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Sanak: Death By 5 Cuts
Sanak(Disney-Hotstar)
Starring Vidyut Jamwal, Neha Dhupia;Directed by Kanishk Verma
Rating: * ½
Hospital under siege by terrorists?? Hang on…Haven’t we just seen that in Amazon Prime’s Mumbai Diaries? So my advice: stop right here. Do not, repeat NOT, touch this inflammable waste material of a film.
Unless you are okay with action sequences that are choreographed around hospital equipments including pacemakers, walkers, MRI machines and stretchers.Also as a perk we get some unintended laughter. Sample this: when the hero’s love wife(Rukmini Maitra) , who is a patient in the besieged hospital, is held at gunpoint by the villains, the hero asks, ‘Tujhe bachche nahin chahiya kya?’
And I thought, what odd timing for a crucial marital decision.
Sanak, true to its title, in an arrogant impetuous excuse of a film to show off Vidyut Jamwal’s fighting spirit. He does well in some of the action sequences. Each time he gets ready to throw down an adversary he shakes his shoulders vigorously as though there were spiders sitting on them…
Ah,warming up. Sanak never moves beyond the warming, and the warning of the thrills to come remain just a distant thunder. The screenplay which we are told is officially adapted from Nick Cassavates’ 2002 thriller John Q , is filled with gaping holes that no hospital can patch up,certainly not the one that Jamwal and his onscreen opponent Chand Roy Sanyal leave behind at the end.
Sanak is like a steamroller mowing down every bit of logic and good sense in the pursuit of cheap thrills.A little brat (Harinder Singh Alag) who has been spending too much time playing video games on his father’s phone, becomes Jamwal’s accomplice for a while. When Jamwal’s Vivaan asks the boy if he’s ready for some action the boy replies, “I was born ready,Uncle.”
Okay, then.
There is this other distinctly Bengali guy ,a security guard at the besieged hospital who is named Riaz Ahmed.He is the token Good Muslim…you know my name is Khan and I am not a terrorist? The Good Muslim(with a thick Bengali accent) tells our hero Vivaan, “I thought you were Mogambo.You turned out to be Rambo.”
I don’t quite know what means, unless the writer(Ashish Prakash Verma) thinks invoking epic names would give this tacky low-budget film a certain spatial spin. But it’s not budget that’s the real villain. It is the lack of common sense. A hero who hops from floor to floor of the hospital because his wife is held hostage: the motive for one-man-army heroism is as wrong as Bruce Willis hunting down the terrorists in a building because his wife is held hostage. 23 years ago Willis got away with it in Diehard. The world has changed since then. The hero needs to be much more motivated .
In Sanak,the only character motivated beyond the personal is Neha Dhupia .Playing a gritty cop she ploughs through the terror issue with a gravity that the script doesn’t deserve , until her daughter ends up a hostage.Damn,they just can help getting personal.
Villain Chandan Roy Sanyal(with dirty finger nails to offset the heroine ’s perfectly painted and pointed nails) talks of death by 5 cuts. This film is death in spite of many more cuts.
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Rakesh Roshan: “Everything I Know About Acting & Direction, I Learnt From K Vishwanathji”

The mighty moviemaker K Vishwanath who was to Telugu cinema what Satyajit Ray was to Bengali cinema, passed away on February 2,leaving behind a luminous legacy.
Acto-director Rakesh Roshan who had the rare honour of working in four projects with Vishwanath recalls him with tremendous respect. “Everything I know about acting and direction I learnt from him. He was a stalwart , an institution, and so passionate about his work. I had the privilege of being directed by him in two films Aurat Aurat Aurat and Shubh Kamna. He would show his actors exactly what he wanted, down to the minutest gesture.His understanding of the medium was extraordinary.”
Rakesh Roshan remembers how he invited Vishwanath to make films for him. “I produced two films that Vishwanathji directed. One was Kaamchor, the other was Jaag Utha Insaan.While the first was a runaway success, the second didn’t do well.”
Speaking on how Kaamchor happened Rakesh recalls, “Vishwanathji and I used to meet socially in Hyderabad.We wanted to work together. But we had no script.One evening when we met he looked very depressed. When I asked him what was wrong, he said his new release Shubodayam (in Telugu) had flopped. That night I went to see Shobodayam in a theatre in Hyderabad. The next morning I told Vishwanathji, ‘We’ve found our script’. I told him where the storytelling in Shubhodayam had gone wrong.We corrected the script and that’s how Kaamchor happened. Although the entire story revolved around me, it was Jaya Prada who benefited from Kaamchor.”
About the beautiful Jaag Utha Insaan , Rakesh Roshan admits bluntly, “It flopped because of miscasting. During those days Sridevi was known in Hindi cinema as a glamorous heroine. We cast her as classical dancer. Mithun Chakraborty had the image of Gun Master G-9 and Disco Dancer.We cast him as a downtrodden underdog. I was known for Kaamchor and other citybred characters,I was cast as a Brahmin pandit.With other actors Jaag Utha Insaan would have been a superhit”
Rakesh met K Vishwanath six years ago. “We were shooting for Krissh in Hyderabad. He came on the set several times. We had so much to say to each other. After that we lost contact. He was very very busy with many projects. K Vishwanathji lived for his cinema.”
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As His Latest Work Faraaz Releases Today, Hansal Mehta Speaks To Subhash K Jha On The Exciting Times Ahead

