NOW IN THEATERS! Co-writer/directorAditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar is a down-and-dirty, undercover, dance-infused crime thriller in which one man is asked by his country to infiltrate a terrorist organization… all inspired by real events. It’s a long, loud, often savage ride that bounces between espionage, mafia politics, and guns-a-blazin’ mayhem before you even realize how deep you’ve been dragged. Co-written by Ojas Gautam and Shivkumar V. Panicker, the film begins in late 1999 as Intelligence Bureau chief Ajay Sanyal (R. Madhavan) negotiates the release of airline passengers held by a terrorist group from Pakistan in Kandahar, a deal involving ransom money and the freeing of terrorist prisoners. In 2001, another terrorist group from Pakistan attempted to invade the Indian Parliament and almost succeeded. Seeing that these terrorists are getting stronger, better equipped, and more highly motivated, the Pakistani government is either unwilling or unable to stop the attacks.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. Chief Sanyal invokes a long-term covert plan known as Operation Dhurandhar. One such member of the operation is an Indian man, now known as Hamza Ali Mazari (Ranveer Singh). His job is to enter Pakistan through Afghanistan, set up shop in Lyari, and infiltrate the Lyari mafia, which has been funding and arming terrorists against India—led by Rehman Dakait (Akshaye Khanna) and Rehman’s second-in-command cousin Uzair Baloch (Danish Pandor). If he manages to get on the inside, Hamza is to send any terrorist information to Indian Intelligence.
“His job is to enter Pakistan through Afghanistan, set up shop in Lyari, and infiltrate the Lyarian mafia…”
No one said the job would be easy. The first thing Hamza experiences is getting robbed, beaten, and then facing an attempted rape. Hamza is “saved” by the local juice-shop owner, Mohammad Aalam (Gaurav Gera), who is also involved in Operation Dhurandhar. As Hamza works as a lowly juice man, it takes years before he can get even close to Rehman. As “luck” would have it, a rival gang led by Rehman’s father, Babu Dakait (Asif Ali Haider Khan), attacks Rehman’s son at his birthday party, which Mohammad is catering. After the attack, Hamza manages to save the life of Rehman’s youngest boy, but not the elder. Grateful for his willingness to give his life to Rehman’s family, Hamza is brought into Rehman’s illegal operation of counterfeit money, where they plan to flood India with a staggering amount of counterfeit bills.
Considering that Dhurandhar is a 3-and-a-half-hour movie, I’ll spare you more details. You’ll just have to see the movie yourself. Suffice it to say, Hamza ultimately becomes Rehman’s number three behind Uzair. As Hamza, Ranveer Singh is very much like Johnny Depp in Donny Brasco, who gets in too deep and becomes almost too good at his job. There’s also a political element absent from Donny Brasco, as Rehman becomes a de facto leader of Lyari, widely regarded as Pakistan’s most powerful city. He who runs Lyari runs the country. As Rehman’s popularity increases, his endorsement is likely to be an electoral boon for anyone seeking political power, such as the city’s mayor, Jameel Jamali (Rakesh Bedi), whose daughter, Yalina (Sara Arjun), takes a liking to Hamza.
"…when it hits, it really hits."
