Droh Kaal

This movie was another tale passionately written by Govind Nihalani and other scriptwriters this movie shows that Govind Nihalani is a dialogue master Atul Tiwari did write the dialogues and Govind Nihalani added additional dialogues to the film with G.P Deshpande this movie is tough to watch because it is very slow paced but it does have moments in there that make up for the slow scenes the action by Amin Ghani is great if only Nihalani could have made it a little better for the camera scenery then it will be more fun to watch overall great performance by all actors especially Nasseudin Shah he's my favorite actor definitely powerful performance by Om Puri as the main character caught under a terrorist struggle pretty good drama to watch Nihalani delivers once again a tale on how to be fair as a human and be fair to life and those around you

One of the best given the topic 'Terrorism'. Remember, this movie was made in 1994, much before 9/11 and yet, one can see the similarities between 9/11 plot and this movie. For example, 9/11 hijackers hid among us, just as the terrorists in this movie wore the mask of a common man. 9/11 hijackers were known to be soft spoken and polite, yet extremely secretive. Same with the terrorists in this movie. Anyway, everything from the plot to characters were excellent. Even the music (by Jaidev) is extraordinary. Only the far-fetched bravado by Abhay Singh (Om Puri) seemed unreal, but then, it takes extraordinary courage and deeds to counter the 'cancer' of terrorism. In that respect, Abhay Singh's bravado also seems appropriate. As usual, Naseer puts the 'sher' in the character of Abbas Lodhi.

I remember, I was in Bombay during the film festival in Dec. 1994. This powerful movie made me cry and repeat it the very next day. Thanks to Govind Nihalani, who personally let me in his special movie, I could enjoy to the full. No wonder I am his fan and Thank you Govind!

If you are a Govind Nihalani or a Naseer or an Om Puri or a Amrish Puri fan, this movie is a MUST SEE.

If anybody finds a DVD of this movie, please post the link to the DVD sale.This is the best movie I have seen on a terrorist-police plot. Excellent direction, script, story and acting. I have not seen a movie so good in International cinema or in Hollywood. Govind Nihlani has done an excellent job. It is a little slow but engrossing, the ending is unexpected. This is Govind Nihlani's best work. This movie is way better than "Roja" in terms of content and character. Roja is more picturesque but Drohkaal has more character. Not to be missed, a jewel of Bollywood. Wish it was on DVD If anybody finds a DVD on this, please post the link to the DVD sale.

Govind Nihalani casts his favourite actor Om Puri again, this time with Naseeruddin Shah, Ila Arun, Mita Vashisht and Ashish Vidyarti. Nihalani has earned a reputation of making hard-hitting raw films depicting that darkness of middle-class society that is weaved from corruption, chaos and crime. His 'Ardh Satya' was definitely notable and 'Thakshak' and 'Hazaar Chaurasi ki Maa' were quite decent and 'Dev' highlighted Om Puri's performance. Puri has done some of his best works in Nihalani's films and 'Droh Kaal' is no exception.

However, as a film, it's among the director's weakest. The writing is very poor and some of the plotpoints are quite ridiculous. Not only is the script full of plot holes, but the pacing is extremely slow. Things only get a tad better in the second half as the pace picks up and there is an attempt to build suspense. At times, quite frequently, it gets preachy. It tries to make some political point but that's all lost in the writing. I was also surprised by the flat cinematography (considering that Nihalani is also a well-reputed cinematographer).

What stands out are the performances. Puri is brilliantly supported by Mita Vashisht. Naseeruddin Shah and Manoj Bajpai are wasted. Ila Arun does well in a brief role. Ashish Vidyarti is passable.

Overall, 'Droh Kaal' is a major disappointment. It doesn't have anything new to offer. It's lacking in both style and substance.

Drohkaal is intense, passionate and disturbing at the same time. Highly realistic and well directed. Script is first rate. Performances are convincing. All veteran actors team up together and deliver power packed performances. Director govind nihalini handles the subject of terrorism well and executes it with perfection and realism. The psychological journey of each character is clearly visible. The turmoil, confrontation, confusion, disturbance, contradiction, deliberate attempts, love, concern, loyality etc is visible in each character. And that's the usp of drohkaal. The story travels from a to z in a flow with each character growing in a perfect way.