The
female protagonist has been put in a situation where every door knocked for
help is an added danger to her life; this is not some breaking news for a
Bollywood thriller. We have witnessed our leading ladies running after one
possible hand of help turning ugly to another many a times and even rising from
dust to stand at her own (Rekha is my personal favorite in such given stricture]
against all odds. But when Anushka Sharma, calm and cold as corpse, with an
iron-rod in her hand sits and lights a cigarette while watching her challenger crawling
with a broken leg, this easily becomes ‘my’ moment to cheer for the invincible human
survival instinct and all the women empowerment slogans coined just for the
sake of it. This is raw. This is real. This is never seen before.
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With
a powerfully violent, gritty and dark NH10; Navdeep Singh of MANORAMA SIX FEET
UNDER returns to his deep-rooted den of atmospheric crime thrillers where the
landscape speaks the language of ruthless nature of criminal mind and the
characters don’t even need dialogues to express their anger, anxiety and
agitation. Meera [Anushka in a ‘would die for’ role] and Arjun [Perfectly cast Neil
Bhoopalam] is your regular career-focused, party-loving couple from Gurgaon-
the emerging city of hopes seen working on laptops at their side of the same bed.
A perfect holiday at a private villa in the outskirts is planned. It’s Meera’s
birthday. A day-long road-trip on highway has started. Beware; even a small brawl
can land you in the most brutal nightmare of your life. This is no bright-lit Gurgaon.
This is the dark lawless badland where ‘killings’ are an ‘honor’ to the power man
upholds. Of course, there is no looking back!
The
plot of NH10 is never unforeseen; in fact you can predict the twists and turns
miles before reaching at the end of the road but the undertones used to shake
your souls and shiver your guts are very much surprising. The headlines of
honor-killings might have raised your eyebrows till the time it’s on your
screen but this is like abducting you from your drawing room and throwing in
the deserted land of crimes done in the name of cast, creed and culture. A
sister is poisoned by her brother [Darshan Kumar from Mary Kom] for loving and
marrying boy of same ‘Gothra’. One gentleman in uniform enlightens, “Social norms
should not be broken. Never! Try to drive on the wrong side of the road and
accidents will happen.” Heartbreaking! Nerve-wracking! And a threatening state
of real India-rural India!!
NH10
marks the arrival of a new Anushka Sharma. The pouting glam-doll sheds her
comfort cover and brilliantly plays the carter of the long and hard-pressed angst
of Indian women. Every time she screams at her opponents, she doesn’t scream
for herself but all the women been ever in such circumstances. She is the
answer to every sexiest and stinking remark made ever on any women out there,
and the most powerful and the most influential one. The top-slot in the list of
year’s best performers has already been taken. Bravura performance!
In
others, Neil Bhoopalam supports well. He boldly shifts from charming guy next
flat in the apartment to the fearing-frightened soul shaken by the harsh
reality and the evil face of society. Though Darshan Kumar doesn’t have much to
do in length but still manages to chill your bones with sinful looks. Can’t miss
out on Deepti Naval for her surprise cameo!
On
the whole, NH10 is a ride to hell. A hell every one must visit, admit and act
against it. It is sure not a film best described with words like ‘flawless’ and
‘extraordinary’ but these expressions will fit in well in admiring and
approving Anushka’s performance. The last act alone is like a winning shot you
would want to put on ‘repeat’! [4/5]
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