Dharmaveer

Dharmaveer (2022) : Movie Review -

Marathi cinema is neither too broad nor too narrow in terms of biopics. Even if you exclude the old classics, there have been a good number of biopics in the last 10-12 years. The best to remember were Harishchandrachi Factory (2009), Me Sindhutai Sapkal (2010), Ravi Jadhav's Balgandharva (2011), Om Raut's "Lokmanya" (2015) and Sameer Vidwans's directorial "Anandi Gopal" (2019). These are the stories I found inspiring and encouraging. So basically, what I mean is, I don't give a damn about other biopics that are popular, hence leaving them out of the discussions. If you notice, we didn't really have many biographicals on politicians, except for that half-cooked Thackeray (2019) because, you know, not everybody loves politicians. Our voting percentage doesn't even cross 50%, so you can imagine how much people care about politicians and politics. Well, not all politicians are the same. Some are ANAND DIGHE! Here's that must-see biopic we've all been waiting for. No useless drama, no vulgarity, no dirty politics, etc. Only Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Saheb's social service and good work. Dharmaveer will turn out to be a memorable experience for all the Thanekars who know Late. Anand Dighe, have met him, have heard about him, and wants to know about him. Every Thanekar will keep this film in their hearts forever - that's my promise. For others, it is still a must-see. I myself am a Mumbaikar, and I'm saying it honestly. Dharmaveer will teach every politician how to behave and how to earn respect without playing any dirty games.

Dharmaveer is an almost 3-hour long ride into Anand Dighe's life, and yet it feels too short. Such was his journey. Nevertheless, it still manages to capture most of it in the proper cinematic elements that we experienced in the frictional dramas. There is so much heroism, drama, emotions and inspiration in Dighe's story that it can easily put all those fictional dramas to shame. Be it KGF Chapter 2, RRR or Pushpa, they just don't have enough realistic heroism like Dharmaveer. The film couldn't actually cover Anand Dighe's earlier life because his glory days were so long to fit into one script. That Haji Malang Chapter or the Sugar Movement or that Shivsena's first big victory or that dominance they still have in Thane and bla bla. Dharmaveer couldn't explore these important things, and yet it made a solid script as a whole. Like I said, it's almost a 3-hour long film, but has hardly got any boring moments. Such an engaging narrative it is, and it certainly keeps you on the edge of your seats (except for a couple of songs and that too if you have already seen them on YouTube).

As for the performances, Dharmaveer is thoroughly a performance-driven film. Sadly, Prasad Oak hasn't really acted. Instead, he has lived that role. Please smile now. He looks exactly like Anand Dighe, he walks exactly like Dighe, he shouts in the same aggressive fashion, that beard twisting, he stammers just like him. Throughout the film, you don't see Prasad Oak; all you see is Anand Dighe's exact replica. Kshitij Date comes out of the car in that first frame, and you don't see anything else but Eknath Shinde walking out of his car. He also plays the younger part excellently, so literally no complaints about him. The chemistry between Anand Dighe and Eknath Shinde is gonna melt your heart for sure. They share some great scenes together, and they are full of variety. They share laughter, they have love and tenderness between them, that guru-shishya bonding and ready-to-die kind of respect. That's one of the major highlights of the film.

The supporting cast has done extremely well, too. Snehal Tarde as the aggressive Birje bai, Vijay Joshi as the respected M. D. Joshi, Abhijeet Khandekar as Dada Bhuse, Gashmeer Mahajani as the surprising Sameer, and Vighnesh Joshi as Prakash Paranjape all performed admirably. Yes, Makarand Padhye as Bala Saheb and other actors could have done better and looked better in those real-life portrayals, but I think they look different because we have seen many portrayals of them before. As a whole, the acting does deliver.

Dharmaveer is an out-and-out mass saga and probably the best we have ever seen in the biographical genre. The dialogue baazi will take the masses by storm, especially in Thane as the story and pride belong to the place. Here's a demo for you: Someone in a guest appearance tries to tease Dighe while standing on Marine Drive, "This unfathomable ocean, but it's not in Thanekar's fate". Dighe replies in style, "Wrong. This ocean is unlucky not to have Thane in his destiny." I can't imagine how loud those proud Thanekars are going to hoot in the auditorium in this scene. The way Prasad Oak walks, even Rocky Bhai would do Salaam to him. The way he fondles his beard, even Pushpa would bow down to him. What a classy mass appeal this film has. The cinematography is good and the editing is very tight throughout those 170 minutes. And how can I forget the music? The title song, oh my my. It still stimulates every single vein in my body. Especially the long range "Asa Ha Dhamaveer..." The other two songs are very nice and define the situational importance of music, while one goes unnoticed. Full marks to the music team: Chinar-Mahesh, Nandesh Umap and Avinash-Vishwajeet. Sangeeta Barve and Mangesh Kangne's lyrics are also damn effective.

I have known Pravin Tarde as a fine actor for years, but I was surprised when I saw him become a director with "Deoolband" (2015). He did a better job than many full-time directors with that film, and then came his massy crime saga, "Mulshi Pattern" (2018). Although I didn't find the film that great, I really liked the way he presented mass elements. We were missing that crime zone mass in Marathi cinema and he brought that with a beautiful social message. With Dharmaveer, he goes further ahead. When a single man is handling all the major departments like writing, screenwriting, dialogues and dialogues, it certainly helps. It really helps because then it's all that one man's vision who can envision everything with his single working brain. You know, multiple brains at work sometimes spoil the basic model, but one brain giving all its intelligence to one model makes it just what it should have been. That's what happened with Dharmaveer. Pravin Tarde knows how to make mass films for the Marathi audience, and with every next project, he is getting better. Dharmaveer is a notable improvement for him, and I hope he improvises more with Sarsenapati Hambeerrao. This man surely knows the pulse of the audience. What a cracker of a mass oriented biographical drama he has delivered with Dharmaveer. All said and done, Dharmaveer is a must-watch biopic for many reasons. By far, the best performance of Prasad Oak and the best directorial work of Pravin Tarde to date. This terrific biopic of the most loved politician in Thane district is a lesson for other politicians and an engrossing experience for cinemagoers.

RATING - 7/10*