1918 short story ‘Khokababur Pratyabartan’ written by legendary Nobel Prize winner Rabindra Nath Tagore aka Gurudev. It’s a story of an inseparable bond between a master and his servant.

Master is Anukool (Sharad Kelkar) – son of Naren Tripathi (Harsh Chhaya) owner of a coal mine in Dhanbad and his most trusted / favourite servant Raicharan (Sharib Hashmi). The bond travels...

National Award-winning Marathi filmmaker Bipin Nadkarni makes his debut in Hindi films with Darbaan, based on the Rabindranath Tagore short story, Khokababur Pratyabartan.

Nadkarni says he has taken a liberal stand on the existing "classist culture" of society in his film, adding that walls between people are based on social status.

"The story is an emotional journey, and written by a legend like Tagore saab. So, the intention was to make an adaptation without tampering its core emotion. I took the story out of Bengal and set in a pan-Indian milieu. When it comes to the social backdrop, I chose the nationalisation of coal in 1971 as the background. As far as the classicism culture goes, in the very first line of the story it shows the bonding between a master and a servant. In a way, that equation is the soul of the story. Personally, I took a liberal stand.

Mumbai, Nov 23 (Ians) Actor Sharad Kelkar calls his upcoming film Darbaan very special, adding that it is an emotional project.

The family drama is based on Nobel laureate Rabindra Nath Tagore's 1918 short story, Khokababur Pratyabartan . The story is about the friendship between a boy and his caretaker and comes with a tragic twist.

The songs of the film play a major role in the narration of the story.

"It is a very special and emotional film. When you watch the film, you'll see how music has played such a crucial part in the film to bring out the emotions," said Sharad.

"You are going to cry while listening to some songs, and some songs will make you laugh because they are in sync with the story. I can honestly say that it is one of the best films that I have done," added the actor, who has featured in films...

Mumbai, Nov 7 (Ians) The release date of Darbaan, inspired by a short story of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, has been confirmed. The film featuring Sharib Hashmi, Rasika Dugal, Sharad Kelkar and Flora Saini will get an Ott release on December 6.

The film marks the Bollywood debut of National Award-winning Marathi director Bipin Nadkarni, and tells the story of a friendship between the son of a rich coalminer, Anukool (played by Sharad Kelkar) and his caretaker Raicharan (Sharib Hashmi).

Said Sharad: " 'Darbaan' brings forth a subject that is profoundly sensitive and it is a special film for me. The relationships will play the most important role in the film, and what these relationships go through will test their honesty."

For Sharib, an Ott release is definitely an advantage. "With the rising popularity of Ott platforms, the film will reach people across the globe. It is really exciting to tap new audiences with a digital release,...