Al Haqeeqa
Hyderabad: At a press conference held for the promotion of the film, “MULK”, which stars Rishi Kapoor and Taapsee Pannu in lead roles. A journalist questioned Anubhav Sinha, the director of the film, as to why he thought young Muslim boys joined terrorist outfits?
To which Anubhav Sinha very wittily inquired about whether the journalist actually read newspapers, watched the unbiased news. He further answered that we live in a country where politicians welcome rioters out of the jail with blooming garlands. He was referring to Union minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha who found himself in the midst of a raging controversy after his garlanding of eight men convicted in a murder by lynching case who were recently released on bail went viral and attracted sharp criticism. The Hazaribag MP, honoured eight men convicted in the killing of coal trader Alimuddin Ansari in Ramgarh in June last year in a case of alleged cow vigilantism.
Video courtesy: Viralbollywood.com
The trailer of Anubhav Sinhas “Mulk” is unlike anything he has done before. Its lack of ‘political correctness is so apt, and the theme of a Muslim family being hounded after the son is accused of terrorism is so relevant to todays times, one wonders how no one though of doing this before.
The trailer of “Mulk” hides nothing. It lays out all the cards on the table with a heart-numbing scrupulosity. We know from the trailer that Prateik Babbar (who is gradually emerging with a screen image as the rebellious over-aged delinquent) is the son of a Muslim family who stands accused of terror activities.
The narrative in the sharply cut trailer spans a traumatic arc showing the accused’s family being hounded and vilified as Pakistani anti-nationals. It’s a well-known narrative, the other side of the Hindutva refrain. The narrative is then shown shifting focus from the domestic to the legal. A courtroom drama ensues, with Taapsee Pannu and Ashutosh Rana battling it out for and against the terror accused.
What stands out in this harrowing tale of a community under scrutiny for the trespasses of a few members of that community is a shot showing the Muslim patriarch walking with dignity while a cow saunters behind him.
The casualness of the comment that the shot makes is something to hold on to as we wait for “Mulk” to be released August 3.
The trailer shows a cast hell-bent on delivering the right blueprint for a film where the drama is not dependent the director’s derring-do. Clearly, “Mulk” belongs to Rishi Kapoor. As he blends into his character once again, I wondered if there is anything Rishi can’t do.
Siasat Web Team
