‘Gangs of Wasseypur 2’ review: Spectacular end to Wasseypur's revenge saga!

With ‘Gangs of Wasseypur 1’, Anurag Kashyap had set the stage for a classic; with its second part, he gave birth to a cult.

Ananya Bhattacharya

Jab tak Hindustan mein cinema bante rahenge, public ch****ya banti rahegi Trust Anurag Kashyap to believe that dialogue from the core of his heart. The man doesn’t make films, he makes vendetta come alive on screen. With ‘Gangs of Wasseypur 1’, the director had set the stage for a classic; with its second part, he gave birth to a cult. ‘Gangs of Wasseypur’ is not merely a film; it renders to shreds all sorts of stereotypes, while operating from within them. Kashyap’s characters are archetypes, and he has made sure that his magnum opus is one that will go down in the history of Indian cinema as one of the most realistic films ever made. A standing ovation and unfathomable adulation would fall short for the brains behind ‘Wasseypur’. Go on and take a bow! The film recapitulates about five minutes of the end of the first part where Sardar Khan (Manoj Bajpayee) was assassinated, and ever since, doesn’t let viewers – even for a moment – divert their attention elsewhere. An ambience which otherwise, in some other film, would have been melodramatic is offered with generous dollops of comic relief, and Kashyap flushes all kinds of over-dramatisation down the gutter – leaving the audience with only what is necessary to go ahead with the film. Not for an extra moment does the camera linger on the corpse of Sardar Khan or his bereaved family, not for an extra second are viewers led on to believe that they can shed tears in front of the screen. The story progresses unhindered and characters can’t forget carnal pleasures even in the midst of trauma. Grief is short-lived and Sardar Khan’s family bounces back to extract vengeance from Ramadhir Singh (Tigmanshu Dhulia). People are killed left, right and centre and respect is established at gunpoint. Through dark mazes of warring clans to lighter moments of Faizal Khan (Nawazuddin)-Mohsina (Huma Qureshi) courtship, the film saunters into a balanced pace. Wasseypur is not your average small town; it is one where vengeance is respected above all. A mother doesn’t hesitate to threaten her son with chopping off his fingers when he doesn’t take up a gun to avenge the death of his family members, thereby pushing him into the bottomless abyss of gunfights and bloodbaths. Another mother raises a son who is Shrewdness Incarnate. Friends, brothers, family members – all are sucked into the saga of violence. Cinematographic brilliance is a terrain where Anurag Kashyap is the uncrowned king. His canvas is all-encompassing, and his keen eye for details doesn’t leave anything out. The characters Perpendicular and Definite (Scriptwriter Zeeshan Quadri) find special mention, and the latter delivers a punch which nobody can think of – with his story, his character and his performance. Incorporating colloquialism into mainstream cinema and capturing the very essence of Dhanbad is something that ‘Wasseypur’ has done marvellously. Nawazuddin penetrates deep into the skin of Faizal Khan and makes his viewers believe that they are watching reality, that they too are a part of the trials and tribulations of his life in Wasseypur. Huma Qureshi is a slap on the face of demure, conformist heroines. With the role of Mohsina and with her own self, she breaks down a stereotype too many. Richa Chaddha shines unfalteringly through the film and plays a Nagma who unflinchingly pushes her son to kill people in cold blood. Sneha Khanwalkar’s music is a journey through the very history of Indian music. It leaves out nothing. A befitting competition to Kashyap’s direction, Khanwalkar’s music lingers on in your mind till long after you leave the theatre, certain glimpses of the film in tow. Trust Kashyap to be untrustworthy. Just when you think you can breathe for a while, you are hit where it hurts the most. And despite praying all through the movie for something that you don’t want to happen, you are caught off your guard right when you heave a sigh of relief and think that your prayer has been answered. Faizal says in the film, “Jaan hain – ya toh allah legi, ya muhallah legi”. While watching ‘Wasseypur’, the entire film takes your life away! ‘Gangs of Wasseypur 2’ is a film, which, with its predecessor, is one that is here to stay, to break conceptions, to demolish structures. With the history of Wasseypur, ‘Wasseypur’ has created another history. Follow @nanya116