Daddy - Movie Review

Director: Ashim Ahluwalia

Cast: Arjun Rampal, Aishwarya Rajesh, Anupriya Goenka, Nishikant Kamat

Runtime: 2hr 14min

Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video

"Daddy" is the 2017 biopic of the former gangster now politician "Arun Gawli" and this really is an interesting story and life to be told on the silver screen. 

Arun Gawli, a young man, is forced to turn to crime for making a livelihood. However, what starts with a simple 'matka' gambling ring, soon turns into a full-fledged criminal network.

Arjun Rampal gives a real and gripping performance as Gawli and is reminiscent of "Russel Buffalino" (a calm and collected gangster who very rarely loses it and is a serious presence) Now the prosthetics is a little distracting as it's noticeable. Even the supporting cast do a good job in portraying their characters. Nishikant Kamat (rest in peace) was a particular stand out in my opinion. He portrayed the seriousness and comedic timing of the cop perfectly.

And this film is a series of flashbacks and a huge chunk of the story takes place in the 70s and 80s India and the production design is exquisite. The bright neon lights, the fairs and the dirty and gritty houses and walls filled with mosses and ferns spreading like a plague are all immersive and the attention to detail is magnificent because these little things add up to your complete experience.

Now we follow the life of Arun 'Gulab' Gawli and how he gets involved with his gangster associates. How he takes part in several raids and has connections with Dawood Ibrahim himself played hauntingly and menacingly by Farhan Akhtar. We don't completely see his face at first, building up the tension.

But eventually, after working for Ibrahim for years, he wishes to feel equal and thus wants out of the gang. He even has a wife and daughter and wishes to be a family man and be there for them which humanises him. He even gains the courage to directly challenge and attempt to assassinate Ibrahim. But after years of rotting in jail and having time to reflect in prison. He comes out and decides to get into politics. He has his supporters, but members from the Parliament aren't willing to give him a second chance because of his criminal past. There was a line I particularly liked, "I've changed, but you all aren't letting me change." 

Despite all this. "Daddy"fails to leave any lasting impression and move you, or make you feel something real which drags it down for me a bit. I appreciate all the talent and work that went into making this dark and gripping tale along with the hypnotic production design. But it needed some heart to it as we don't really get into Gawli's head and psyche enough to understand him completely.

- 3/5

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