“Yes, Sarkar Raj also came out with my film. So what?”-: Rajiv Khandelwal.
TV turned bollywood debutant Rajiv Khandelwal is not at all worried about competition between heavyweight and starry ‘Sarkar Raj’ and his movie Aamir which released together last friday.
“I don’t think of the hurdles. Yes, Sarkar Raj also came out with my film. So what? The minute you stop focusing on the finishing line and start looking around, you are finished,” said the latest entrant in Bollywood.
Rajiv Khandelwal is not a new name for Indian viewers as he was a superstar in TV industry before entering in Bollywood.. He acted in Ekta Kapoor’s famous ‘Kahi To Hoga’.
Rajiv also rubbished the claims that his debut movie is a carbon copy of Cellular’- a famous Hollywood film. In Aamir Rajiv is seen talking on mobile quite a lot.
“The minute I heard the script I loved the sound of it. The idea of my character roaming anxiously in the crowded areas of Mumbai, taking instructions on the phone from mysterious people, really caught my attention,” said Rajiv. “But it’s not a copy of the Hollywood film Cellular. People jumped to the conclusion when they saw me running helter-skelter with a cell phone,” added the actor.
Rajiv’s is wary of his habit of loosing mobiles so often. “I lost my phone last month. Then again last week I dropped it on the beach and lost the phone and all my numbers at a time when I needed to invite all my friends and associates for my premiere.” – lamented the handsome wiry actor.
While shooting the film the actor had an interesting encounter with a female fan. It happened in the crowded Dongri area where Rajiv was shooting Aamir with hidden cameras, hoping he wouldn’t be recognised. Unfortunately, a woman fan jumped out of the crowd and accosted Rajiv, recognising him as Sujal, the character from Ekta Kapoor’s soap Kahiin To Hoga that brought him fame.
“We were shooting on the road in Dongri where I had to run across the street. And there couldn’t be a re-take for obvious reasons. Suddenly this woman spotted me from a taxi. She stopped her vehicle mid-street, got out and started screaming my name.” “The camera was rolling. I told her I needed to cross the street before the lights changed from red to green. She wouldn’t listen. So I gently pushed her hands away and crossed as per the script. That shot of he woman stopping me is in the film.”
Shooting Aamir was a great challenge for Rajiv. “We shot for 28 days on the streets of Mumbai. Except a shot in an airport washroom, everything has been shot outdoors in some of the most congested areas of Mumbai.We first tried shooting with normal cameras. But that didn’t work. Coming from television when people in Dharavi and Dongri saw cameras pointing at me, they immediately recognised me.” –Rajive explains.
His work has been appreciated in his debut movie both by viewers and public. “My most cherished moment was when Hema Maliniji after seeing Aamir said, ‘Welcome to the film fraternity,’ said a thrilled Khandelwal.
Movie Review : Aamir (2008)
Aamir is an intriguing tale of politico-conspiracy thriller genre. It’s a debut movie for Rajiv Khandelwal.
It’s a story of a doctor who was living his peaceful and comfortable life in London and all of a sudden he is amidst of enigmatic conspiracy, criminal world and scapegoat of terrorist activities. Aamir Ali who returns from London is surprised to see no one at air port to receive him at the airport from his family. In a dramatic scene, he finds out that his family has been kidnapped by a terrorist group and if he wants to save their life he will have to follow their instruction. Horrified and scared Aamir follow their instruction and thus start his never ending- traumatic journey through narrow , dirty, unknown Mumbai lanes.
Eventually he figures out that he is being involved in a bombing conspiracy. Story also draws inspiration from the theme of Muslim Victimization in the wake of terrorism in the movies of this year like Shaurya, Khuda Ke liye, Black and White, A Hope and Little Sugar. Movie ultimately tries to raise the ubiquitous question – do you choose your destiny or does destiny choose you?
The movie does well in the first half when the story is fast, well bound and well shot with technical excellence. Cameragraphy is good with disturbing camera effects, focus on eyes of Aamir who is running wildly in strange lanes of Mumbai,-horrified, scared and confused. His run scenes are exceptionally well shot and Rajiv’s natural acting is a delight to watch as a common man. The background is well placed with the pace of the movie.
But movie ends rather meekly with some illogical and unsolved questions like why Aamir was chosen for this mission. Its fails in the climax as story becomes loose and untidy.
Movie has its plus points in the acting of Rajiv Khandelwal’s performance as he has played the role of common man. He has shown remarkable talent and we will surely see more of him in coming future.
Despite its all setbacks movie should be applauded for its daring steps and keeping it away from the typical bollywood masala of love angle, item numbers, and songs. Those who like experiments and movies different from Mundane bollywood stuff , are advised to watch the movie.
Casting
Producer : Ronnie Screwvala
Associate Producer : Ram Mirchandani, Alpana Mishra
Co-Producer : Zarina Mehta, Vikas Bahl, Deven Khote, Siddharth Roy Kapur
Creative Producer : Anurag Kashyap
Director : Rajkumar Gupta
Cast : Rajeev Khandelwal
Music Director : Amit Trivedi
Lyricist : Amitabh
Story Writer : Rajkumar Gupta
Dialogue Writer : Rajkumar Gupta
Screenplay Writer : Rajkumar Gupta
Editor : Aarti Bajaj
Production Designer : Wasiq Khan
Playback Singer : Qadir Khan, Murtuza Khan, Amit Trivedi, Neuman Pinto, Shilpa Rao, Amitabh
