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Johnson Thomas
‘Ab Tak Chappan was worthy of praise. It was one of Ram Gopal Verma Production’s better films and had director Shimit Amin lending it distinctive cinematic guile. This sequel though is in the class of RGV’s latter dismal efforts and has a style reminiscent of those enervating, tiresome excuses for cinema that has its focus waist-below. In fact, the opening Nana Patekar monologue reminds you of the same actor’s opening sequence in RGV’s 26/11. Newbie helmer Aejaz Gulab makes it clear from that opening gambit that he is after all his master’s truest shagird, even though this sequel did not have RGV’s name anywhere in the credits.
Sadhu is lured back to finish the job because his son wants him to get back to being a cop (and it’s not a very convincing reason). Once back, Sadhu gets back into groove, oiling greasy palms for information and getting back into telephonic contact with absconding don Rawale (Raj Zutshi). He starts the ball rolling with a fresh set of encounters, but this time there’s no effort to mask them as such and. They are shown as cold-blooded murders in broad daylight with several possible witnesses looking on.There’s little explanation in the screenplay for such audacious impunity.
Nilesh Girkar’s script is terribly juvenile. The events are scripted without much thought given to realism or propriety. People are shown exchanging confidences in open while secret information gathering meetings take place on the street, atop the bonnet of a car. Even the direction is a little too jittery for comfort.
Siddharth More’s cinematography kills off any interest. The lack of energy, tension and poor structuring of the narrative makes the experience distended. Shalu (Gul Panag), supposedly a crime reporter aiming to complete her deceased father’s book on the underworld, is shown as having all the time in the world to stick close to Sadhu. There’s no doubt that Nana Patekar is a dependable actor, but even a resolute performance by him cannot keep this contrived sinkhole afloat!
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