Deshdrohi (transl. Traitor) is a 2008 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed by Jagdish A. Sharma. It was scripted and produced by KRK, who also appeared in the lead role alongside Manoj Tiwari, Hrishitaa Bhatt, Gracy Singh and Zulfi Syed.[2][3] Released on 14 November 2008, it was subject to negative reviews from critics, and is considered as one of the worst Bollywood films.[4][5]
| Deshdrohi | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Jagdish A. Sharma |
| Written by | Kamaal Rashid Khan |
| Produced by | Kamaal Rashid Khan |
| Starring | Kamaal Rashid Khan Manoj Tiwari Hrishitaa Bhatt Gracy Singh Zulfi Syed Aman Verma |
| Edited by | Nasir Hakim Ansari |
| Music by | Nikhil |
| Distributed by | O.K. International |
Release date |
|
Running time | 139 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Hindi |
| Budget | ₹3 crore[1] |
| Box office | ₹8.90 million[1] |
Plot edit
The themes of the film consists of politics, prostitution, pimping, and corruption. At the start of the film, a man named Raja Yadav (Kamaal Rashid Khan) arrives in Mumbai from Uttar Pradesh searching for a watchman's job, after leaving his father and neighbour, Neha, both behind in his village in Uttar Pradesh.
In Mumbai, Raja meets Shekhar, a gangster, who works as a watchman, and Sonia, who works for a drug dealer named Baba Kadam. At one point, Raja helps Sonia escape from an attack by a group working for another drug dealer called Rajan Nayak, Baba Kadam's rival. The two eventually fall in love.
After realising that living in Mumbai is difficult for North Indians, Raja petitions Shrivastav, a North Indian politician who exploits common people for his political career, for help. The drug mafia of Mumbai city is assisted by politicians, and the media want to reveal the corruption prevalent in the city.
Due to his involvement, Raja is marked for death by Rajan Nayak, who contracts a police inspector to kill both him and Sonia. However, he fails and is killed. The police pursue Raja and Sonia, who are also hiding from Rajan Nayak. Raja attempts to obtain help from Shrivastav to no avail, and even Sonia's boss, Baba Kadam, abandons the pair.
Pushed to the limit, Raja resolves to kill all involved, in which he is helped by Inspector Rohit Raghav, the new husband of Raja's village sweetheart.
Cast edit
- Kamaal Rashid Khan as Raja Yadav
- Gracy Singh as Sonia Patil
- Aman Verma as Minister Shrivastav
- Hrishitaa Bhatt as Neha Rohit Raghav (dubbed by Mona Ghosh Shetty)
- Manoj Tiwari as Shekhar
- Kader Khan as Abdul Bhai
- Mukesh Tiwari as Rajan Naik, a corrupt politician
- Zulfi Syed as Inspector Rohit Raghav
- Ranjeet as Raja's father
- Avtar Gill as Raja's grandfather
- Aryan Vaid in cameo appearance in a song
- Yashpal Sharma as Baba Kadam
- Raza Murad as Chief Minister of Maharashtra
- Kim Sharma as Herself
- Nirmal Pandey as Deputy Chief Minister Nagesh Kulkarni
- Shiva Rindani as Encounter specialist Rajesh Sharma
- Arun Bakshi as Shrivastav's P.A.
- Anil Nagrath as Deshmukh, the informer
Music edit
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Controversy edit
There were accusations that the movie was attempting to profit off of the 2008 attacks on North Indians in Maharashtra. The head of the Mumbai office of the Central Board of Film Certification opined that the movie has scenes that were derogatory to a particular community.[6] Maharashtra Navnirman Sena expressed their protests against the movie. The Mumbai police served a notice for a special screening to find any objectionable content that might trigger unrest. Due to the protests and problems with exhibitors, the release date of the movie was postponed by a week from the original date of 7 November.[7][8][9] The movie was released on 14 November, except in Maharashtra, where it was banned by the state government for 60 days under the Bombay Cinema Regulation Act. The producers of the film petitioned the Bombay High Court to lift the ban on the movie.[10] After a two-month ban it was released on 23 January 2009 in Maharashtra.[11]
Reviews edit
The film received negative reviews overall.[12]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ a b "Deshdrohi". Box Office India. Archived from the original on 9 July 2019. Retrieved 24 September 2021.
- ^ "Humshakals, Deshdrohi, Himmatwala: worst films of the decade". 1 August 2014. Archived from the original on 23 December 2016. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- ^ "Deshdrohi". Archived from the original on 27 May 2017. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- ^ "Sadak 2's IMDb Ratings are so Bad, Kamaal R Khan's 'Deshdrohi' Seems Like a Masterpiece". News18. 31 August 2020. Archived from the original on 1 September 2020. Retrieved 31 August 2020.
- ^ "Movie Blog » Movie Preview: Desh Drohi watched by only Kamal Rashid Khan". Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- ^ "'Deshdrohi' set to cash in on anti-immigrant sentiment - Express India". Archived from the original on 2 October 2012. Retrieved 12 November 2008.
- ^ "Can 'Deshdrohi' pass the acid test?". Retrieved 18 December 2016.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Police, and MNS, to decide on Deshdrohi - Mumbai - DNA". Archived from the original on 24 September 2021. Retrieved 12 November 2008.
- ^ "NDTVMovies.com : Bollywood News, Reviews, Celebrity News, Hollywood news, Entertainment News, Videos & Photos". Archived from the original on 3 December 2012. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
- ^ `Deshdrohi' maker moves HC today - The Times of India
- ^ "Deshdrohi Screened in Mumbai". Outlook magazine. 22 January 2009. Archived from the original on 10 November 2021.
- ^ "Deshdrohi movie review". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
