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Aks (2001 film)

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Aks
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Written byRensil D'Silva
Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
Kamlesh Pandey
Produced byAmitabh Bachchan
Jhamu Sughand
StarringAmitabh Bachchan
Raveena Tandon
Manoj Bajpayee
Nandita Das
Narrated byManoj Bajpayee
CinematographyKiran Deohans
Edited byP. S. Bharathi
Music bySongs:
Anu Malik
Score:
Ranjit Barot
Production
companies
Amitabh Bachchan Corporation
Flicks Motion Pictures
Release date
  • 13 July 2001 (2001-07-13)
Running time
184 mins
CountryIndia
LanguageHindi
Budget110 million
Box office143 million

Aks (transl. Reflection) is an Indian 2001 Hindi-language supernatural action thriller film directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, and starring Amitabh Bachchan, Raveena Tandon, and Manoj Bajpayee in leading roles. The music was composed by Anu Malik. Despite receiving mixed reviews from critics and being a box office flop, it won three awards at the 47th Filmfare Awards: Best Actor — Critics (Bachchan), Special Award Performance (Tandon), and Best Sound Design (Ranjan). Bachchan and Bajpayee were nominated for the Best Actor and Best Villain at the same ceremony as well.

Plot synopsis

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Aks is a supernatural thriller centering on two characters― a cop named Manu Verma (Amitabh Bachchan) and a shadowy killer named Raghavan (Manoj Bajpayee). During a conference in Budapest, the defence minister is found murdered. Manu Verma investigates the case and discovers that the culprit is Raghavan Ghatge, a sociopathic serial killer who works as a hitman.

Raghavan is caught. As he is about to be executed by hanging, his spirit goes into Manu's body and starts to manipulate the cop into performing acts that Raghavan wanted to perform. But he couldn't save himself. He goes to another town but is not able to find peace.

Eventually, Raghavan's spirit leaves Manu's body. Everything seems to be normal. Manu and his family go on vacation. Unfortunately, Raghavan's spirit is still alive and possesses Manu's friend.

Cast

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Production

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Aks is the directorial debut of Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. Amitabh Bachchan sported a French beard to portray his character.[1]

Music

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Aks
Soundtrack album by
Released2001 (2001)[2]
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length45:55
LanguageHindi
LabelSaregama

A. R. Rahman was initially approached to compose original score and songs for the film. Rahman initially agreed and then opted out for reasons unknown. Rahman would later compose for Mehra's Rang De Basanti and Delhi 6. After Rahman walked out of the project, the original score was composed by Rahman's associate Ranjit Barot while the songs were composed by Anu Malik with lyrics penned by Gulzar. Sunder of Planet Bollywood praised the album for being experimental and creative in nature and gave it a rating of 9 out of 10.[3] Sukanya Verma of Rediff appreciated the album saying that Aks is a "captivating album with funky, experimental, new age music".[4]

Tracklist
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Yeh Raat"Anupama6:06
2."Raat Aati Hain"Shubha Mudgal6:20
3."Aaja Gufaon Mein Aa"KK & Vasundhara Das5:23
4."Hum Bhool Gaye" (Male Vocals)Hariharan5:23
5."Hum Bhool Gaye" (Female Vocals)Chitra5:09
6."Banda Bindas"KK, Sukhwinder Singh3:36
7."Bhala Bura" (Composed by Indrajeet Sharma)Amitabh Bachchan3:47
8."Ramleela" (Arranged by Rajat Dholakia)Amitabh Bachchan, Nandita Das & Kavita Mundra5:20
9."Rabba Rabba"Vasundhara Das & Sukhwinder Singh4:51
Total length:45:55

Reception

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The Hindu praised the cinematography and music of the film along with the acting performances of all actors, specially Amitabh Bachchan.[5] Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama praised the visuals and music of the film but criticized the film for being too complicated and slow. Taran gave the film a rating of 2 out of 5.[6]

Awards and nominations

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Ceremony Category Recipient Result
47th Filmfare Awards Best Actor Amitabh Bachchan Nominated
Best Actor (Critics) Won
Special Award Raveena Tandon
Best Sound Design Ranjit Ranjan
Best Background Score Ranjit Barot
Best Actor in a Negative Role Manoj Bajpayee Nominated

References

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  1. ^ "Amitabh Bachchan: 'Aks' gave me my French beard permanently". The Times of India. 14 July 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2018.
  2. ^ "Aks (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". iTunes.
  3. ^ "Aks Music Review". Planet Bollywood.
  4. ^ "Music Review – Aks – A Haunting Melody". Rediff.
  5. ^ "Film Review: Aks". The Hindu. 20 July 2001. Archived from the original on 3 February 2018.
  6. ^ "Aks Review by Taran Adarsh". Bollywood Hungama. 13 July 2001.
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