Ghamasaan Review: Into the Badlands

Ghamasaan | Director: Tigmanshu Dhulia |Cast: Arshad Warsi, Pratik Gandhi | Hindi | Zee5

Few people understand the Central India badlands better than Tigmanshu Dhulia. They have been his old stomping grounds from the time he was casting director of Shekhar Kapur’s Bandit Queen (1994). Outlaws and what makes them so has been a preoccupation of his, epitomised by the searing Paan Singh Tomar (2012).

Ghamasaan doesn’t quite reach those heights but it is an effective two-hander. Arshad Warsi is the elusive, fearsome outlaw Maharaj no one has seen and Pratik Gandhi plays an upright police officer Aditya Singh tasked to contain him till the critical state elections are over. Warsi plays Maharaj as an enigmatic heavyweight who instills fear in everyone thanks to a brilliant communication network. Gandhi is always authoritative but with a hint of mischief which serves his character well in what is otherwise a relentless cat-and-mouse game where no one can be trusted, especially not one’s seniors.

The denouement is expected but not before several ambushes, many betrayals and dozens of phone calls. The acting down the line from rising stars Jatin Goswami and Anurag Thakur is spot on, while there is a heartbreaking role for Rajpal Yadav to remind us why he is such a soulful actor.