Hindi
RaagDesh……..Purposeless
RaagDesh has been backed by RajyaSabha Television which, in itself, is quite curious! What is the Upper House of the Parliament, which is not even elected by direct public voting and the TV channel devoted to the august house, getting into any sort of a commercial activity, obviously, financed by the tax payers’ money? Unless, of course, the credit given to the RajyaSabha TV is for some other reasons.
In the last many decades, a much selected history of India and her freedom struggle has not been available into public domain. Even when it comes to the educational institutions, the exposure has been kept limited to a select few.
The files and suspense over the sudden vanishing of the great freedom fighter, Subhash Chandra Bose, a Congress leader, who parted ways with the Congress and who, during the World War II, raised and led the Indian National Army (INA), joined forces with the Japanese army to fight the British occupying Hindustan to free her from their clutches.
One thought the Government owned TV channel got involved itself in this film project to bring to the people the glory of Bose and his endeavours towards freeing India from the slavery of British. Sadly, in the process, Indians belonging to the British army and the INA ended up killing each other; an Indian killing another Indian! However, there is little or nothing about Bose except passing references and a few visuals.
The film is about the British Indian army men of the Indian origin who, when they were losing ground to the Japanese at Burma (Myanmar), were compromised by the British and, when they surrendered, they were handed over to the soldiers of the Japanese Imperial army.
What follows is the story of three British army Indian officers from those handed over to the Japanese who, when freed, joined the INA. The three being Kunal Kapoor, Amit Sadh and MohitMarwah, portraying a Sikh, a Muslim and a Punjabi Hindu thus, according to the makers, representing all of India. The South is represented by MrudulaMurali, who plays the army doctor in INA as LaxmiSehgal.
The three officers are charged with the murder of some British army men and tried by an army court. The film also reminds one of the prominent Mumbai based Congressman and an eminent lawyer, Bhulabhai Desai (after who the upscale South Mumbai road, earlier known as Warden Road, has been named.) who decides to fight the case of these three soldiers.
As the trial begins of the three officers, it goes into the flashback of war encounters the three faced. The circumstances of their capture and accusations.
RaagDesh is a shoddy, pretentious film which even fails to establish the background and the credentials of its three protagonist. Symbolism (soldiers from three communities), unconvincing romance between Marwah and Mrudula, confusing war scenes where you don’t know who is on which side and who is killing who. The court scenes are stagey and grab most footage. And, the British court martial officers or whatever are caricatures. The language in the film is Punjabi and English just because the main protagonist is Punjabi!
The three men, Kunal Kapoor, MohitMarwah, Amit Sadh as well as MrudulaMurali look sincere to no avail.
RaagDesh fails to invoke any sort of emotions, let alone patriotism.
Producers: Gurdeep Singh Sappal.
Director: Tigmanshu Dhulia.
Cast: Kunal Kapoor, Amit Sadh, MohitMarwah, MrudulaMurali, Kenny Desai, Zakir Husain, Kanwaljit Singh, Kenny DeoriBasumatary.
Hindi
UFO Cine Media Network unveils ‘India’s biggest cinema moment ever’
Dhurandhar 2 and Toxic tipped to deliver rare pan-India scale for brands
MUMBAI: UFO Cine Media Network is pitching an upcoming dual-film release weekend as what it calls the largest advertising opportunity cinema has offered in India, banking on an estimated 100 million cumulative footfalls nationwide.
The initiative, branded “India’s Biggest Cinema Moment Ever”, is anchored around the simultaneous release of Dhurandhar 2 – The Revenge and Toxic, two high-profile action films expected to dominate screens across regions and languages. Trade projections, supported by cinema measurement tool Procat, suggest the combined lifetime theatrical run could deliver one of the widest audience concentrations seen in recent years.
Dhurandhar 2 – The Revenge, an India–Pakistan spy thriller, is set to release in five languages, broadening its appeal across northern and southern markets. The franchise has already built a sizable multilingual following through theatrical runs and streaming platforms. Toxic, fronted by pan-India star Yash, is expected to draw heavy footfalls across southern circuits and beyond, buoyed by the actor’s proven box-office pull.
UFO, which operates an in-cinema advertising network spanning more than 4,100 theatres, is positioning the release window as a rare moment of synchronised national attention. Its footprint covers multiplexes and single screens across over 1,500 towns and cities, allowing advertisers to deploy campaigns at scale during a single weekend.
Executives at the company argue that cinema’s value lies not just in reach but in attention. Unlike digital or television, audiences are captive, emotionally engaged and free from distraction, they say, translating into stronger recall and measurable returns for brands. With advertisers increasingly focused on performance-led media planning, UFO is framing the dual release as comparable in scale to India’s largest broadcast and sporting properties.
Industry observers note that as theatrical exhibition expands deeper into Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets, such tentpole weekends are becoming anchor moments for annual media strategies. If Dhurandhar 2 – The Revenge and Toxic deliver as expected, the weekend could set new benchmarks not only for box office numbers, but also for cinema’s evolving role as a high-attention advertising medium.
