By:
Taran
Adarsh,
IndiaFM
Friday,
June
29,
2007
With
Shraddhanjali,
his
directorial
debut,
Anil
Sharma
proved
that
he
could
make
you
moist-eyed.
With
Hukumat,
he
proved
that
he
could
pull
off
a
vendetta
fare
with
gusto.
With
Gadar,
he
proved
he
could
handle
a
love
story
with
two
neighboring
countries
as
the
backdrop
with
remarkable
ease.
Apne,
his
new
endeavor,
is
all
about
familial
bonding.
In
a
way,
the
storyteller
goes
back
to
his
roots
in
his
new
outing
--
emotions.
Apne
casts
a
father
[Dharmendra]
and
his
two
real-life
sons
[Sunny,
Bobby]
in
roles
that
suit
their
personalities.
Besides,
the
backdrop
of
boxing
makes
the
conflict
in
the
story
look
convincing.
Apne
is
rich
in
emotions
and
a
number
of
sequences,
especially
those
between
Dharmendra
and
Sunny,
are
electrifying.
Also,
the
boxing
matches
[Chris
Anderson]
are
pulse-pounding
and
you
clench
your
fists
tightly
due
to
the
tension
that's
depicted
on
screen.
But
Apne
has
its
share
of
shortcomings
as
well.
Ideally,
the
film
should've
had
a
concise
format
of
2.15
hours,
instead
of
2.54
hours.
Besides,
the
screenplay,
although
tight
at
most
times,
succumbs
to
mediocrity
at
places.
Music
too
is
another
aspect
that
should've
had
a
lingering
effect,
since
it's
not
everyday
that
the
three
Deols
come
together.
To
sum
up,
Apne
is
desi
at
heart
and
holds
appeal
for
those
who
swear
by
desi
flicks.
A
worthy
effort
nonetheless!
Baldev
Singh
Choudhary
[Dharmendra]
won
a
silver
medal
in
the
Olympics
and
made
India
proud.
His
only
dream
was
to
make
history
by
becoming
India's
first
World
Heavyweight
Boxing
Champion.
But
sometimes
dreams
get
shattered
before
they
can
be
realized.
When
in
the
U.S.,
fighting
for
the
World
Heavyweight
Championship,
the
betting
mafia
conspires
against
him
and
gets
doping
charges
leveled
against
him,
which
gets
him
banned
from
boxing.
For
an
athlete
nothing
can
be
worse
than
doping
charges.
Baldev
wants
to
get
rid
of
this
stigma
and
pain
by
training
his
elder
son
Angad
[Sunny
Deol]
in
the
sport
of
boxing
and
make
him
a
World
Heavyweight
Champion
and
create
history
which
eluded
him.
But
Angad
has
some
other
dreams,
other
aspirations,
other
commitments...
Karan
[Bobby
Deol],
the
younger
son,
a
musician,
in
spite
of
wanting
to
fulfill
his
father's
dreams,
is
helpless.
But
the
story
takes
a
turn
when
Karan
decides
to
live
his
father's
dream.
The
situation
spirals
out
of
hand
subsequently...
Apne
grips
you
gradually.
Anil
Sharma
and
writer
Neeraj
Pathak
open
the
cards
at
the
very
outset.
The
uneasy
relationship
shared
by
the
father
and
son
[Dharmendra,
Sunny],
Dharmendra's
failed
ambition,
the
turning
point
in
the
tale
[when
Bobby
steps
in
to
fulfill
his
father's
dreams]
make
the
goings-on
watchable.
The
narrative
only
gets
absorbing
when
the
focus
shifts
to
the
boxing
ring
and
the
opponent
[Luca]
steps
into
the
picture.
But
there's
a
flip
side
too.
The
choreography
of
these
sequences
[in
the
boxing
ring]
is
so
real
that
it
can
be
off-putting
as
well,
especially
for
the
faint-hearted.
Also,
the
climax
is
well
crafted,
but,
ideally,
it
should've
ended
when
Sunny
overpowers
the
opponent.
The
subsequent
portions
[Bobby's
liver
problem]
only
add
to
the
excessive
length.
Director
Anil
Sharma
handles
the
emotional
sequences
brilliantly.
In
fact,
a
number
of
scenes
bear
the
stamp
of
a
solid
storyteller.
The
screenplay
[Neeraj
Pathak]
is
taut,
except
for
a
few
loose
ends.
Himesh
Reshammiya's
music
is
a
complete
letdown.
Barring
the
title
track,
the
remaining
songs
are
uninspiring.
Kabir
Lal's
cinematography
is
topnotch.
The
lush
green
fields
and
locales
of
North
India
give
the
film
a
rich
texture.
Apne
belongs
to
Dharmendra.
No
two
opinions
on
that.
The
veteran
roars
like
never
before
and
proves
yet
again
that
he's
a
magnificent
actor.
Sunny
is
first-rate.
Bobby
is
alright,
but
the
one
complaint
that
you
hold
against
him
is,
why
didn't
he
work
on
his
physique
when
he
accepted
this
role?
If
he's
playing
a
boxer,
he
can't
afford
to
show
his
flabby
chest
and
stomach.
The
leading
ladies
don't
have
much
to
do.
Shilpa
at
least
gets
a
few
scenes,
while
Katrina
is
there
to
flutter
her
eyelashes
only.
Kirron
Kher
is
superb
yet
again.
In
fact,
she
has
a
far
meatier
role
than
the
two
ladies.
Divya
Dutta
is
wasted.
Victor
Banerjee
is
natural.
Jawed
Sheikh
gets
minimal
scope.
Aryan
Vaid
is
alright.
Luca
is
excellent.
On
the
whole,
Apne
is
rich
in
emotions
and
has
the
potential
to
strike
a
chord
with
families.
Those
who
love
emotional
fares
are
bound
to
take
a
liking
for
its
theme.
At
the
box-office,
it
has
the
power
to
grow
with
a
strong
word
of
mouth.
Business
in
North
India
will
be
the
best.
However,
trimming
the
film
will
only
elevate
its
status.
Also
read...
Bobby
Deol
on
his
film
Apne
Anil
speaks
on
Deol
family
and
Apne
Dharmendra
remains
a
superstar!
Apne
director
took
boxing
classes
The
Deols
wants
to
distribute
Apne
in
Bombay
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