Director Shanker Raman brings a supremely talented cast and a really dark story based on the modern, yet one of the darkest corners of the Indian national capital region Gurgaon. Located adjacent to India’s capital New Delhi, Gurgaon today is known for high-rise structures, housing scores of multinational companies but also infamous for its crime scenes.
The film, however, focuses on a local real-estate businessman Kehri Singh (Pankaj Tripathy), who has two sons and an adopted daughter Preet (Ragini Khanna). The equation among the family members suggests being polluted from the very beginning as Kehri loves and favors his daughter more than his sons. Well, his love for his daughter is just an attempt at redemption for the crime he has committed in the past.
True to the nature of Gurgaon, the money floats with the amount of land one owns, and property seems to be the major concern of sibling rivalry. Considering Kehri Singh has put all his property under the name of his daughter, his elder son Nikki (Akshay Oberoi) hatches a plan to kidnap his sister and ask his father for ransom.
When the kidnapping and the demand for ransom money don’t turn out to be easy for Nikki, Kehri reaches out to his estranged brother to search for Preet. In flashbacks, the film shows some dark secrets of their family and the society, where even today girl child is looked down upon. India’s patriarchal society is very much evident in cities like Gurgaon and the film very aptly depicts the reality.
Director Shanker very nicely develops the story as well as some of the very complex characters. Every male character in the film gives you the feeling that they can be anybody in the present society. The film tried to show us some reality of a modern society in Gurgaon – particularly the gender bias.
With dark backstories, Gurgaon shows how individuals are struggling to fight with their inner demons for their past misdeeds, while the next generation is still finding themselves taking the wrong turn. Crime, money, turning cultivable lands into concrete jungles, diminishing mortality among youth, and a society with its prejudices are some of the key highlights in the film.
The film has an amazing cast led by the likes of Pankaj Tripathi, Shalini Vatsa, Aamir Bashir, and Akshay Oberoi. Moreover, the story and the performance very successfully created the suffocating atmosphere needed to make the story believable. Yes, Gurgaon is supremely entertaining and engaging. A must-watch indeed!
Gurgaon – Watch the Movie Trailer here
Where to watch Gurgaon (2017)
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