Gulaab Gang (2014)

Sadly Over-hyped

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

I heard people praising the movie. But the film terribly failed to impress me. It is just a commercial movie which tried to throw light at some important issues....The upsides are few. The most important is that it supports feminism, the only thing the movie did properly. The movie has no Hero, but a heroine. Even the villain is a lady. The protagonist, played by Madhuri Dixit is a very impressive character. The film also tried to illustrate the evil behind successful politicians, corruption and poverty. But it lacked perfection in everything....The down side is very heavy. Firstly, you can feel the imperfection everywhere. It is extremely impractical. It lacks the fun of a commercial movie and at the same time lacks the depth of a non-commercial one. The action is of very poor quality, much of it doesn't make any sense. The Gulaab Gang starts dancing in awkward moments with perfect steps and expressions unsuitable for the situation. The acting completely sucks. The director should be thrown out of Bollywood. And there is a lot more in the list. I'm just too lazy to type all of them in details....#notWorthWatching....

Too many jumps doesn't let the story flow in a linear manner. I understand that there are a lot of by stories that need to be established but the jumps are way too many and the first foray in watching the film is that of disjointedness.And why the delay in embracing the protagonist? And when finally she emerges from behind the veil, the entry lacks voltage.And then comes in the antagonist and she doesn't fail. And the face off well that doesn't fail either. Both stand their ground and it's electrifying.It's not a question of who had the meatier or glamorous role but JC over shone MD. JC was the character and vice versa. I was seeing Sumitra in each frame through all her mannerisms whether it was biting her lower lip or having that clove (atleast that's what I think it was).Considering that the film is all about the leader of the GG, the magic, passion and the rawness just don't emerge. She excels in what she's the most graceful at but otherwise she just sparked intermittently.There was more than a kernel of a story and considering its the directorial debut of SS, a good effort. Much will be expected in the second outing though. The reason why I couldn't add in a better adjective is because of a number of reasons. The number of songs and their reasoning for them to be? And what's with the shoddy editing? Storytelling is an art - why butcher it?All in all it was a valiant effort and as I mentioned earlier given the sheer talent of SS, one expects a whole lot more.

GULAAB GANG is a political thriller directed by Soumik Sen, starring Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla.The film revolves around how a woman named Rajjo (Madhuri Dixit) started the Gulaabi Gang, who fight to prevent injustice to women, and teach education to children for free. However, the Gulaab Gang gets compromised with the entrance of the corrupt politician, Sumitra Devi (Juhi Chawla).Gulaab Gang had gone through a lot of controversy near the release date, and in addition to that, the trailer and soundtrack hadn't quite pleased the critics. That being said, the film was only recognized due to the fact that two of the most iconic actresses in Bollywood were sharing the big screen together.And Gulaab Gang pretty much delivered what we expected in terms of acting. Madhuri Dixit gave a stellar performance but Juhi Chawla clearly overpowers her, playing the film's antagonist. But the film does have many flaws. Firstly, the plot isn't very steady as it tries to focus more on how the Gulaabi Gang operate without having any real plot to help the audience refer to what's going on. It is that same reason why we aren't really on the edge of our cinema seat, wondering what is going to happen next. Juhi Chawla is only introduced a few 20 minutes before the interval, and it is only then where the real (I think) plot begins. One more problem was that Juhi Chawla didn't quite have much screen time compared to Madhuri Dixit. That being said, she is STILL able to overpower Dixit's acting, but there should have been equal screen time for both the lead casts. Since the film is dedicated to women's rights, you could see it does quite live up to the main reason why the film was made, however, the plot could have been better. Also, the film tends to be a bit slow, so everyone may not like it for the way it drags its story.So, in conclusion, GULAAB GANG is quite an okay movie. If you're a die hard fan of political flicks, you might just find this movie good. If you're a die hard fan of Madhuri Dixit or Juhi Chawla, you too might enjoy, purely because the acting keeps this film together. The film tries to be original, but at times, you do tend to feel that it is one of those masala flicks trying to be serious but ends up not being. The film had a lot of potential, which you could say was quite wasted... however, it being dedicated to Women's Day, I will give this film credit for trying to get the message through that women are people and not objects, except in a more violent way to attract all types of audiences.GULAAB GANG- 5.5/10

There is a scene in the movie where Rajjo - the heroine of the movie goes to a college to request for donation to open a school for educating children, especially girls. The students tell her not to waste their time as they are hungry ! And Rajjo tells them what hunger is...If people shy away from such kind of movies, there is no hope for human beings.My salute to Madhuri Ma'am, who's the biggest commercial heroine of Indian entertainment industry to accept such role in a non-commercial and low budget movie...And I saw some reviews where people and 'so-called' critics who are not worth their salt to write a review are saying the evil role is better than the noble/good role, played by Madhuri ! That shows the kind of lows human beings have fallen to...No surprise there...yet there will always be very few people who will like such movies and cherish them...Go for good ... be good ...that is what will remain with you forever !