IC 814 The Kandahar Hijack review: Indian acting ke Avengers ikattha hote hain Anubhav Sinha ke gripping aur nuanced thriller ke liye.
IC 814 The Kandahar Hijack review: Anubhav Sinha ke last directorial, Bheed (2023), mein unhone ek untold true story ko dikhane ki koshish ki thi – 2020 ke coronavirus lockdown ke dauran migrant crisis. Real-life events ko document karte hue bhi, unhe apni imagination se stories ko piece together karne ki liberty aur luxury mili thi. Lekin apni debut web series mein, unhone ek historical hijack story ko holistic, accurate, aur non-judgemental lens se batane ka Herculean task successfully pull off kiya hai.
Skimming the cheese: IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack ek aisi kahani hai jo 1999 mein Indian Airlines Flight 814 ke hijack ke aas paas ghoomti hai. Paanch armed men ne is flight ko Kathamandu, Nepal se New Delhi ke liye take off karte waqt hijack kar liya. Flight ko kai deshon ke alag-alag locations par le jaya gaya, aur aakhir mein Kandahar, Afghanistan mein land karaya gaya, jo uss waqt Taliban ke control mein tha aur jahan Osama bin Laden chhupa hua tha. Yeh hijack apne aap mein ek unprecedented aur fascinating case study ban gaya. Jab baaki duniya naye millennium ka swagat kar rahi thi (yeh hijack December ke last week mein hua), tab Indian bureaucracy 180 passengers ko rescue karne ke liye struggle kar rahi thi. Jaise ke pata chalta hai, yeh hijack purane millennium ke last week mein hua aur naye millennium mein terrorism ka tone set kar diya.
Sach zyada ajeeb ho sakta hai fiction se, lekin yeh hamesha ek thriller ki tarah appetizing, fast-paced, aur well-rounded nahi hota. Anubhav ne pehle bhi mazaaki andaz mein yeh kabul kiya hai ki unhone cheese – yaani ek layer of narrative exigencies – add kiya hai taaki ek hard-hitting socio-political drama ko thoda zyada engaging banaya ja sake. Lekin IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack ke case mein, sach se hatne ki scope bahut kam hai, aur Anubhav ne is sach ko honor karne ka decision liya hai. Accuracy ka bojh uthane ke bajaye, Anubhav ne usse apnaane ka faisla kiya. Yeh ek rewarding narrative choice hai, kyunki woh iske badle ek aur zyada compelling narrative choice ke saath aate hain – sabhi fronts ko cover karna, chahe left ho ya right, micro ho ya macro, past ho ya present, aur war ho ya peace.
No hijinks in hijack: Saaf hai ki Anubhav ka focus ek immersive hijack thriller banane par nahi hai. India mein is genre par zyada kaam nahi kiya gaya hai, lekin Ram Madhvani ki 2016 ki film Neerja is genre ka gold standard bani hui hai. Jaise us real-life story mein, airline staff apni official responsibility ko ek badge of honour ki tarah pehente hain. Patralekhaa (air hostess Indrani ke roop mein) apne character mein gehri empathy laati hain, passengers ka khayal waise hi rakhti hain jaise wo apne bimar pitaji ka rakhti jo ghar par unka intezaar kar rahe hain. Aditi Gupta (air hostess Chhaya ke roop mein) bhi humein apne uniform ke pare dekhne par majboor kar deti hain, aur sochne par ki kya unka ek hijacker ke saath dusre duniya mein connection ho sakta tha. Vijay Varma Captain Sharan Dev ke roop mein machines ke aas paas waise hi organic tareeke se emote karte hain jaise humans ke saath. Woh efficient, shrewd, soft, aur generous har hisse mein hain.
Jaise har hijack ya hostage story mein hota hai, kuch passengers ka back story hota hai. Anubhav inko gehraayi mein explore nahi karte, lekin har ek kaafi chhoti-chhoti baatein dete hain jinke baare mein socha ja sake jab hum bade scene ke saath bane rehte hain. Ek orthopedician, jo ek zakhmi passenger ki jaan bachane ki zimmedaari se bachne ke liye apni specialisation ka hawala deta hai, baad mein apne specially abled bete ke saath flight mein akela fasa hone par apni fatherly duty se bhi bachne ke liye struggle karta hai. Yeh us macro scenario ka bhi ek reflection hai jahan politicians aur bureaucrats apni fundamental responsibility ko nazarandaz karte hain aur desh ke liye apne farz ko dusre intelligence agencies aur political parties ki incompetence par dal dete hain.
