BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

YouHeart I gave it a 7.5 out of 10

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Sanjay Bhargava This movie is amazing for me. Ajay Devgan's acting is so fully confident and smart. I love this movie very much. Everyone who play his/her role in this movie is so lucky. Ajay's Serious Acting is so woderful and i really like this movie very much. when Ajay say No to Bipasha I appreciate for this scene because a really men didn't get anything from Any girl. Nana play also very good role and bipasha is also good. Hair style and dressing of ajay is so beautiful and he was looking very beautiful in this movie. I wanna say to that Ajay got the best actor award for this movie. Story and camera work is also very nice. I wanna give lot of thanks to mr. prakash jha for making the two great movies. No.1 is Apaharan (Ajay Devgon) No.2 is Gangajal (Ajay Devgan)

kathuria_nidhi Apharan is a story set against the milieu of Kidnapping, which is a booming industry in Bihar, India. The writer and director Prakash Jha has tactfully captured the pulse of the crime city and translated it realistically and most effectively in the movie. The business of kidnapping is so mechanized that even the smallest part of the machinery, which is a 'pan wallah' performs his part in crime with precision. From a middleman to a police officer, to a high profiled politician behind the crime, kidnapping is the name of the game everyone likes to play for high cuts and speedy gains. The protests are curbed, lives are taken without a thought and the city is on the one-way road to becoming a 'jungle-raj', where the whole process of raising voice for the victim and the protector assuring them of solving crimes, is nothing but a facade. It is difficult not to feel revulsion and empathy at the same time for the generation that is fast becoming the victim and perpetrator of such racket. Apharan is also a story of a complex father-son relationship that falls out because both see each other as the culprit to the ideals and values they hold high. There are no black and whites when one views their relationship from outside, but the director in Prakash Jha chose to conclude the story where the poetic justice must be met. This however, leash the creative genius what the film was capable of becoming. It's a great film nevertheless, and a must watch for Nana Patekar's fans that would like to see him in the same element as the thespian was in Parinda. Prakash Jha after Gangajal has again managed to extract simply breathtaking performance by Ajay Devgan as Ajay Shastri who once dreamt of becoming a police officer. He refused to live like a failure and switched lanes that only led him to the path of success, power and eventually self-destruction. The item number in Apharan is quite weak compared to 'Babuji Zara Dheere Chalo', which shot model Yana Gupta to instant fame in Gangajal. Because of a herd of characters that are not all essential to the plot, film loses its pace after the interval. The climax could certainly have been more heroic. Actors Mukesh Tiwari in the role of honest police officer Anwar Khan and Yashpal Sharma as Tabrez Alam's (Nana Patekar) key kidnapper who operates from jail, are simply brilliant and actors to watch out for. Mohan Agashe, Ayub Khan, Murali Sharma, Mukul Nag and Ehsaan Khan also did justice to their roles. Bipasha Basu as Megha Basu, playing Ajay's ladylove didn't come across very naturally, though her performance was satisfactory. Why watch Apharan? Because it's an undeniable eye-opener, boasts of realistic acting, effective cinematography, fitting premise and production, and has almost a flawless direction.The Story: Ajay Shastri (Ajay Devgan) aspires for a job in the police force, which is his ticket to a future of power, respectability, social status and a secure life with his childhood sweetheart Megha (Bipasha Basu). And he hopes it will make his father (Mohan Agashe) proud too. Ajay is prepared to do anything to meet this end. Tragically, his desperate attempt at success is snapped by the choices made by his father. Dejected and disillusioned, Ajay is drawn into a dark world from which there is no return…Under the aegis of self-proclaimed minority political leader Tabrez Alam (Nana Patekar), Ajay soon tastes success and power. What happens when power and ambition clash with ideals and values? Is there a way Ajay's repentance can lead to his redemption as well? Watch Apharan to find out!

bollywoodplusplus Prakash Jha creates yet another masterpiece in his inimitable style. If you loved Gangajal, you'll love this even more. Very well acted by Nana Patekar and Ajay Devgan. (why do Indian movies have to give credits to 'hero' 'heroine' & 'villlain' always??). Bipasha Basu's character is less significant than many other supporting characters in the movie.Great editing, camera-work, background music, art, of the movie makes the narrative very effective! And the storyline weaves through true Bihar politics & mafia nexus, and is narrated very effectively. Deserves attention of the Critics Choice award! The movie is worth watching for Nana Patekar's acting itself. Its been a long time, we haven't seen Parinda's Nana in another bone-chilling act (although this comes nowhere close to Parinda).Overall, this movie is a must watch for the socially aware people.

SinglePlex At a basic level, "Apaharan" traces the evolution of Ajay Shastri (Devgan), an innocent lad being pushed around by the system to becoming the system himself. There are two influences working on him, viz, his father's Gandhian idealism and acceptance of corruption as a way of life all around him. He tries to escape the insult and exploitation that his father's idealistic stand begets him--- only to get insulted and exploited by the likes of Tabrez Alam (Patekar) who use him for their own purpose. Yet, Devgan's don is a reluctant hero. He takes to crime because as an honest and hard-working citizen, society treated him as a "freak"!"Apaharan" then talks a State held at ransom by the greed and corruption of a system meant to protect it. It talks of the kidnapping of a child's innocence by a greedy system where merit has no role. It talks of society's resignation to the state of affairs and how we all give in... for there are no options.What I liked about "Apaharan" is that it does not have any good guys and bad guys, nor does it offer any magic solutions. It tells it like it is. It shows every member of society as responsible for the decay-- right from the ministers to religious leaders to traders to teachers to the youth "experimenting" with crime at a corner tea-shop! At the same time, it is not a cynical story. It has optimism and power of positive action.To believe that this movie has anything to do with Bihar would be entering a fool's paradise. Yes, it is set in Bihar-- although shot in Satara (Maharashtra), if one goes by the credit acknowledgment. Yes, it speaks of a situation that Bihar is going through. Yes, it uses a Bihari idiom and dialect to move the story.The characters, their motivations and their reactions are not limited to Bihar, though. If that were the case, it would not find such a wide appeal.Like all good cinema, "Apaharan (2005)" tells a story. That's it. And kudos to Prakash Jha for telling us an "art house" story with "masala potboiler" action. But for the trademark Prakash Jha finesse, this movie reminds one of typical Bollywood fare like "Vaastav", "Nayakan" and "Company". Good action and powerful performances!