''Raakh'' () is a 1989 Indian

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

-language

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

directed by

Aditya Bhattacharya Aditya Bhattacharya (born 1965) is an Indian film director and screenwriter, most known for his feature film, ''Raakh'' (1989), starring Aamir Khan and Pankaj Kapur, which garnered three National Film Awards. He is the son of film director Basu ...

, starring

Aamir Khan Mohammed Aamir Hussain Khan (; born 14 March 1965) is an Indian actor, film director and producer who works in Hindi films. Through his career spanning over 30 years, Khan has established himself as one of the most notable actors of Indian ci ...

and

Supriya Pathak Supriya Pathak (born 7 January 1961) is an Indian actress who works in Gujarati and Hindi films and television. She has received multiple awards including three Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting Actress. She is mostly popular for playing the ...

in the lead roles with

Pankaj Kapur Pankaj Kapur (born 29 May 1954) is an Indian actor who has worked in Hindi theatre, television and films. He has appeared in several television serials and films. He is the recipient of several awards, including a Filmfare Award and three Nat ...

, Gajanan Bangera and

Jagdeep Syed Ishtiaq Ahmed Jaffrey (29 March 1939 – 8 July 2020), better known by his stage name Jagdeep, was an Indian actor and comedian who appeared in more than 400 films. He played Soorma Bhopali in ''Sholay'' (1975), Machchar in ''Purana Mandir ...

. The film was Aamir Khan's first movie after ''

Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak ''Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak'' (), also known by the initialism ''QSQT'', is a 1988 Indian Hindi-language romantic musical film, directed by Mansoor Khan, written and produced by Nasir Hussain, and starring Aamir Khan (in his leading film debut) a ...

'' and it received much critical acclaim and subsequently three

National Film Awards The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorat ...

in 1989 and developed a considerable following over the years. The film also marked the Bollywood debut of ace cinematographer

Santosh Sivan Santosh Sivan (born 8 February 1964) is an Indian cinematographer, film director, producer and actor known for his works in Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi cinema. Santosh graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India and has to date co ...

and film editor

A. Sreekar Prasad Akkineni Sreekar Prasad is an Indian film editor. He works predominantly in Telugu, Malayalam, Tamil, and Hindi language films. In a career spanning more than 35 years, he has edited over 600 films. He is a recipient of nine National Film Awards ...

Plot

As declared in the subtitles of the opening scene, the events of the film take place in a big city in India. After the police riots of 1990, the State Forces were disbanded and replaced by a central one. The police now had more powers. The crime rate continued to escalate. In the wealthier quarters of the city, though, life went on... but it was an uneasy calm. Aamir (

) had just turned 21. He is from a rich family. The only colour in his otherwise mundane life was his obsession for Neeta, an older, more pragmatic woman, who likes him, but does not share his plans for their future. One night, on their way back from a party, Neeta is molested by a local crime boss, Hassan Karmali, and Amir intervenes violently. On their way back home in their car, they are intercepted by Karmali, and his goons, and Karmali rapes Neeta, with Aamir watching helplessly. Unknown to Aamir, an off-duty police officer is a silent witness to the incident. Frustrated, possessed by impotent rage and a sense of injustice, Aamir has to find release. He leaves home... he turns to Sub-Inspector Kapoor – the silent witness. Kapoor, pretending to be unaware of the incident, agrees to help Aamir, as, in spite of dancing to their tunes, Kapoor hates the Karmalis and his inability to act against them. (Years ago, Kapoor had taken on the Karmali clan, an unwise move that nearly destroyed his career.) Aamir now feels he has a friend. Till one day, realising the truth, he is shattered. Soon after, S.I. Kapoor is suspended after he loses control in front of his superiors at a party thrown by Karmali and tries to shoot him. His life begins to spiral downwards. Now alone, frightened, without a job, and with nothing to lose, he sees in Aamir the means to fulfill his dark, unresolved dreams, which have by now taken the form of an obsession. Together they set about eliminating their common enemy – members of the dreaded Karmali family. Kapoor, the embittered cop, becomes a dark mentor to the innocent but fearless Aamir. Neeta, unaware of the changes in Aamir's life, has decided to put her past behind her. She begins, slowly but painfully, to reconstruct her life. Meanwhile, Aamir slips into a vortex of terrifying violence – a road to certain doom. While the first murder he commits drives Amir almost crazy with guilt, slowly, he gets used to it and even starts enjoying it. Theirs is a war with no victors, a battle that has no glory. Amidst the lies of a logical life, sometimes the only truth is in madness, in losing control. Finally, Kapoor and Aamir manage to corner Karmali at his sister's wedding. As Kapoor shoots Karmali dead, he is shot at and killed by one of his corrupt ex-colleagues. After Kapoor dies in his arms, Aamir picks up his gun and supposedly shoots down the corrupt cop. The last scene once again returns to the opening sequence, where Aamir, now on death row, contemplates the events of his short and poignant life.

Cast

- Amir Hussein *

- Neeta *

- Inspector P.K. *

- Ustad * Gajanan Bangera - Inspector * Naina Balsaver - Naina * Homi Wadia - Hassan Karmali *

Madhukar Toradmal Madhukar Toradmal (24 July 1932 – 2 July 2017) was a Marathi actor, writer and professor who has acted in numerous Marathi dramas and movies. He was also a writer and translator. He translated over 20 plays. He has been associated with Marathi ...

- Karmali Seth

Crew

* Art Direction – Partho Sengupta

Re-release

This film was to be re-released in theatres in India on 12 June 2009 after 20 years with digitally re-mastered prints, by the film producers together with Palador Pictures. It was to be followed by DVD release in August 2009. The scheduled re-release eventually did not happen due to certain undisclosed reasons, ostensibly because it fell during a producer-multiplex owner standoff during the period.

Awards

36th National Film Awards The 36th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 1988. Ceremony took place ...

: Won * Best Supporting Actor –

* Special Mention (Feature Film) –

* Best Editing –

;

35th Filmfare Awards The 35th Filmfare Awards were held in 1990. ''Maine Pyaar Kiya'' led the ceremony with 12 nominations, followed by ''Chandni (film), Chandni'' with 10 nominations, and ''Ram Lakhan'' with 9 nominations. Sooraj Barjatya's ''Maine Pyaar Kiya'' w ...

: Nominated * Best Actor –

* Best Supporting Actor –

* Best Story –

References

External links

*
Raakh
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