Arjun (Marathi Movie) Review
Director : F M Illyas
Producers: Majit Burondkar, F M Illyas
Cast: Sachit Patil, Vidyadhar Joshi, Arun Tikekar, Amruta Khanvilkar, Varsha Usgaonkar, Vinay Apte
Music: Lalit Sen
Rating: * ½
Unlike the one in Mahabharat, this Arjun lacks focus!
Plot: Arjun Pawar (Sachit Patil), fresh after completing MBA, is eager to be a businessman unlike other Maharashtrian youngsters who opt for a job. His girlfriend Anushka (Amruta Khanvilkar) urges her father Mahajan (Arun Tikekar) to help him produce capital. Mahajan takes Arjun to the multi-millionaire businessman Ratan Shah (Vidyadhar Joshi) to gain finance. However, Mahajan and Shah use Arjun as a pawn to settle scores with their rival Jay Thackeray (Vinay Apte).
F M Illyas’ Arjun was supposed to be an encouragement tool for the Marathi manoos to excel in the field of business. But what we get is an over-desperate attempt to prove the point courtesy an immature script and over-the-top direction. Plus, the attitude shown by the protagonist can pose a threat to the unity of Mumbai.
The proceedings suffer right from the start as two songs are thrown in just when you feel the film is trying to gain momentum. What follows later is a series of tragedies thrown on Arjun. It is just not explained why he is the prime suspect in the murder of a businessman. It is mentioned twice or thrice that there are proofs against him but no attempt is made to enlighten the audience on the so-called proofs.
Later on, Arjun’s sudden emergence and success in the field of business due to a favor by Thackeray’s wife (Varsha Usgaonkar) is laughable. Once Arjun starts shining he starts hurling a chain of pro-Marathi lines which have no effect and fall flat!
If this wasn’t enough, the climax turns out to be the poorest and the most unintentionally hilarious scene of the film! The second most hilarious point is when Arjun builds a huge public toilet at the entrance of Shah’s business site in order to decrease its popularity! Phew!
Composer Lalit Sen doesn’t do a bad job but the songs only act as obstacles in the narration. The dialogues are too over-ambitious, amateur and loud although few are meaningful.
Thankfully, the performance area is respectable. Sachit Patil plays his part perfectly and displays helplessness and cruelty needed by his character with ease. Arun Tikekar, Vinay Apte and Amruta Khanvilkar too chip in with decent acts. The rest of the cast is nothing much to speak about.
Overall, Arjun fails miserably in its effort to be an eye-opener for the Marathi people which will affect its box-office collections.