Bollywood Reviews > Black & White

Movie Review: Black & White Banner: Mukta Searchlight Films Cast: Anil Kapoor,Anurag Sinha, Shefali Shah (Chhaya), Aditi Sharma, Habib Tanvir, Akash Khurana, Milind Gunaji and others Screenplay : Sachin Bhowmik,Subhash Ghai Cinematography: Somak Mukherjee Music: Sukhwinder Singh Director & Producer: Subhash Ghai Release Date : March 07, 2008 Story A hard hitting movie, the story is about the warm and good natured couple Rajan Mathur (Anil Kapoor) and Roma Mathur (Shefali Shah). While Rajan happens to be a professor, Roma is a loud mouthed social activist and both live in the famous Chandni Chowk area in Delhi. Things change when Numair (Anurag Sinha) comes across Rajan and tells him that he is a victim of the communal riots in Gujarat and has no one. Rajan gives him shelter in his place and gradually Numair wins the trust of the couple. What they don't know is Numair is actually a cold blooded terrorist and now a human bomb who has come with a mission to blow up the Red Fort during the Independence Day Celebrations. Meanwhile, Professor Mathur introduces him to the residents of the Chandni Chowk with the likes of Shagufta (Aditi Sharma) a college student, Rahat, a sufi singer, Sardar Kirtan Singh, Gaffar Miyan an 84 year old man but a true patriot. Numair is surprised to see the warmth and the friendly nature with which all of them stay in the locality and slowly the love angle that blooms between him and Shagufta also leads him to a dilemma. One hand there is a community which has passed the boundaries of religion and lives in peace and love, the other there is a mission that needs to be accomplished. What happens in the end? Is Numair successful in his mission, all this forms the rest of the story. Presentation Subhash Ghai gets full marks for coming out with a clean and thought provoking tale than his usual glamorous subjects. His narration was excellent and the presentation was good enough. The background score was gripping and the cinematography deserves a special mention for getting the intense moments correctly. The script could have been a bit shorter to infuse more momentum and the screenplay faltered at few instances but then a well made film technically and otherwise. Anil Kapoor has proved that he is the best war horse in the field with an elegant portrayal of a professor, Shefali was excellent , Aditi had the charm and sweet look, the rest were good enough to add to the voltage. Conclusion A very intriguing subject, it passes beyond the realm of religious barriers and also tries to look into the psyche of a human being willing to blow himself up. The first half goes in a racy manner with different links being provided to the audience, the second half sets the links clearly and provides enough tension and power to make the viewer think beyond the film. Though there were loose ends like a weak romance angle and the situations leading to the transformation of a terrorist which was not convincing. Overall, the film has made up for any drawbacks and came out as a well delivered and matured product. 24Rocking verdict : Must see!! Only for those into some realistic and serious cinema.