The Undoing of The Don

By: Poonam Bisht & Prionka Jha Arre Deewano, mujhe pehchano, kahan se aaya main hoon kaun; main hoon ‘clone’, main nahin ‘Don’, main hoon main hoon main hoon ‘clone’. Well, all you King Khan fans, don’t get upset. Shahrukh is too good a performer to be called ‘anybody’s clone’. The redefined song above merely depicts the feelings of the ardent admirers of the 1978 Amitabh-starrer classic ‘Don’. Shahrukh Khan, the great actor as he is, cannot be blamed for Farhan Akhtar’s pathetic, soulless attempt (in modern style and hi-tech setting) to ‘remake’ the original masterpiece. The problem with the remake here doesn’t only lie with its inevitable comparison with the original or the subsequent failure to live up to the classic, but with the ‘much-hyped vision’ of its director Farhan Akhtar. The ace director, who belongs to the young brigade whom the industry has pinned its hopes on for innovative creations, has simply failed to deliver this time. If the movie does extremely well at the box-office in the coming weeks after the superb attendance that it has received in the Diwali week-end, it can be credited to the ‘natural charmer’ SRK for his incredible style statements despite being chased by police and Boman Irani, who has played Vardhaan. Though the basic storyline of `Don is similar to the 70s blockbuster, expect a few twists and turns. The movie seems to be quite technically sound and visibly looks much slicker, more exciting and should result in a high adrenalin drive! The storyline: With a few changes here and there, keeping a highly urban setting and by incorporating his ‘unique style of interpreting thoughts’, Akhtar Junior has kept the original script (penned by his father Javed Akhtar along with Salim for Chandra Barot’s Don in 1978) more or less as it is. The drug trade is booming and trafficking between Asia and Europe is at an all-time high. A dreaded mafia gang has moved its operational headquarters of drugs trafficking to Kuala Lumpur. It seems that Singhania (Rajesh Khattar) is single handedly heading the business. Police has photographs of Singhania, whose Malaysian business is being headed by Don (Our Khan). In order to nab the criminals, Indian and Malaysian intelligence and anti-narcotic departments start working together. Their target is Singhania as they believe on nailing him they would be able to curb the illegal activities. However, it is a little known fact that while Singhania was a name, the man who helped him in his business was a ruthless, heartless and a daring soul who wanted nothing but absolute power – Vaardhan (Boman Irani). But no one has ever seen Vardhaan, nor does anyone know his whereabouts. At least till intermission Boman Irani is in the garb of DCP DeSilva who is a part of the quest to bust this international gang. One fine day, Don is captured in an encounter and DeSilva puts his plan into action. Unknown to even his own department, DeSilva recruits and trains a man who is a spitting image of Don. His name is ‘Vijay’. He infiltrates the cartel and manages to give DeSilva all the information he needs to bring it down. But in a bizarre twist of fate, DeSilva is killed during an encounter and the secret that Don is in fact Vijay is buried with him. The only people who realise that he`s an imposter are the members of Don`s cartel who want their revenge. Vijay manages to escape and is now on the lookout for the one last piece of evidence that can get him out of the mess. Helping him in this quest are two people: Roma (Priyanka Chopra) and Jasjit (Arjun Rampal). To keep scope for a sequel, Farhan has intelligently kept the possibilities open at end of the story. “Don versus Don” In 1978, Amitabh Bachchan, ‘the greatest superstar’, immortalised the character of Don. The actor’s portrayal is etched in the memories of the fans forever. No wonder, Farhan Akhtar’s announcement of giving his own vision (God only knows why) to the classic and that also by bringing the King of Romance and Passion to play that role, did not go down very well with Amitabh fans and the industry pundits. The fans shouted, “It is a sin to touch the masterpieces or to even try to recreate the magic of Amitabh movies.” But this did not deter Akhtar and he went ahead, raring to face the challenges of sky-high expectations and the risk of public wrath. Remakes are not a new trend in the Hindi film industry. It has been happening ever since its inception. But yes, this time it was different because it was related to the remake of an Amitabh-starrer, especially the unforgettable ‘Don’. But along with the apprehensions, the movie had several factors in its favour. The new generation, most of which had not seen the classic starring Bachchan, had been eagerly waiting for the new adaptation. Secondly, the very thought of SRK stepping into Amitabh’s shoes was a highly saleable formula. But comparisons between the two become inevitable. Audiences from the beginning till the end are trying their best to compare the two – Big B and SRK. As a result, many minute details added by Farhan Akhtar leading to the twist in the climax can go unnoticed. Though the verdict is more or less clear-“Don (Amitabh) ka jaadoo phir se chalana, mushkil hi nahin, namumkin hai (Recreating the magic of Amitabh’s Don is not only difficult but impossible). But