This has to be a first. From a character in the two minutes promos of MTV during the nascent days of satellite television in India to a larger than life hero in a ninety minute feature film Quick Gun Murugun shoots his way across the silver screen with aplomb and inimitable style. It’s a Mexican beans meets paysam Western. Instead of a whiskey swilling and a drawling Clint Eastwood please meet the dosa munching vegetarian cowboy Quick Gun Murugan. He sets out to put a stop to the evil designs of the non vegetarian expansionist dreams of the villain, Rice Plate Reddy (Oh, how I love this name).
The movie is set in the classic genre of the Westerns made immortal by the greats like Sergio Leone, John Sturges and Sam Peckinpah. Like all great Westerns this one too has a wide canvas, a predictable story narrated with consummate slickness and a supernatural touch but which has Indian written all over it. Way to go Mr Shashank Ghosh. His directorial skill is only matched with the outrageous, cheeky and gross scenarios manufactured with a whacky sense of humour. Music fans like me who have been following Channel [V] and MTV through the years will comprehend what I am talking about. The classy one liners used in the promos of both these channels are the inspiration for the zany dialogues of this film. I was specially amazed by the fact that considering Ghosh was using pot bellied Southern actors in a classic south Indian backdrop to narrate a revenge story has managed to pull off the presentation in orthodox Western mode albeit with a little too much violence for a comic Western. As a matter of fact movies of this genre should now be called a Southern.
The story takes off in a remote southern village in 1982 with the killing of the hero by Rice Plate Reddy played by Nasser. It’s a powerful portrayal of a ruthless killer who blows away every opposition to his business plans. It was touching to see the hero as a brave but vulnerable guy who gets outnumbered and killed. But wait a minute, this is not a cut and dried Sergio Leone saga where the dead stay dead. On reaching heaven (Ministry of Death, oh man) Quick Gun makes an application to the CEO, one Mr. C Gupta (yeah you guessed it) for repatriation to earth on the grounds of his unfinished business of protecting cows and promoting vegetarianism. Lord Chitragupta makes a statement on the changing gastronomic preferences in the modern world by observing that “Vegetarianism is the need of the hour” and bingo, Murugun is beamed back to earth, a la The Terminator, sans clothes but with a full chaddi. But hey, this is Mumbai 25 years later. And with a good reason too. Rice Plate Reddy has climbed up the corporate criminal ladder and instead of an angvastram he now sports designer super white suits along with an arm candy appropriately called Mango Dolly played by the luscious Rambha. In keeping with the metro standards he plans to launch the biggest non vegetarian dosa outlet chain called, what else but McDosa. He has one small problem though. His chief chef can’t find the right combination of ingredients which adds that extra zing to the proposed dosa. In comes Rowdy MBA (Who thought of all these names? I want to shake his hand.), the consultant played by Raju Sundaram whom you would remember in that fantastic dance number “Rukmani” from Roja. Of course no institute promotes the management techniques employed by him to get the perfect dosa.
The action sequences are as mindless as they are enjoyable. In fact anywhere else they would look ridiculous but since one expects them from Quick Gun they are hilarious. Fantastic music more appropriate to the classical Mexican stand offs and slick camera work makes the action gripping. Never mind the impossibility of what you see. It needs to be done. It’s Quick Gun Murugun. Mind it? I certainly didn’t!

And I thought that Anurag Kashyap had really excelled himself in Dev D, especially since messing with a proven classic can be a tricky proposition. He succeeded and eminently so! Barely had I recovered from that awesome movie that AK has unleashed another explosion of emotions with a relentless assault on our sensibilities. Set amidst the feudal ethos of Rajasthan the story is about the pursuit of ambition, accumulation of power, innocent & betrayed love. In true Shakespearean milieu there are plots and sub plots and yet some more hidden beneath them but each interconnected to finally merge in the inevitable climax so much like a Greek tragedy.

Barring Kay Kay Menon nearly everybody is a fresh face. The main lead Raja Singh Chaudhary is also the author of the story revolving around student politics which was rewritten by Anurag Kashyap and Aparna Chaturvedi after incorporating rebellious regional aspirations sequential to the perceived injustices by the state. So very contemporary and yet so well portrayed! Kay Kay is the parochial manipulator who uses the students’ politics to build a cadre for pursuing his secessionist agenda. Abhinayu Pratap Singh is the reclusive & reckless prince trying to hide from the riches of his father. Aditya Srivastava & Ayesha Mohan are the prince’s half blood Machiavellian siblings whose yearning for legitimacy drives them to deception and murder. Deepak Dobriyal is Kay Kay’s main hit man and Man Friday. Mahie Gill as Kay Kay’s mistress impresses once again with her vivaciousness & natural acting ability. Jesse Randhawa’s walk from the ramp to the screen shows a lot of promise.

I have to dedicate a separate paragraph to Piyush Mishra. The man has till now played bit roles in sundry movies and penned the script for Black Friday but in this pic he writes, he composes the music, sings and acts too. This will easily be one of the performances of the year if not the decade. First the music! Don’t gloss over the songs. Hear them; hear the lyrics and you will be bowled over. While “Arambh hai prachand” sounds the battle cry, his rendition of “Duniya” which is a take on Pyaasa’s classic “Yeh Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaye To Kya hai” manages to retain its integrity and freshness. The mujra song “Rana ji” has to be one of the most original I have heard in a long time. Using traditional language and style, the lyrics go global without a warning. So with the sexy thumka of Mahie Gill you are suddenly presented with an in your face commentary on 9/11 (Jaise door desh ke tower main ghus jaye re aeroplane), Iraq, Afghanistan, democracy and the cola wars. Whacky imagination at its best! Another beautiful composition is “Sheher” sung along with the talented Swanand Kirkire (Remember Khoya Khoya Chand). Mishra plays the role of the schizophrenic musician elder brother of Kay Kay. He idolizes John Lennon, composes on the spot poetry and has an opinion on everything. The pathos on his face after he loses his dancing consort is heart breaking.

I feel Anurag Kashyap is not an ordinary movie maker. His movies are like a painting canvas where he tries to marry various art forms. If the music resounds of folk songs and fine poetry the shots of the practicing Ram Leela characters impart a theatre like color. If one song reminds you of the wandering minstrels the other carries the guitar strums of western country music. He is also a diehard romantic.  Look for John Lennon’s sketch peeking out from the mad poet’s medallion and posters of Che Guvera and Jimmy Hendrix set in a neon lit bar masquerading as a residence in the middle of the desert. For me this is better than any art/parallel cinema.