SYNOPSICS
Shikhar (2005) is a Hindi movie. John Mathew Matthan has directed this movie. Ajay Devgn,Shahid Kapoor,Bipasha Basu,Amrita Rao are the starring of this movie. It was released in 2005. Shikhar (2005) is considered one of the best Drama movie in India and around the world.
How far can greed take a man? Can the 'greens' ever fight the money and might of the builders lobby? Can nature ever win over the bulldozer? These are the riveting issues raised by Shikhar. Pitted against each other in this battle of man vs nature are two different but equally powerful protagonists. Gaurav Gupta (aka GG) is a man who started with nothing and now believes that only money can fuel his ambitions. While Guruji, to the manor born, believes that wealth means nothing if not used for society. Caught in the tussle between the two is the unworldly Jaidev Vardhan, who while respecting his father's philosophy, falls hook, line and sinker for GG's gilt-edged dreams. While Guruji hopes that Jai will return to his roots, GG uses the glamorous Natasha to bewitch Jai and the unscrupulous politician Amrit Patil, to exploit the tribal into selling their lands. Madhavi watches the man she loves being carried away in to a world of wine, women and wealth. If Shikhar is the Pinnacle of good...
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Shikhar (2005) Reviews
Idealism vs Greed:-The Big Picture
In 1999,When I saw the promos of the movie Sarfarosh,The 1st thing that caught my eye was that it was by a débutant director.At that time,I wasn't much into movies and never heard much of the movie again.Couple of years later,The movie premiered on TV.Since Aamir was hot at that time due to the stupendous success of Lagaan(which went on to be nominated for the Oscars) and Dil Chahta Hai which many consider to be one of the coolest movies ever made,I felt that I must watch this movie.And was i stunned or what!!!!A tight screenplay,a relentlessly fast pace and a realistic scenario made this movie an immensely pleasurable watching experience. Fast forward to 2005,When i heard that John Matthew Matthan was announcing a new movie,I was excited.Part of it diminished when I heard that it was not a Cop movie.But when i heard that it was a business thriller,i was curious as not many movies have been made on this theme,barring Kalyug which was excellent.The movie's synopsis sounded good on paper,but I had no idea how it would sound on screen.Then the movie released,the reviews said that this movie was average.I was disappointed thinking that maybe John is also a 1 film wonder like Mahesh Manjrekar who's been struggling to find his feet in Bollywood after his stupendous directing debut Vaastav. Today,My disappointment has turned into amazement after i saw the movie on DVD.It is a poignant story of how an innocent person can be misled down the path of greed,but if his values are strong,he can get back to the right path. It is the story of Guruji(Javed Sheikh)who left the reins of his vast business empire to his friend and started an ashram in the sylvan and tranquil village Songarh for the people to help the poor and downtrodden.He is an idealist to the core and believes that wealth is of no use until it is used for the greater good of Mankind.He also advocates the fact that the blessings of people and the goodwill that you gather is the true wealth.He tries to instill this values in his son Jaidev(Shahid Kapoor) Jaidev is a naive young man who hasn't seen much of the world and the little he's seen is the goodness of his father.So when Gaurav Gupta(Ajay Devgan)shows him the enjoyments of life such as Wine,Women etc,he's completely enticed. Gaurav Gupta or GG as he's better known is a ruthless businessman.He believes that Money is the only thing that matters.He plans to build a city like Las Vegas in India.But Guruji stands in his way.So he uses Guruji's weakness i.e Jaidev against him,Guruji is left watching helplessly.But his greed leads to his downfall as he doesn't take enough care in hiding the shadier aspects of his character. The movie is a real stunner.It's been shot well and has a good story.And for a change,It's a clean movie without any skin show and double entendres. Its only fault lies in the placement of songs and the slightly slow pacing.There are way too many songs and they act as speed breakers and slow down the movie.The slow pacing of the movie may act as a deterrent to people.But,If you are the kind of person who likes to watch thought provoking movies,this is for you. Trust me on this one;)
The greatest joy in nature is the absence of man
I have huge admiration for ad-film makers for they pay great attention to small details and more importantly they dare to be different. "Sarfarosh" was a "cult" movie in its own right. When "Shikar" was announced, the audience were expecting nothing short of another "Sarfarosh". John M Mathen should be lauded for the venturing into a path-breaking territory and make a full-blown movie addressing the environmental issue. Sadly, was well-ahead of its time and hence the audience failed to connect. With the "green" talks gaining momentum and Copenhagen hogging the lime-light, perhaps today the audience can realise the importance of Mother Nature. Ajay Devgan:: It was the stage in his career where he was full-on experimenting roles of grey shades and this was one of them. As usual, he is dependable. Shahid Kapur:: Had the movie got its due recognition, he would have been greatly benefited. Bipasha Basu:: She hardly any scope or requirement in the story. Amrita Rao:: Just about OK. Javed Sheikh:: Played the role of good Samaritan quite well. Well, John M Mathen needs to bounce back and surely will.
