Prahaar: The Final Attack
| Prahaar | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover |
|
| Directed by | Nana Patekar |
| Produced by | Sudhakar Bokade |
| Written by | Hriday Lani Nana Patekar Sujit Sen |
| Screenplay by | Sujit Sen Nana Patekar |
| Starring | Nana Patekar Madhuri Dixit Dimple Kapadia Gautam Joglekar |
| Music by | Laxmikant-Pyarelal |
| Cinematography | Debu Deodhar |
| Editing by | Afaque Husain |
| Distributed by | Divya Films Combines Worldwide Entertainment Group |
| Release date(s) | 1991 |
| Running time | 167 mins |
| Country |  India |
| Language | Hindi |
Prahaar is a 1991 Hindi feature film, written and directed by Nana Patekar.
Contents |
[edit] Movie plot
Peter D'Souza (Gautam Joglekar), wants to join the Indian Army (commando wing). People have various views about it: His father John wants Peter to run their bakery after him, his fiancée Shirley (Madhuri Dixit) wants him to marry her while his neighbour Kiran (Dimple Kapadia) tells Peter to follow his heart. Peter leaves for the Army.
Enter Major Pratap Chavhan (Nana Patekar). Chavhan is described as a nightmare for every aspiring cadet, and he proves that the "honour" is well deserved. He has a sordid past: His mother was a kothewali (a woman who dances and entertains rich people privately to earn money), who was probably sold to one of her customers. That was the last time Pratap saw her.
The unit resents Pratap's attitude, but this same attitude moulds them into a formidable unit. Later in a rescue operation headed by Pratap, Peter loses his leg. Peter is honourably awarded and discharged from the Army. He invites Pratap to his marriage ceremony. Pratap agrees, though he is not able to attend the wedding.
Some months later, Pratap goes to Peter's address, expecting to meet him and his bride. Instead, a neighbour tells him casually that Peter is dead. Pratap learns many shocking truths of Peter's area. He learns that Kiran's son is an orphan adopted by her. Kiran's husband died in "mysterious circumstances" just as Peter did. Kiran suffered a miscarriage in that accident.
But what blows Pratap's lid off is the information about Peter's death: Kiran tells Pratap that a criminal was extorting money from people. Peter refused to pay and challenged his supremacy. The criminal killed Peter in front of the whole locality, while Peter fought like a soldier till his end. Pratap is even more outraged to find that not a single person, not even Peter's father, is willing to testify against the criminal.
Pratap starts his crusade against the murderer, only to attract the ire of the murderer and the society. When society and police turn out to be of no help, Pratap takes matters in his own hands. To demoralize Pratap, the criminal sends his men to harass Shirley and Kiran. When the men try to outrage the modesty of Kiran, Pratap vents his fury on them. He kills the goons single handedly and avenges Peter's murder by killing his murderer.
But there is something more shocking in store for Pratap. Instead of being thankful to him for getting rid of the criminals, the people beat him up and hand him over to police (mostly due to the fear that violence may increase after the goons death). A case is made against Pratap, where he is accused of abusing his powers to break the law.
An outraged Pratap blasts all the people testifying against him and, in a fervent speech, reminds them of all the hardships suffered by their forefathers and security personnel to keep them safe. He blames that people have become to feeble to oppose injustice and, unless this changes, someone like him will have to take law in his hands.
The court accepts his reasoning but sends him to a mental institution, keeping his military designations intact. Kiran meets him with her son, where she sees that Pratap is hopeful of the future. Pratap is seen imagining a naked 6-year-old running with a rifle in his hand. The movie ends with a sequence of Major Chavhan giving army training to hundreds of children.
[edit] Notes
This film brings many issues (corruption, extortion, apathy, greed) to light. It also highlights the plight of the common man whose circumstances give him very few options.
[edit] Trivia
- None of the actors wore any makeup during filming.
- Many of the street scenes used ordinary people who received no acting lessons.
- General Vijay Kumar Singh PVSM, AVSM, YSM, ADC, the 26th Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army cameoed in the movie as a Lieutenant Colonel. He appears on-screen when a Colonel briefs Major Chavhan on the mission to rescue school kids who are held hostage by militants. The Colonel says, "We have some slides of the area; Colonel V. K. Singh will explain it to you."[1]
- The song "Dhadkan Zara Ruk Gayi Hai" features the famous music director Aadesh Shrivastava. He is seen playing the violin in the background.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
|
|||||