Hansal, Faraaz is your fifteenth directorial venture. How does it feel to have come so far with so many milestones behind you?
I don’t count my films. Genuinely. Every film is a new beginning. Every film has its share of uncertainty and nerves. Perhaps it is also because of the choices I make. There is no scope for either complacency or me carrying a false sense of security. I’m not complaining,though. Living life on the edge keeps me going.
I consider Faraaz to be a part of your great trilogy on the dynamics of terrorism, after Shahid and Omerta…where do you see Faraaz positioned in your creative ambit?
Thank you , Subhash.Faraaz is a film I’m very, very proud of. It was a challenge to pull off, a tough journey but creatively a very satisfying one. As Rajkummar Rao told me after watching the film , the Trilogy is complete now. Time to explore new stories and new characters. And finish post-production for all the exciting things that we shot for over the past eighteen months.
Out of curiosity which of your films have given you the most creative satisfaction?
Almost every film Shahid onwards has been immensely satisfying , both in terms of process and the outcome. Save a couple that I need not name. But even those I own for all their flaws, failures, deficiencies and redeeming qualities. But Faraaz has been a great process. I’ve made so many new friends in this journey and found some of the most exciting colleagues that I’m proud to introduce through the film. Writers Raghav Kakkar and Kashyap Kapoor (who co-wrote the film with Ritesh Shah), Cinematographer Pratham Mehta, Sound Designer Mandar Kulkarni, Editor Amitesh Mukherjee, co-producers Sahil, Maz and Sakshi – all of whom have given their blood and sweat to make this film happen. And of course Anubhav Sinha one of my oldest friends in the industry who backed me in telling this story just the way I wanted it. So yes, Faraaz has been satisfying and also filled me with a deep sense of gratitude. I must have done something right, no?
Of course. Faraaz has a lot of young new actors in it. Tell me about the process of casting in this film? It couldn’t have been easy since there are dozens of faces?
That was the challenge and the joy of making this film. I worked on the story during Chhalaang and I always knew that it would be a return to my indie roots for Faraaz. The film had to be made. And it needed fresh faces, bereft of image or trappings of stardom. A huge credit to Mukesh Chhabra who has a huge role to play in my filmography since Shahid. We constantly challenge each other and never ever give up. Casting is a process I really enjoy and finding the right talent to bring characters alive is something I thrive upon. Faraaz has an amazing ensemble. Right from Aditya Rawal , Zahan Kapoor, Juhi Babbar to every small character in the film including the officers, parents and the hostages this one is a triumph of honest casting , casting without an eye on profits, simply in service of the film, of the character.
Faraaz is about a terror attack in Bangladesh?how do you respond to those who want to know, why Bangladesh?
In our research of this dastardly attack we realised that here was a story that had a larger message and something very universal to share. Misguided youth taking up violence in the name of religion or a parent’s love for her child or the unexpected bravery from an unlikely hero are themes that cannot be limited by borders, nationality or language. These stories must be told. They must transcend the limitations of perceived local relevance – particularly when our polarised times need such stories to be told to a larger audience.
In 2020, your OTT series Scam 1992 proved to b e game changer. Do you see Scam as a turning point in your career?
I see Scam 1992 as an enabler. We did not expect its humongous success and to say it did not change things would be fake humility. It gave me back a lot of things I had lost in the years before it released. Including some money. And the courage to tell the stories I desperately wanted to. Also exceptional friends and collaborators like Sameer Nair and his Studio Applause.
Your films and your attitude to cinema has always been fearless. How do you cope with the threat of growing intolerance in our society vis a vis your convictions as a filmmaker?
It is not new to me. Remember Dil Pe Mat Le Yaar in 2000? The only difference now is that then I was deeply affected by the intolerance to a point of self destruction. Now I channelise my despair and anger into telling relevant stories and through them taking on those who have made it a business to be intolerant.
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To Attend Siddharth-Kiara’s Destination Wedding, Karan Johar Preponed His Twins’s Birthday Bash

For those who are wondering why Karan Johar hosted the grand birthday party for his twins Roohi and Yash who will turn 6 on 7 February, six days in advance on 1 February here is why: on the day of his twins’ birthday, Karan will be in Rajasthan attending the wedding celebrations of his dear friends Siddharth Malhotra and Kiara Advani who are getting married on February 6.
Reveals a friend close to Karan, “Karan was in a dilemma. To him there is nothing more important than his children’s happiness. How could he break their hearts by skipping the most important day of their lives? At the same time, how could he not attend Siddharth and Kiara’s wedding ? They are very close to him.”
Karan did the best thing possible to resolve the situation: he put the dilemma before his children Yash and Juhi who happily agreed to have their party a few days in advance so their ‘Dada’ could attend his friends’ wedding.
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The Big Independence Day Clash To Be Averted?

Sunny Deol, John Abraham Ranbir Kapoor and the Covid Vaccine are all set to clash at the boxoffice this Independence Day .
While the Ranbir Kapoor starrer Animal and Sunny Deol’s long-awaited Gadar sequel are both scheduled for release on August 11, John Abraham’s Tariq releases three days later on August 15.On the same day Vivek(The Kashmir Files) also releases The Covid Vaccine.
It looks like a crowded weekend, with one too many releases for audiences to choose from.
Apparently intense discussions are on among the producers of the four big films to see how the clutter can be resolved.
A source close to the development says, “Gadar 2 is the right fit for the Independence Day weekend. But the producers of Animal are in no mood to move from August 13 . John who is a co-producer on Tariq and Vivek Agnihotri with his Covid Vaccine are also adamant on coming on August 15.The Independence Day weekend is a long weekend. So let’s see…”
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