Chhaava
Starring: Vicky Kaushal, Rashmika Mandanna, Vineet Kumar, and Akshaye Khanna
Director: Laxman Utekar
Just stop right here. This is history. At last an Indian war epic to rival the FX-driven spectacles of the Marvel universe. At last, a film that David Lean and Sanjay Leela Bhansali would give a thumbs-up to. At last a potential blockbuster that deserves to be one.
Gosh, am I raving? I hope so! For a major part of my movie-viewing experience throughout the year, I am desperately trying to find reasons to like what I see.
Not this time. Not Chhaava. It is the epic experience beyond any experienced in recent years. Flawless in its flamboyance, mammoth in its epic vision, and remorselessly gripping the war sequences have been shot on a scale never seen in Hindi cinema. If you have seen director Laxman Utekar’s earlier works, nothing he has done in the past prepares you for Chhaava.
Where do I begin my heartfelt panegyric? The unerring pacing, the spectacular performance (particularly Vicky Kaushal), and above all, the high-pitched narration. Some moments, such as the one at the climax when the hero exchanges poetic rhetoric with his poet friend (Vineet Kumar, as riveting as ever) while facing death, could have become messily melodramatic.
Nothing, not a moment, falls short of its target.
In musical terms, Utekar holds the composition steady at a crescendo while telling the tale of the valorous battlefield exploits of Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaja against the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb (Akshaye Khanna, unrecognizable, glorious).
In fact, the post-midpoint half is composed of a series of brilliantly choreographed battle sequences where warfare is celebrated in the most cinematic language possible, edified but never glorified.
Beheading and impaling enemies on the battleground is not meant to be an aesthetic sight. But it is just that over here. The vision is epic. The execution follows suit.
Besides Vicky Kaushal, who is absolutely spectacular, bringing to life the unrelenting grit and passionate nationalism of a leonine warrior, there are three super-heroes in Chhaava: Saurabh Goswami’s cinematography (the war sequences are filmed with captivating restraint), Manish Pradhan’s editing (there isn’t an ounce of extra meat in the footage, the film is as lean sinewy and wiry as its leading man) and A R Rahman’s evocative, gnawing background score which adds an extra layer to the exemplary storytelling.
It is very difficult to pin down the layers of excellence in Chhaava. Suffice it to say that director Laxman Utekar uses every frame as an inventive playground for his imaginative intensity. The screen smoulders with enviable vigour. There is a rigorous pursuit of a language of storytelling that reveres the warrior’s self-imposed tenets while avoiding every cliché of the historical drama.
If there is only one film that you intend to see this year, then stop right here.
