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KRANTI (1981) ("Revolution")
Directed By Manoj Kumar Music: Laxmikant-Pyarelal Starring: Dilip Kumar, Manoj Kumar, Shashi Kapoor, Hema Malini, Shatrughan Sinha, Parveen Babi, Sarika, Nirupa Roy, Prem Chopra, Pradeep Kumar, Dheeraj Kumar
Running Time: 183 Minutes
CineRating: 6.5 out of 10
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While the plethora of Bhagat Singh movies that filled up Indian theaters in mid-2002 fervently extolled the virtues of patriotism and nationalism, few films could do it as well as the chest-thumping 1981 movie Kranti, a big-budget, star-studded historical epic that briskly chugs along in impressively spectacular fashion. Of course, unlike the Bhagat Singh movies, no one would ever mistake the events portrayed in Kranti as being historically accurate. Still, with its grand-scale storytelling and its rapid succession of colorful song-and-dance numbers and energetic action scenes, this is precisely the way you wished you could have learned history in highschool.
Set in the 1800s during the British occupation of India, Kranti's plot is set into motion when a farmer named Sanga (Dilip Kumar) discovers that the British have been circumventing the Indian King's decree that none of their docked ships may carry explosives. When Sanga goes to inform the King of the British duplicity, he finds that his Majesty has already been the victim of a murder conspiracy carried off by the King's younger brother and his nefarious associate, Shambhu Singh (Prem Chopra), who are in league with the Brits. Sanga is framed for the killing and set to be executed, but manages to break out of his cell before apparently being blown to smithereens as he tries to escape the premises by boat.
When the British begin to violently crack down on the rebellious Indian population, Sanga's grieving wife leaves her older son behind with another family while she tries to escape with her newborn. However, realizing that her capture is imminent, she attempts to save her child by floating him down the river in a basket. The baby winds up being taken in by the late-King's sister, who just happens to have had her fourth miscarriage and is in dire need of an infant to call her own. Sanga, meanwhile, turns out to be alive and well, but is told that his wife and children have been murdered by the British. The impassioned Sanga vows to carry on the revolution -- and he sticks to his word, eventually becoming known as the legendary freedom fighter "Kranti."
Suffice to say, there's more -- much more -- to come, although most viewers will probably be well prepared for the standard Bollywood plot device involving two brothers -- Bharat and Shakti (Manoj Kumar and Shashi Kapoor) -- who grow up unaware of their blood ties and then engage in a deadly feud before the eventual revelation of their true birthright leads to a dramatic reconciliation. As an added twist, neither of their parents realize that their sons are still alive, leading to more scenes of ironic tension than one can almost stomach. There's a great deal of fun to be had also, and a lot of it shows up in the forms of Hema Malini (Sholay [1975]), who plays a princess kidnapped by the rebels, and Parveen Babi (Shaan [1980]), who portrays the rebel girl sent to stand in for the abducted princess. The wide-eyed Malini offers up her usual engaging mixture of cute and courageous, but the more svelte Babi (whose personal life was reportedly as colorful as any Bollywood film) nearly steals the show with her sexy song-and-dance number "Mara Thumka." When these two divas go at it in a rollicking catfight that has Babi throwing a shield over her face to fend off Malini's sword thrusts, the movie skitters off into camp heaven.
The cast is anything but camp, however, comprised as it is of some of Bollywood's biggest names at the time, with the most significant being Dilip Kumar (Devdas [1955]), who many regard as India's greatest actor. Here, he's at the latter stages of his career and but one element in a large ensemble cast, yet he commands the screen with the kind of effortless authority one expects from an icon. Director Manoj Kumar has cast himself in what is essentially the main role of the film -- a freedom fighter who comes to be known as the "other" Kranti -- and he doesn't disappoint, although Shashi Kapoor siphons off some of his thunder in the role of his suave but misguided brother.
To western viewers Kranti may come off as a camp curiosity given that its mixture of grim melodrama, over-the-top action scenes, and gaudy musical numbers suggests a melding of Samuel Fuller, Douglas Sirk and Busby Berkeley. The movie clearly demands to be taken seriously on some level as it proudly wears its nationalism upon its sleeve (and just about anywhere else it can find), but it also displays a genuine playfulness in both presentation and performance that can sweep you up in its boisterous energy and giddy inventiveness. This is one of those movies that can seem awfully square at one moment and utterly refreshing the next.
Kranti's unabashed patriotism does finally wear itself thin, with the repetitive speeches too often immobilizing the plot's otherwise hectic pacing. Still, for a movie with such a blatantly single-minded political agenda, Kranti is extremely generous in serving up the type of frivolous fun and rampant eye candy that Bollywood audiences cherish. It's faster paced than Sholay and there are swordfights aplenty, imaginatively staged song-and-dance numbers (including the rousing theme song), and a big finale with almost as many explosions as Michael Bay's Pearl Harbor (but without that film's tedious solemnity). There's also the villainous Shambhu Singh, whose arm is cut off in the film's prologue and later replaced with what looks like an oversized tin cup. You keep expecting some marvelous weapon to pop out of this character's chintzy-looking apparatus, but, alas, this is one area of the film where director Manoj Kumar apparently decided to spare some expense.
Another nice looking DVD from DEI, but one with an obviously cropped picture that presents the original 2.35:1 aspect ratio in 1.85:1.
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DVD Specs:
DEI DVD
All Regions
Removable English Subs (none for the songs)
Kranti Trailer
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