Kudrat

Producer : Romu Sippy
Director : Raj Sippy
*ing: Akshaye Khanna, Urmilla Matondkar
Music: Rajesh Roshan

Released on : December 11, 1998

Reviewed by: Anish Khanna
anish@indolink.com

out of 
Once upon a time, there was the brilliant film starring Vinod Khanna, Rajesh Khanna, and Hema Malini - a reincarnation flick which - in my opinion - is one of the most beautiful love stories ever made.  And today, we have the Akshaye Khanna - Urmila Matondkar film revolving around - of all themes - plastic surgery.  I hated this movie the first time around when it was called "Vishwa-Vidhaata".  Yes, Raj Sippy has taken the exact same story as "V-V" and made a technically sloppy, non-entertaining, absolute yawn of a film. 

And what a story to copy!!!  Akshaye plays a college student whose rivalry with Urmila slowly turns into love with the help of his grandfather (Kadar Khan) and her ayah (Aruna Irani).  Enter Urmila's father (Paresh Rawal), who objects to the marriage, as he recognizes Akshaye's face.  See, Akshaye's dad looks nothing like Akshaye, but apprently he used to look like Akshaye. Akshaye Senior killed some of Paresh's relatives in an inane squabble years back, and at the time, Kadar Khan (who belongs to the mythical community of miraculous plastic surgeons) changed Akshaye Senior's face so as to not be recognized.

Sound ridiculously confusing?  Don't even waste a brain cell trying to decipher it.  It's not worth your time or anybody else's.  So, I sat there and bore the pain of this cinematic disaster just waiting for that popular number - the "Pen Di Takki" song!  But even THAT - under pressure from some Sikh organizations - was changed to "Chiddi Ki Dukki"!  Talk about much ado about absolutely nothing....

Performance-wise Akshaye Khanna tries hard.  It's somehow apparent in his pre-plastic surgery face, however, that he knows he is in a disastrous movie and just wants the film to end.  Thank the heavens - it eventually does!  I felt like I deserved a reward after seeing "Kudrat", but I settled for a Citron martini and slept the film off.  Beware: see this film only if you suffer from insomnia or need an excuse to drink.  Even then, think twice.