Director: Amitoj Mann
Cast: Harbhajan Mann, Manpneet Grewal, Ashish Duggal, Girja Shankar, Shavinder Mahal, Rupinder Roopi, Anita Meet, Tarsem Paul, Balkaran Wadding, Bobby Sandhu
This is Harbhajan Mann not being the usual Harbhajan Mann in a film by Amitoj. In fact, it is a film written in manner which explores Harbhajan’s vengeful side – an aspect that many think hasn’t been discovered in his past films, helping the viewers not to make comparisons between ‘Gadaar: The Traitor’ and his earlier projects.
The story begins with a Manpneet Grewal giving viewers an insight into the lavish lifestyle of Jas (Harbhajan Mann). Jas is a business tycoon, who works laboriously sans any breaks, and been featured by top magazines like Forbes and Time for his passion for work.
As expected, the journey towards success is difficult and the struggle towards achieving it is strewn with loneliness, joy, and betrayal. But while he has been successful at his entrepreneurial ventures, he lives a barren life. His personal life is contrasted with the luxurious and swanky home and expensive cars. In the first 30 minute of the film, we get to see the transformation of Jas as a workaholic to an alcoholic.
On receiving a letter from his maternal grandfather, he is informed that his father, whom he has loathed for being a ‘gadaar’, was framed in a murder case. The letter persuades him to visit Punjab in order to establish the truth. In his attempt to unearth the truth, and help his father get justice, he draws a plan to put the real culprits behind the bars. The vengeance motive which unleashes a wave of tit for tat reciprocal violence forms the key theme of the film.
The film, as reports have suggested, is based on the life of notorious Punjab police officer and human rights abuser Ajit Sandhu. Ajit had reportedly committed suicide on being named in multiple human rights abuse cases.
While the film's script is convincing, it has very few scenes that carry depth, which does get a bit frustrating. We do know the unfulfilled life that Jas has been living, but we have no understanding of the kind of relationship he shared with his friends, whose deaths left him completely shattered.
What sustains viewers’ interest in the film is Harbhajan’s acting potential. Each time he plots and fight for justice, we cheer. If he slashes out in anger, and we do cringe, but support him. So even though Harbhajan Mann taps an age-old tradition of films about men taking revenge on those who wronged them, 'Gadaar: The Traitor'is a must watch. Harbhajan has done a good job.
Rating: 3.5/5
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