Mission Kashmir Review

- Kashmir (Refugee, Fiza and now this)
Revolutionary of the year - Hrithik Roshan (Fiza and this again)
Box-office dud of the year - Kashmir itself

You just can't miss it. It's in the papers, it's on the telly, it's on the silver screen, it's in your conversations, and the next thing you know, it's coming out of your ears. But if you wished for one place that Kashmir hadn't made it to, it would be the confounded minds of our oh-so-great filmmakers. We have had enough for a year and, with the current attitude, maybe for life, of lukewarm attempts to throw light on the Achilles' Heel of our country. And we are none the wiser! And if any of these Smart Alecs tries to tell you that this wasn't the point, anyway, then, pray, what was all the pre-release fuss about?

Mission Kashmir is an out-and-out vendetta film that somehow tries to tap the dramatic potential of the prevailing political situation in Kashmir. Altaaf (Hrithik) is the only surviving member of a family that has been gunned down by SSP Inayat Khan (Dutt). The kid somehow overcomes his shock to transform from a reticent kid to a young man who can finally sing and dance with his own Kashmir ki kali, Sufi (Preity). Sufi, incidentally, organizes concerts for DD that, actually speaking, neither the channel nor the state have ever seen.

Altaaf has other priorities, too, like freeing Kashmir - or is it avenging his family? Decide for yourself. All I can say is that there are some filmmakers who really need to work out their priorities before venturing to tackle sensitive issues. Apart from a few inspirational shots (watch out for the almost Hitchcockian scene where Altaaf goes after Khan, towards the end) and competent performances from from Hrithik, Dutt and also Sonali Kulkarni (she plays Khan's wife), there is little to hold this strained piece of work together.

What irks is that the makers of these films don't have the gall to make a proper political statement. Though there may have been a willingness on the part of Vinod Chopra to make one here, he ultimately remains content with just putting things in black and white. So, in the absence of a clear stand, the film does best in charting out the personal equations between the two main characters. At least here, there isn't an attempt to place the blame on someone's doorstep, and that is rather appreciable. And watch it just for that, and even then if you aren't weary of vendetta.