Chrysanthepop
'Sehar' is pretty much just another cops vs bad guys movie. It isn't a bad movie per se but the film hardly has anything new to offer except that here they track the bad guys by tracing their mobile phone calls. The execution lacks style. The cinematography is flat and the score is unnoticeable. The pacing is rather slow at times. However, the final sequence, with the flashback sequences, camera-work and editing is exceptionally done and remains effective. If only the entire film was filmed this way. Arshad Warsi gives a sincere performance as a dedicated officer who's passionate about his job and determined to catch the criminals. Pankaj Kapur is remarkable in a rather simplistic role. Sushant Singh is wooden most of the time and caricatured. Suhasini Mulay leaves a mark with a small role. Mahima Chaudhry doesn't get much scope but she makes the best with what she's given. Overall, 'Sehar' is a pretty ordinary cop movie with a very good final sequence. It's not worth more than a one-time watch.
roysid
I finally got the CD (original) and watched it. What a great movie. Too bad that it didn't get much audience. Now a days movies which can throw in money for publicity makes a lot of money whether they are junk or not (for eg. Kabhi alvida na kehna).Inspired by real life incidents, the movie depicts the story of Ajay Kumar (Arshad Warshi), new SSP of Lucknow who wants to eliminate crime from Uttar Pradesh. At the same time (which is 1997), Gajraj Singh (Sushant Singh) the new age criminal leader is evolving. He eliminates the old dons one by one and becomes the leader. Organized crime gets at its pick.The new SSP has a bunch of brave,honest police officers under him. When criminals started using cell phones, he takes the help of Pankaj Kapoor, a professor of telecommunications. The battle between the police officers and the criminals goes on through the whole movie.Briliiantly portrayed, the characters are as real as they can be. The nexus between railway contracts with builders, politician and criminals are shown in very real times.The performance is brilliant. Arshad Warshi surprises everyone with his strong and controlled performance. Sushant Singh is brilliant as the mastermind criminal. Mahima Choudhary gives a sweet performance as Ajay's love interest.Overall a great movie. If you get the chance, don't miss it.
Neel V Kumar
One of the fundamental problems with a lot of Bollywood movies is that they try to convey more than one story at a time. This movie steers clear of that trap (though there are some distractions) and delivers a clear and crisp story. I don't think the story is exceptional (though being from the law enforcement perspective is unique) but the delivery is what makes it engaging.The actors are believable and the casting is quite well done. I think going for Pankaj Kapoor in his role was very sharp. Other picks were excellent too.I hope there are more movies from Kabeer Kaushik in the near future.
Aam Aadmi
This film by director Kabeer Kaushik, deals with organized crime in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh (UP). But it tackles this from a decidedly different perspective -- that of law enforcement.The story involves an honest-to-death police officer who convinces his seniors that the only way to combat the mafia on their turf was to step outside the box, so to speak. The film depicts LE in a positive light, and successful in its strategy, despite usual political opposition. And in yet another departure, a good looking guy is cast as villain. He is effective except one doesn't quite feel like throttling him for all his misdeeds. Plot unfolds in a no-nonsense format and while the climax is not all that unexpected, its again different from convention.Some of the positive points include a low-key soundtrack as compared to the Blare Fare of typical Bollyfilms. Good acting on the part of Pankaj Kapur and Arshad Warsi in a leading role. The pace could have tightened up a bit had there been fewer scenes involving the mother and the wife-to-be. Only a couple of songs serve as background to the score.No need to keep pressing the >FF> button on the remote.