The intense clash between Sanjay Dutt and Namashi Chakraborty has its high points especially the newsroom debate. The back-and-forth arguments have some good dramatic moments. The two male leads are in solid form, but the film eventually becomes a showreel for RSS being a misunderstood organization. For supporters of RSS and Sangh Parivar in general Aakhri Sawal will be a treat to watch.
Starcast: Sanjay Dutt, Namashi Chakraborty, Amit Sadh, Sameera Reddy, Mrinal Kulkarni etc
Genre: Drama
Director: Abhijeet Mohan Warang
Writer: Utkarsh Naithani
Cinematography: Stanley Mudda
Producers: Sanjay Dutt and Nikhil Nanda
Production Companies: Neem Tree Entertainment and Nikhil Nanda Motion Pictures
Running time: 1 hour and 57 minutes
There is a crucial moment in Aakhri Sawal’s second half when Namashi Chakraborty’s Vicky Hedge questions his guru Gopal Nandakarni (Sanjay Dutt in a refreshingly non negative role). It’s about the heated topic of Babri Masjid demolition. Gopal Nandakarni does make a confession on how the then RSS members did some mistakes and how he doesn’t support their actions. At the same Gopal Nandakarni says that RSS didn’t entirely demolish Babari Masjid. He further talks about the encroached land on which the mosque was being built. There is a long-winded explanation giving an insight into the events leading up to that day. After Gopal Nandakarni finishes his talk Vicky hedge says are you justifying their actions with this big speech. This moment amply sums up Abhijeet Mohan Warang’s Aakhri Sawal. The movie wants to explore high intense topics; at the same time, it also wants to play safe. This two-way process eventually makes it just another propaganda rather than an insightful socio-political drama.
The story of Aakhri Sawal begins with the brutal massacre of an RSS worker in Kerala. From here the plot flash forwards to a confrontation between a student and a professor. The student played by an intense Namashi Chakraborty is very upset on his professor rejecting the PHD thesis. The thesis is about RSS controversial history. Sanjay Dutt’s Gopal Nandakarni rejects Vicky’s thesis as he feels it is factually incorrect with a one-sided approach. Things heat up with Gopal Nandakarni slapping his student in a fit of anger. The confrontation and the slap is recorded live by the fellow students. What starts off as a campus debate snowballs into something much bigger. Eventually it becomes a newsroom debate with the student taking on his teacher. Amit Sadh as Aditya Rao is a former student of Gopal Nanakarni and now a journalist. He becomes the moderator for the intense discussion.
A strong aspect of Aakhri Sawal are the impactful performances of the two leads. As already mentioned it’s refreshing to see Sanjay Dutt in a non negative role. The actor does an extremely fine job in capturing the strong fighting of Gopal as well as a certain anguish on how his student has become an opponent. Sanjay Dutt particularly shines in the vulnerable moments with Namashi. Namashi Chakraborty on the other hand also springs a surprise more than holding his own opposite Sanjay Dutt. The final twist with the character does reduce the impact somewhat, having said Namashi is excellent in portraying Vicky’s determination. The confidence with which Namashi takes on Sanjay Dutt gives Aakhri Sawal some of its best moments. The cockiness mixed with a little sarcasm is a delight to watch.
Mention must also be made of how the film doesn’t entirely sidestep RSS controversial history. Whether it’s the death of Mahatma Gandhi shot by a former RSS member Godse, the leaders of RSS writing letters of despair to Indira Gandhi from the jail and of course the Babri Masjid chapter. All these have been explored fairly well with Sanjay Dutt’s role representing RSS Point of view. Yes, the explanations end up in the favor of Sangh Parivar, having said that Abhijeet Mohan Warang and Utkarsh Naithani do deserve credit for not shying away from these burning topics.
The movie also does a fair job in discussing the hypocrisy of media. This particularly comes out in a conversation between Amit Sadh and a colleague played by Neetu Chandra. This is before Gopal Nandakarni is invited for the television debate. Aditya Rao questions the hypocrisy of his colleague by saying you had previously not allowed Nandakarni to come on the show because of his political leanings to RSS, but now you want the same man on your show debating. Amit Sadh delivers a restrained but impactful act; he particularly stands out in the portion of egging his former professor to present his point of view. In the same portion he talks about their different thought processes. Amit Sadh makes a solid impact in these scenes.
A major issue with Aakhri Sawal is the treatment of Sameera Reddy representing the left ideology. The character begins off promisingly but eventually ends being a caricature. In fact the roles written for the non-Sangh Parivar leave something to be desired. More than the eventual propaganda this becomes a major issue.
The film also suffers from thinly written women characters. Sameera Reddy who could have been a formidable opposition is reduced to a rather vampish figure. Similarly, Tridha Choudhary as Vicky’s girlfriend mostly stays on the fridges. Other than being worried for Vicky she has little to do. Mrinal Kulkarni as Nandakarni’s wife is the only female who makes some impact in spite of the role not offering much.
Technically there isn’t much there to praise. The background score as well as the songs function as speed breakers particularly the former with its melodramatic pitch.