SRK in several scenes, in his own way, has been quite successful in imitating Big B. Akhtar’s Don scores an edge over the original for the brilliant cinematography, hi-tech action sequences and breathtakingly-beautiful locations of Malaysia. But sadly, there is hardly any other significant point to bring to notice. What Went Wrong (WWW) Farhan Akhtar seemed to have completely failed to provide the ‘Generation Next’ even a portion of the magic similar to what the audience felt after seeing Barot’s Don in 1978. The script and plot were more or less the same, if there wasn’t Amitabh then there still was Shahrukh Khan. But the movie, which has been described by both the director and the actor, as a tribute to the original, has failed on several counts. AB versus SRK With no offence to arguably one of the greatest and most popular stars of all time (Shahrukh), one can’t help but say that at least four actors would be required to stand together to look somewhere close to the magnetic Amitabh as Don. Curt as it may sound no matter how brilliant the actor may be, Don would always belong to Amitabh Bachchan. However, this doesn’t mean taking any credit away from the lone crusader of the movie, the saving grace. When he utters the ever-so-famous dialogue “Don ko toh barah mulkon ki police talash rahi hai, par Don ko pakadna mushkil hi nahin namumkin hain”, it just does not ring true. Most importantly, Amitabh’s voice and his dialogue delivery was simply unparalleled and incomparable. But, Shahrukh fans need not be disappointed. In his own style, he has tried to do full justice to the evil character of Don and looks quite impressive and stylish in most of the scenes. His arrogant poise, unique gait and his piercing glance make this character look very convincing. But unfortunately, he fails to make an impact as the rustic Vijay and it looks all made up. It is at this time that the comparison with the original entertaining, rustic character of Vijay (portrayed by Amitabh with such conviction) comes into focus. Zeenat Aman versus Priyanka Chopra Priyanka Chopra, who plays the character of Roma (originally portrayed by Zeenat Aman) looks beautiful and quite impressive in the movie doing the action sequences. But there is nothing very significant about her to elaborate upon in Don. Kareena Kapoor versus Helen While dancing diva Helen left the entire nation swooning with her thunderous performance in the sensuous song “Yeh mera dil pyar ka diwana…” in 1978, Kareena merely looks glamorous and stunning in the song and a two-minute role. Even the very thought of comparing her with Helen in the song would be a fatal mistake. Arjun Rampal versus Pran Arjun Rampal, who steps into the shoes of legendary Pran as Jasjit, who owes Vijay a favour for taking care of his son during his imprisonment, gives a decent performance, but not a patch on Pran`s performance in the original. For Jasjit’s role, somehow Pran is more convincing than Arjun Rampal. Khai ke Paan Banaras Wala….. Give us a break! Do not make the mistake of comparing the legendary song of Kishore Da with that of Udit Narayan or the choreography itself. It was a masterpiece. Sung in high spirits, performed with sheer magic-it is matchless. What that ‘Chora Ganga Kinare Wala’ did cannot be repeated or reformed. Saroj Khan might have tried to give it her best, but Shahrukh performing Khai Ke.. looks merely like a star following the steps of the choreographer mechanically rather than a rustic-turned mafia don once again reverting to the desi flavour of the paan and enjoying himself immensely (as shown by Amitabh). The music of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy too sounds very ordinary barring the two songs they have retained from the original movie, for which they cannot take credit. The disappointment reaches its peak with the title song “Main Hoon Don”. Sung by talented singer Shaan, the song hardly sounds like an introduction of the powerful character of Don. Those who have seen the original Don know better. Boman Irani gets the maximum footage after Shahrukh Khan in the movie and looks quite impressive as police officer DeSilva. Other characters like Isha Koppikar have hardly any screen space to be noticed . But the biggest complaint of the audience would remain, how could an ace director like Farhan Akhtar waste an actor of the caliber of Om Puri in the movie. Puri certainly deserved a bigger role. Impressive locations, big budget, hi-tech facilities for action sequences, designer clothing, world-class cinematography and above all ‘The Badshah of Bollywood’-the film has everything. But still its lacks almost everything. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Farhan Akhtar’s Don has style but no substance. It just looks hollow. But in Hindi Film Industry, box office collections are not always driven by a film’s superiority or class. The SRK magic and wide curiosity among the audience to see Shahrukh taking on the Big B are enough reasons perhaps to make the movie a huge hit in India and abroad. Regardless of its box-office collections, there is a warning for all those aspiring filmmakers who are yearning for remakes (especially of Amitabh movies) that ‘nakal ke liye bhi akal ki zaroorat hoti hai (imitation too requires intelligence). Ram Gopal Verma are you listening?