<p>Shanghai<br />Hindi (U/A)<br />Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Abhay Deol, Kalki Koechlin<br />Director: Dibakar Banerjee <br /><br /></p>.<p>An activist from London arrives on a chartered flight with a starlet. The “phoren item” goes to do a desi number at the launch of an infrastructure project, and the activist heads straight to a rally for a rabble-rousing speech against the same project. <br /><br />And there begins the irony of a land called India where all shanties dream of becoming a Shanghai. <br /><br />Dibakar Banerjee’s political thriller forces open the big, bad bureaucratic closet from where dino-sized skeletons tumble out. Yes, we have seen the skeletons before, but Banerjee doesn’t dress them in Bollywood straitjackets. So, corrupt netas and crude cronies pack a believable punch here, along with hired killers. No sermons, not even an unwanted tear... Shanghai just holds a mirror against the naked evils that shame India.<br /><br />The activist (Prosenjit Chatterjee, all grace and enigma) is mowed down in front of hundreds of his supporters. And the murderers go street-dancing afterwards. The long arm of the law is chopped off by vested interests.<br /><br />Emraan Hashmi, a small-time videographer who also makes some local-flavoured porn, stumbles upon stuff that throws light on the murder. Kalki Koechlin, now doing a Sherlock Holmes into her professor-cum-lover’s killing, finds her Watson in Hashmi. <br /><br />Together, they go knocking at a certain Krishnan (Abhay Deol as the Tamilian IAS officer probing the political murder). As the one-man enquiry commission, Deol knows he is no superman. As the poor and powerless trip over the red tape, Deol just stares at his boss (Farooq Sheikh, in a gem of an act). But the volcano does erupt, and Deol lets all the pent-up lava topple a chief minister (Supriya Pathak, where were you?)<br /><br />Adapted from Greek writer Vassilis Vassilikos’ Z, the movie is a fine craft by Dibakar Banerjee. And the cast makes the best of it. At least Hashmi leaves his kiss-past behind him to embrace a role of a lifetime. <br /><br />A good watch.</p>
<p>Shanghai<br />Hindi (U/A)<br />Cast: Emraan Hashmi, Abhay Deol, Kalki Koechlin<br />Director: Dibakar Banerjee <br /><br /></p>.<p>An activist from London arrives on a chartered flight with a starlet. The “phoren item” goes to do a desi number at the launch of an infrastructure project, and the activist heads straight to a rally for a rabble-rousing speech against the same project. <br /><br />And there begins the irony of a land called India where all shanties dream of becoming a Shanghai. <br /><br />Dibakar Banerjee’s political thriller forces open the big, bad bureaucratic closet from where dino-sized skeletons tumble out. Yes, we have seen the skeletons before, but Banerjee doesn’t dress them in Bollywood straitjackets. So, corrupt netas and crude cronies pack a believable punch here, along with hired killers. No sermons, not even an unwanted tear... Shanghai just holds a mirror against the naked evils that shame India.<br /><br />The activist (Prosenjit Chatterjee, all grace and enigma) is mowed down in front of hundreds of his supporters. And the murderers go street-dancing afterwards. The long arm of the law is chopped off by vested interests.<br /><br />Emraan Hashmi, a small-time videographer who also makes some local-flavoured porn, stumbles upon stuff that throws light on the murder. Kalki Koechlin, now doing a Sherlock Holmes into her professor-cum-lover’s killing, finds her Watson in Hashmi. <br /><br />Together, they go knocking at a certain Krishnan (Abhay Deol as the Tamilian IAS officer probing the political murder). As the one-man enquiry commission, Deol knows he is no superman. As the poor and powerless trip over the red tape, Deol just stares at his boss (Farooq Sheikh, in a gem of an act). But the volcano does erupt, and Deol lets all the pent-up lava topple a chief minister (Supriya Pathak, where were you?)<br /><br />Adapted from Greek writer Vassilis Vassilikos’ Z, the movie is a fine craft by Dibakar Banerjee. And the cast makes the best of it. At least Hashmi leaves his kiss-past behind him to embrace a role of a lifetime. <br /><br />A good watch.</p>
