/> MOVIE DETAILS

Cast: Naseruddin Shah, Vijay Raaz, Arjun Mathur, Violante Placido, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Benjamin Gilani, Mahabanoo Mody-Kotwal, Jayati Bhatia
Director: Raja Menon
Producer: Raja Menon, Raj Yerasi, Giulia Achilli

THE FILM

Barah Aana is a 90 minutes film but the kind that could well have been told in an even shorter duration. This is why the film doesn't make as much of an impact as it could have made had the proceedings being tighter.

A story about three poor men who take to crime for some quick bucks, it spends about half it's time reaching to the point which triggers a new journey for the protagonists.

Also, it has 'poverty' written over each of its frames, courtesy extremely poor production values.

Agreed that the film is about poor men but that doesn't necessarily mean that the director couldn't have made the frames more interesting.

His concentration is on the content though and it shows, especially in the second half of the film when the story actually starts moving. From being someone who is being looked down upon by the society, these three man played by Naseeruddin Shah, Vijay Raaz and Arjun Mathur, try to get even by turning into kidnappers.

So, Vijay Raaz takes to crime because his child his unwell, Arjun needs money to find the love of his life. As for Naseeruddin Shah, it's just about being with his two friends till he finds a reason of his own. A reason that leads to the eventual downfall of the trio.

Most of the film is shot in slums by using hand held camera. Now last year's release Aamir too followed the same path but still had a striking look to it's frames. It isn't the case with Barah Aana though. Also, the very metaphor of 'barah aana' is hardly explained and the brief reference towards the end also goes unnoticed.

As for performances, it is a Vijay Raaz show all the way. He is a complete natural and extremely well cast as a watchman whose lifestyle changes the moment money enters his life. Watch out for his body language or sheer dialogue delivery with which he first conveys his angst and then conquest.

Naseeruddin Shah disappoints though as a silent observer who mouths his first dialogues only 10 minutes before the film's climax. In fact his silence starts annoying after a while.

As for Arjun, he is cute once again after a small appearance in Luck By Chance as Farhan Akhtar's friend. He has a future in the world of films. Tanishttha Chatterjee, the young woman who lusts after Arjun, irritates.

From the basic plot point of view, Barah Aana bears a stark resemblance to last year's release C Kkompany. So while in C Kkompany, the trio of Anupam Kher, Tusshar Kapoor and Rajpal Yadav had become modern day Robinhoods, the characters here just think for themselves. Also, C Kkompany was a comedy but Barah Aana is more of a dramatic thriller.

PACKAGING

The DVD comes in a regular plastic case though it is better than the usual Moser Baer 'thin plastic case' that had almost become a trademark for cheap priced DVDs over the years

DURATION

The film's duration is 90 minutes

SPECIAL FEATURES

The DVD doesn't come with any special features

TECHNICAL DETAILS

- 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen Presentation
- Subtitles in English
- Dolby Digital 5.1 and Stereo

PRICE

Rs. 199/=

CONCLUSION

Overall, Barah Aana is a decent film but lacks in production values. It didn't have many ingredients to make you visit theaters, especially in the times when money saved is money gained, but is not a bad watch at all for home viewing.

Rating: **