Inkaar (which translates to "Refusal" in English) is a 2013 Hindi film written and directed by renowned Indian filmmaker Sudhir Mishra. Inkaar stars Chitrangada Singh and Arjun Rampal in the lead roles. While this is the third Sudhir Misha film that stars Chitrangada Singh in the lead— the other two being Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi (2003) and Yeh Saali Zindagi (2011)—it's the first time that Arjun Rampal has teamed up with Mishra.
In Inkaar, Sudhir Mishra puts the spotlight on the highly contentious issue of sexual harassment in corporate circles. The movie tries to define the term "sexual harassment" by highlighting the complexities associated with it. The greatest challenge is to draw the line between flirtation and harassment. Once that is taken care of the next challenge is to fathom the reality that, contrary to the popular belief, both the sexes are equally prone to sexual harassment. And that's where the subjective element comes into the picture. Who's the victim? Who's the accused? Thus, it becomes a real nightmare situation to deal with. As a senior female lawyer aptly describes in the movie, "It's often much easier to prove rape than sexual harassment". The story of Inkaar presents one such case of alleged sexual harassment.
As the hearing progresses, it becomes more and more difficult to discern who is speaking the truth and who is not. While the versions of the accused and the victim only differ slightly there is enough deviation to perplex the most astute of minds. The manner of proceedings, though completely alien to Indian cinema, is strikingly similar to Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa's groundbreaking masterpiece Rashomon (1950), which is widely regarded as a cinematic treatise on the subjectivity of truth.
Overall, Inkaar despite its flaws is a commendable work of cinema that brings to the fore some serious issues concerning the corporate culture. Through the microcosmic world of an advertisement agency, Mishra presents to us the pitiful tale of human detachment that's slowly becoming a reality. Inkaar is brilliant from the technical point of view. The editing is absolutely brilliant and the same can be said about its music. The acting is above average. Mishra elicits a remarkably strong performance from Arjun Rampal. Chitrangada Singh is ever so delightful as the dusky, sensual Maya Luthra. Deepti Naval cameo is a major highlight of the movie. Apparently, Naval replaced Mishra's ex- wife Sushmita Mukherjee who, because of her tight television schedule, failed to spare any dates for the movie. Saurabh Shukla makes his presence felt in an interesting item number that he gets to perform in the movie. The lead actors get good support from the supporting cast. Inkaar with its slow character development, ambiguous themes, and deceptive direction is ought to disappoint an average viewer whose sole purpose is entertainment, but an intelligent viewer who is patient enough to wait for the different layers to slowly get unwrapped will be rewarded. 7.5/10
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