Review: 'Gangs of Wasseypur II' is eerie & exhilarating

Film: Gangs of Wasseypur (GOW) II
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddique, Huma Qureshi, Richa Chaddha, Zeishan Qadri
Rating: ****

Gangs of Wasseypur II jumps the gun without much ado, taking off from where part I left.

Sardar Khan (Manoj Bajpayee) is dead, eldest son Danish Khan (Vineet Kumar) has gracefully stepped into his shoes, while No. 2 Faizal Khan (Nawazuddin Siddique) is still the pot-head, unaffected, untouched.

GOW was information-heavy, yes, but Wasseypur II is as much a film in itself.

In Wasseypur, there are no natural deaths, no mourning and certainly no time for strategy or forgiveness. When Danish is killed by Sultan Khan, Faizal is prodded, rather blackmailed by mother Nagma Khatoon (who has aged, toughened even more by the killing of her husband and son Danish).

No Wasseypur mother teaches tolerance, or any brother the need for peace. While Nagma Khatoon (Richa Chaddha) threatens Faizal with cutting off her fingers if he doesn't become a revenge-cum-killing machine, Durga packs a gun in son Definite’s schoolbag, mischievously asking him to not get into fights. Wives support the madness of husbands, proudly sashaying around as they kill.

Director Anurag Kashyap takes his time again to establish the change in scenario. The men have turned to exploit businesses like auctioning of Railways' scrap iron, booth-capturing, election violence and overall scare tactics, wielding sophisticated weapons.

Kashyap, again, introduces many characters, sub-plots that add generously to the length (close to 3 hours). Come to think of it, it was a wise decision to go with the two Wasseypurs experiment.

As one movie, the reviews could have read completely different. Not to say individually they’re any tolerable lengthwise.

As a character, Wasseypur is still wily, always on the boil and this time the deaths fly thick and fast. Reluctant gangster Faizal is at the helm of things, unable to figure who to trust. And when he can’t make up his mind he decapitates a close friend, packing off his neatly severed head in a polythene bag to his house. The humour gets darker, more unnerving.

His personal life is way rosier. Only once he’s shooed away for asking ‘Main tumhare saath sex karna chahta hoon’ (I want to have sex wityh you). His lover Mohsina (Huma Qureshi) is quite the beauty, insisting on permissions before any move. The sexual tension is evident and the chemistry is crackling for this unusual couple. He can kill outside, but with Mohsina, Faizal can cry like a baby regretting the violence he got sucked into. She in turn sings ‘Wrongwa right karo’, which is her way of pumping strength into the man weakened by family expectations and ganja.

Durga’s son Definite (Zeishan Qadri) shines in Wasseypur II, as the scheming, ambitious half-brother spurred on by his mother. Politician Ramadhir Singh (Tigmanshu Dhulia) is still the biggest enemy of the Khan Brothers. By the end of it, the equation is going to change vastly. So much scope for another Wasseypur.

Some of the best-shot (and stretched) chases take up a lot of Wasseypur II’s time. A mentionable one is where Rajkumar Yadav chases Definite through the narrow gullies of a very crowded area.

It reminded me of Shaitan, where, coincidentally, Yadav is being chased with the apt Pintya Gela Rey playing in the background. Peculiar characters (Definite, Perpendicular, Tangent), quirky songs (Kaala Rey, Electric Piya, Chi Cha Ledar) and overall eeriness add character to Wasseypur II.

Guns speak where abusive language fails. Patience and a real kaleja will see you through this fast-paced, exhilarating blood fest. Kashyap makes sure the gore is beyond redemption. If you’re turned off by it, not his fault.