Kyuki Anubhav ka dhyaan bade picture par hi rehta hai, unki hijack saga ke thrills un intensity, urgency, aur frequency ko match nahi karte jo best hijack stories mein hoti hai. Hijackers bahut hi aaraam se guns aur bombs ke saath aircraft mein ghus jaate hain, jo international airports par hone wale roz ke security lapse ko dikhata hai. Jab woh control lete hain, toh aircraft mein ek predictability ki hawa si chha jaati hai – jaise sab log pehle se iske liye taiyaar the. Lekin sabse exhilarating moments tab aate hain jab aircraft ko land karne par majboor kiya jaata hai. Vijay Varma us scene mein zabardast hain jismein woh aircraft ko Lahore runway par wapas le jaate hain jab unhe pehle land karne ki permission nahi milti.
Is genre ka subversion tab hota hai jab passengers aur hijackers hijacking ke chhathwe din antakshari khelte hain aur cigarette exchange karte hain, jo ek ajeeb se relatable touch ko jodta hai. Aur phir agle hi pal, airline crew armed hijackers ko force se outnumber karne ki planning karte hain. Yeh dikhata hai ki passengers, jo larger population ka ek sample space hain, aksar bade zulmon se samjhauta kar lete hain, lekin agle hi moment mein coercive action mein aa jaate hain.
Agar ek aankh hijacked airplane par hai, toh doosri aankh Indian intelligence offices ke closed doors ke peeche ho rahe events par hai. Anubhav ne ek Avengers jaise ensemble of Indian actors ko assemble kiya hai – Pankaj Kapur ko Minister of External Affairs, Naseeruddin Shah ko National Security Advisor, Aditya Srivastava ko RAW Secretary, Kumud Mishra ko RAW Joint Secretary, Kanwaljit Singh ko Director, Intelligence Bureau, Manoj Pahwa ko Additional Director, IB, aur Aravind Swamy aur Dibyendu Bhattacharya ko MEA officers ke roop mein cast kiya hai. Ek scene hai jahan in nau powerhouses ka room share karte hain – sabko zyada karne ka mauka nahi milta, lekin kisi kamzor actor ke scene mein aane se woh scene gir sakta tha. Yeh sab actors reacting aur doing mein masters hain, acting aur speaking ke bajaye.
Lekin agar Anubhav ke paas itna acha talent available tha, toh unhone hijackers ke liye aur bhi behtar actors hire kiye hote. Rajiv Thakur, jo zyada tar The Great Indian Kapil Show ke comedic stint ke liye famous hain, thode mildly effective hain as the menacing, uncompromising hijacker with a borrowed British accent. Lekin ek seasoned actor is crucial character ko zyada heft aur focus de sakta tha. Unki Manoj Pahwa ke tough-as-nails IB officer ke saath negotiations kaafi skewed lagti hain, zyada tar Pahwa ke side par. Yaad hai Jim Sarbh ne Neerja mein kya kiya? Ek young, lekin zyada equipped actor chief hijacker ke role ko is show mein chamatkaar kar sakta tha. Actually, Anubhav ko door dekhne ki zarurat nahi thi: Squid Game fame Anupam Tripathi, jo is show ke saath apne Indian screen debut kar rahe hain as a gritty RAW agent, hijacker ke role ko zyada meat aur ritz de sakte the.
Jab sab nau actors ko special task force mein ek hi cake ka tukda share karna padta hai aur zyada kuch karne ka mauka nahi milta, tab bhi kuch actors humein yaadgar moments dete hain. Naseeruddin Shah aur Pankaj Kapur ko ek screen space share karte dekhna ek achhi baat hai, especially cult films jaise Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983) aur Maqbool (2003) ke baad. Unki interactions, jo conflicting stances aur mutual respect se bhari hui hain, ek gift hai jo baar-baar dene wali hoti hai. Tamil actor Aravind Swamy ko Hindi project mein wapas dekhna bhi accha lagta hai – South India ke soft-spoken, smooth-talking officer ke roop mein cast kiya gaya hai, aur woh remarkable hain ek outcast ke roop mein jo alag sochta aur act karta hai bina apne colleagues ko undermine kiye. Unki diplomacy hi woh cheez hai jo India ko tricky situations se bachane ke liye zaroori thi. Dilchasp baat yeh hai ki Naseeruddin, Pankaj, aur Aravind ne do watershed Indian films on terrorism – A Wednesday (2008) aur Roja (1991) – ko headlined kiya hai.