A movie addressing a social cause
All the reports of the movie were pretty dull. I decided to go against all odds to see the movie, solely because the director of the movie had proved class in his first outing (Sarfarosh). Let me tell you, this was really a very directed movie. The pace of the movie is definitely not as quick paced as Sarfarosh was, but the story is refreshing, and is only made better by some fabulous acting by Ajay Devgan and Shahid Kapoor (who has by far made his best performance till date). It is an intelligent movie, bringing out all the games played in politics and in the cut-throat business world. The only drawback of the movie is its slower pace, and addition of unwanted songs which really serve no purpose in the movie and neither were melodious. Had the edited the songs, the impact of the movie would have been much more. All in all, I would say this movie is trying to bring out a social message to all the people in the world. My final comment is, if you liked "Swades", definitely go watch this movie.
A tale of the unknowingly prodigal son!
This film was unfairly panned by critics and equally unfairly shunned by movie goers. It actually carried a powerful message and the theme was beautiful played out by the perfect cast and subtlety of the director. Ajay Devgan in mean ambitious mode yet again, plays a business man with a big dream. He wants to build a Las Vegas in India. He assembles quite a team of skeptical investors, who throw their money into the project even though they hardly believe in it. Devgan's mean character with the help of his equally skeptical concubine (played by Bipasha Basu) narrows down the perfect spot of land where the resort is to be built and offer the owner of the land some "go away nicely" money but their proposal is refused (the significance of the land and the people who inhabit it is explained later on in the movie). Shahid Kapoor plays Jaidev, the son of the land's Guruji (Javed Sheikh) who has just completed a study of Horticulture and is about to take over some lucrative business when he bumps into Gaurav (Devgan) who is able to temporarily sidetrack him by leading him astray. Amrita Rao in yet another angelic role, plays Madhavi the object of Jaidev's affection, and tries to help him see past the glamour and glitz that Gaurav and Natasha (Basu) are offering. As you may have already guessed it, Gaurav uses Jaidev nearly to the point of no return but the boy is able to realise what is going on sooner than later and bounce back to try and save the land that is about to be devoured by the evil doers headed by Gaurav and his investors. Jaidev's actions must also be resounding and powerful enough to bring his father out of a self-imposed exile. A great coming of age tale! Look for a stellar and cool cameo by John Abraham, he plays himself in a scene that helps Jaidev wake up and smell the coffee.
Shikhar: The height of ....
When I saw the promo of the movie, I knew this is one movie I should not miss. Because this is my kind of movie. But then not everyone is like me. This movie was not made for masses, hence the movie flopped. The story is very different than the present days movies. I am sure Ajay Devgan will always be remembered as one of his best performances. This is the movie which shows the Games People Play to achieve their interest chopping common man's head. This movie is about Green revolution. Ajay Devgan as Gaurav Gupta is very ambitious and lives like there is no tomorrow. His life is a gamble which he need to own at any cost. His dictionary has no words called sympathy, kindness, nature, tribal, environment, loser etc. Shahid Kapoor is a man full of conflict, he hasn't seen much of life. He follows his father's principle. He is simple, down-to-earth and hence falls into the trap of Gaurav Gupta. His life changes drastically & started gambling, drinking. But then he hasn't lost his values completely. Bipasha Basu is Gaurav's girlfriend can do anything for him but then she has humanity too. Amrita Rao is a simple girl who is devoted to Shahid. She would stand by her man by all means, but then won't tolerate if he goes wrong. Guruji is a man, who is very rich but leads a very simple life because of some tragedies. He has dedicated his life to the tribal development. If Shikhar as a movie is about good deeds and thoughts, it also is about greed and ambition. Which one we choose is left to us. The Good or Bad.