Dushman (1998)

Best movie of this year hands down!

Best movie ever!

Yo, there's no way for me to review this film without saying, take your *insert ethnicity + "ass" here* to see this film,like now. You have to see it in order to know what you're really messing with.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

This movie was so totally amazing I was so amused by seeing the film and movie scenes of the movie are superb Screenplay is outstanding storyline is intense editing is comical direction is remarkable Songs are really good I like the storyline and overall enjoyable movie Sanjay dutt was superb kajol did well asthoush rana does well in his debut performance Overall my rating is 7/10

Dushman is known for many reasons though it was not a hit, It was Tanuja Chandra's debut, Kajol's first double role, Ashutosh Rana's debut. The film is a remake of AN EYE FOR AN EYE but is well indianised. It starts off well, on a tense note and the relationship between Kajols are well handled, the twist is well handled and dramatic. The going ons do drag a bit, Also Sanjay Dutt's role was added only for commercial purposes, some scenes don't make much sense at times but the pre-climax when Kajol calls Ashutosh is superb though Sanju suddenly landing there does seem convenient yet the end is brilliantDirection by Tanuja Chandra is superb Music by Uttam Singh is good, Awaz is the best track while Cheethi is a good song Pyaar To Ho Jaane Do is good tooKajol is superb in both the roles without overacting, though due to her supposedly unavailability, her dubbing in parts is done by Mona Ghosh Shetty which doesn't suit her Jas Arora is good, Sanjay Dutt(credited first as a dynamic appearance) does quite well in his blind man role but his role was perhaps added for commercial purposes Ashutosh Rana steals the show in a negative role, it was rare to see a newcomer outshine everyone, he is simply awesome though he kept doing such roles Tanvi Azmi and others are okay.

This brilliant thriller starring Kajol, Sanjay Dutt and debutant villain Ashutosh Rana has been directed by debutant lady director Tanuja Chandra who has borrowed the plot from the Hollywood movie, Eye for an Eye, the difference being here is that while in the Hollywood movie, the mother inflicts revenge upon the rapist murderer, here the job is done by the twin sister of the victim. Tanuja Chandra went ahead to direct movies like Sangharsh, Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar, Sur, Zindagi Rocks and Filmstar later on. However this maiden venture of herself is considered as her best till date.The story belongs to the rape and murder of one of the twin sisters by a sex-maniac postman whose next victim is the other sister. How the surviving twin-sister is able to kill her Dushman (enemy) is the remaining story. The director has given a highly admirable treatment to the plot, making it thoroughly engrossing but for some songs which interrupt the flow of the story.During 50s and 60s, Pran was the most deadly villain of bollywood who was hated so much by the audience that some years back he had announced a reward for a person named as Pran during that period because people had stopped naming their kids after his name. After him, no bollywood villain could match his deadly baddiness (perhaps with the exception of Amjad Khan as Gabbar Singh in Sholay) till Ashutosh arrived on the scene with Dushman. He deservingly won all the best villain awards for 1998. His presence on the screen in this movie is nothing short of a spine-chilling one. His contribution is the most in making this movie a memorable one.Kajol has excelled in her double role. Interestingly, Karan Johar's blockbuster Kuchh Kuchh Hota Hai was also released in the same year (1998) but Kajol won the Screen award for the best actress for her performance in Dushman instead of KKHH. The scene in which one sister is being victimized by the villain whereas the other one is listening to her painful and panicked shrieks on the other side of the telephone, is the best scene of the movie in which both, Kajol and Ashutosh have taken their acting performance to the dizzy heights.Among others, Jas Arora and Tanvi Aazmi have done well. The movie also stars Sanjay Dutt in the subdued role of a blind ex-army-man who boosts the morale of the remaining twin-sister and supports her when she does not get justice from the law for her victimized twin. He is neither excellent, nor bad.The music by Uttam Singh is okay. However, it would have been better to trim the movie by excluding some songs as the free-flow of the narrative is blocked by them and a kind of laxity emerges in the post-interval session.Technically, the movie is very good. In fact, it's a pity that such a superb movie flopped on the box office. In my view, Dushman is one of the finest crime-revenge thrillers ever made in bollywood..

'Indianized' version of the 1996 Kiefer Sutherland/Sally Field starrer 'Eye for an eye', Dushman still manages to strike a deep chord with the readers, due completely to the flawless casting of Kajol as Naina Seghal, the sister of the victim (the only discernible difference as in the original it was the mother seeking revenge) The story opens with a happy-go-lucky family, twins (Sonia and Naina, played by Kajol) a younger sister (Diya) and a mother, content in the ups and downs of their small world. This happy picture is shattered into a million pieces as on the day of Diya's birthday, a psychotic postman, under pretense of delivering a letter to the house, breaks into the house, savagely beats, rapes, and murders Sonia (the most heart-breaking scene in the whole movie as Naina is on the other end of a cell phone conversation with her sister at the time of the murder, and is forced to hear the desperate screams of her dying twin). When the justice systems lets this man off, due to witness who changes their testimony, Naina is driven mad with grief and, with aid from an ex-army official (played brilliantly by Sanjay Dutt) arms herself to track this ruthless killer and serve justice where the courts can't. It isn't an easy feat, however, as the killer is all too aware of Naina stalking him and decides to finish her off in much the same manner as her sister.Though revenge plots are nothing new to Bollywood, this one is different because it does not show a gun-wielding hero stealing agun from somewhere and go on a mad killing spree to avenge his family. It shows a sister, who first has to come to terms with the unbearable loss she has suffered and has to train herself adequately , so she has the means necessary to avenge her sister . Kajol IS Naina and Sonia! She plays the two separate personalities as effortlessly as she plays the tormented twin sister, who can't look in the mirror anymore because of the reflection that stares back at her. I couldn't imagine a better choice for the role. Same does for Ashutosh Rana as Ghokul. I refused to believe that this was this man's debut venture! he is simply terrifying and i had to hide my face half the time he was on screen, simply because of his overwhelming evil presence. The rest of the cast gives perfect support (Tanvi Azmi as the mother impresses) .A must-see for Kajol fans, if not for the plot than simply for her mind-blowing performance. **********