Anubhav apne usual suspects – Kumud Mishra aur Manoj Pahwa – ko bhi action mein le aate hain. Unhone Manoj ko Mulk (2018) aur Article 15 (2019) mein kuch alag aur chunky roles diye hain. Apne debut show mein, Anubhav Manoj ke signature comic strokes ko serious role ke saath mix karte hain, jo ek tasty amalgamation ban jaata hai. Woh humein sabse serious situations mein bhi hasaa dete hain, aur unka hardline approach against terrorism zyada hasi deta hai, cringe se kam. Kumud ka screen presence zyada hai, lekin unka contribution bhi cursory hai, jaise ki doosre achhe actors jaise Dibyendu, Kanwaljit, Sushant (jo apne uniform mein bas pose karte hain), aur Aditya Srivastava bhi. Aditya ko ek memorable scene milta hai jahan woh Jammu & Kashmir chief minister ko ek agreement sign karwane mein convince karte hain bina kisi speaking part ke – kyunki CM baar-baar unhe cut kar dete hain.
Manoj aur Aravind ke characters ke beech ek tasty exchange hota hai, jahan woh coffee aur tea ko religion aur blind faith se compare karte hain, jo unke contrasting political viewpoints ko highlight karta hai. Yeh poore show mein embedded diversity ko encapsulate karta hai. Actually, yeh holistic gaze hi IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack ki jaan hai. Jab aap India ko uski diverse aur iridescent glory mein showcase kar sakte hain, toh cheese ki zarurat kya hai? Anubhav women ko bhi peeche nahi chhodte. Pooja Gaur ka character soldiers’ wives ki resilience aur patience ko symbolize karta hai jo endlessly wait karti hain, even though woh kabhi bhi soldier’s wife banne ke liye nahi sign up ki thi. 1990s ke late India mein newspapers aur television (print media in a hurry) ke beech conflict ko bhi spotlight mein laya gaya hai, ek radiant Dia Mirza aur ek charged Amrita Puri ke characters ke zariye.
Jaise Anubhav har actor ko unke calibre ke hisaab se kuch nahi de paate, waise hi woh expansive screenplay ke sab loose ends ko bhi tie nahi kar paate. Kaun tha woh RAW officer jo airplane mein tha aur jiska naam press aur intelligence agencies ne hata diya? Kya uska rescue operation ko Amritsar airport par rokne mein indirect role tha? Adrian Levy ki story (The Siege: The Attack on the Taj) aur Trishant Srivastava (Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga) aur Anubhav ki screenplay kabhi zyada stretched lagti hai, lekin kuch portions mein impressively tight bhi hai. Ek voiceover jo political context ko spell out karta hai, audience ki intelligence ko discount kar deta hai. Apni holistic approach mein, show itna kuch offer karta hai ki har koi admire kar sake aur kuch cheezein bhi hoti hain jinke baare mein har koi complain kar sakta hai.
Lekin apne dil mein, IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack zyada sawal poochta hai jitna ki asaani se jawab deta hai. Jo wide-ranging consequences hain jo aaj bhi hamare desh ko haunt karte hain, kya humne tab sahi kaam kiya? Kya civilians ko ek aise war mein casualties ki tarah treat kiya jana chahiye jismein unhone kabhi sign up nahi kiya? Kya ek civilian ki koi fundamental responsibility hai sirf elected logon se accountability demand karne ke alawa? Kya brute power ka display diplomacy se zyada important hai? Show shayad yeh nahi dikhata ki us waqt politicians kya kar rahe the, lekin bureaucracy tab ke coalition government ko kaafi achhe se represent karta hai – conflicting viewpoints, blame passing, phir bhi eventually apni best koshish karne ki.
