Kesari Chapter 2: The Untold Story of Jallianwala Bagh headlined by Akshay Kumar and ably supported by R Madhavan, Ananya Panday, and others, will leave you enraged and agitated. Directed by Karan Singh Tyagi, the film draws inspiration from the book titled The Case That Shook the Empire by Raghu Palat and Pushpa Palat. However, it isn’t a historically accurate and chronologically correct interpretation of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919 and its aftermath. The narrative takes quite a few creative liberties in order to present a chapter from the life of Sir C. Sankaran Nair – the man who dared to challenge the mighty British empire in the court of law. Should you take out the time to watch it in theatres? Read on to find out.
Story:
Kesari 2 begins with the horrors of the massacre of thousands of innocent, unarmed people who had gathered at the Jallianwala Bagh on April 13, 1919 during the festival of Baisakhi to protest peacefully against the draconian Rowlatt Act, when soldiers of the British Indian military opened fire at them, without any warning, on the orders of General Reginald Dyer (Simon Paisley Day). We are also introduced to the country’s top lawyer, C. Sankaran Nair (Akshay Kumar), who has never lost a case, is a favourite of the British Crown, and is honoured with knighthood for his loyal services to the British Empire. He is the only Indian member in the Viceroy’s Executive Council that is later tasked with investigating the Jallianwala Bagh killings ordered by General Dyer. Up until this instance, Nair firmly believed that the courts decide between victory and defeat, rather than what’s right or wrong. However, a few instances, including the tragic death of a teenaged boy, insistence of a budding lawyer – Dilreet Gill (Ananya Panday), and the disdain with which Indians were treated by the British, drive him into an existential crisis and ultimately turn him into a freedom fighter-like figure who sues the Crown for genocide. He has to fight against his friend-turned-foe, lawyer Neville McKinley (R Madhavan), who’s equal parts Indian and British, in the courtroom. Does Nair manage to win the case, even as the odds are against him with barely any concrete evidence or surviving witness? That’s what the rest of the film is about.
Review:
It’s not everyday that you watch a commercial Bollywood film in theatres and you, along with the fellow viewers, end up frozen on your seat, without uttering a single word. You realise that much like the others, you are staring at the screen with the names of the victims flashing one after the other as the end credits roll. You feel a sense of sorrow for the innocent lives lost, but more than that, you feel every inch of your skin raging with anger and resentment at the British Crown for not even acknowledging the horrific massacre. That’s the feeling Kesari Chapter 2 leaves you with, long after you’ve left the theatre. You want to read up and know more – about the tragedy, about Sir C. Sankaran Nair, about what exactly transpired on and after April 13, 1919. If a film, however dramatized, makes your revisit such an important chapter in the colonial history of your country, it’s safe to say that it’s a job well done on part of the makers.
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A spiritual sequel to Kesari (2019) that was based on the Battle of Saragarhi, Kesari 2 doesn’t vouch for historical accuracy as the makers explicitly mention in a disclaimer that it’s a fictionalised account inspired from the aforementioned book. So, there’s some tampering with the chronology, setting, and the events following the original massacre, but in the hands of debutant director Karan Singh Tyagi, who has co-written the screenplay with Amritpal Singh Bindra, the story is dealt with a lot of empathy, earnestness, and gravity, especially in the sequences dealing with, and the aftermath of the Jallianwala Bagh tragedy. The writer duo manages to effectively bring the pathos and plight of the victims of the massacre to screen while focusing on the tragedy on one hand and balancing it with a gripping, and engaging, albeit a little predictable, courtroom drama on the other. Tyagi makes a sincere and compelling directorial debut. He manages to hit the viewers right where it hurts the most, extracting outstanding performances, in a well-knit screenplay that occasionally deviates from its narrative.
While the first half sets the tone and introduces us to the key characters and events that shape the narrative, it’s the second half where the courtroom drama unfolds in all its glory and the film truly finds its voice. However, much like a lot of other Bollywood films, the court proceedings in Kesari 2 are also not devoid of spectacle. During the court proceedings, even when the director gives in to the temptation of theatrics and one-upmanship, there are cleverly placed subtle nuances that bring a smile to your face. Sample a scene involving a glass of water offered to one of the witnesses, in turn, by both the lawyers. It effectively highlights the tension and power play between the duo, without any explicit war of words. When required, both the lawyers don’t hesitate in engaging in high-pitched verbal battles as well. There also comes a time when the courtroom drama comes dangerously close to having its own “You can’t handle the truth” (à la A Few Good Men) moment, but hiccups like there are few that we’d be more than willing to let slide. Another scene that deserves a special mention is when Akshay’s Nair is seen reading a letter from one of the Sikh freedom fighters who had been convicted because of him, detailing how his son would’ve died. It will definitely leave you teary-eyed.
Akshay Kumar doesn’t remotely look close to a Malayali, nor do his actions or mannerisms justify his character being from Kerala. However, what he lacks in appearance, he more than makes up for it with his outstanding performance and impactful dialogue-delivery. The actor once again proves the wonders he can do when he decides to sink his teeth into his character and put in some effort in his films. He plays Sankaran Nair with the required flair and gravitas in equal measures, effortlessly oscillating between moments of emotional uncertainty and fearless determination. There are quite a few moments where he shines and proves his mettle as an actor. The monologue he delivers during the climax, with expletives hurled at the Britshers, felt deeply personal and oddly satisfying for some reason.
R Madhavan seems to be having the time of his life playing advocate Neville Mckinley, who defends the British Empire in the court. His performance as the arch-nemesis of Akshay’s Nair serves as a testament to his prowess as an actor. He plays Mckinley with a certain smugness and flamboyance that becomes a key character trait. Ananya Panday has been consistently surprising and improving with every subsequent character she’s portrayed since Netflix’s Kho Gaye Hum Kahan (2023). In Kesari 2, she impresses as Dilreet Gill and delivers a sincere performance, treading between vulnerability and persistence. She gets one particular scene in the court to shine, and she makes the most of it by hitting it out of the park.
Simon Paisley Day’s portrayal of General Dyer deserves a special mention for his act as it will make you hate him to the core and that is mainly because he’s done a commendable job. Amit Sial as the advisor to the British doesn’t get much to do, but delivers well within the scope of his character. Regina Cassandra does a decent job in a small part, playing Nair’s wife Parvathy. Krish Rao, who plays a Sikh boy named Parghat Singh, does a fantastic job in a small but impactful role.
Kesari 2 is also well made from a technical standpoint. The cinematography by Debojeet Ray is top notch and sends chills down the spine, what with the use of grayscale and blue-toned colour palette throughout the film, effectively setting the gloomy mood and highlighting the cold-blooded nature of the manslaughter that took place at the Jallianwala Bagh – which is a welcome relief from the sepia tinted scenes we’re used to witnessing in historical dramas. The horrors of the massacre captured with a mix of wide angles, tight closeups, and aerial top down shots is truly commendable and comes a close second to how the same tragedy was portrayed in Shoojit Sircar’s Sardar Udham (2021). Subtle nuances in several frames stay back with you, like a shot where you see General Dyer standing in front of the British flag in a key moment or the one where you see the reflection of raging fire in Akshay’s specs, even after the film is over.
Shashwat Sachdev’s musical compositions are impressive. The rousing track O Shera – written by Sukhwinder Amrit and sung by Manmohan Waris, Kamal Heer and Sangtar, and the haunting number Kitthe Gaya Tu Saiyaan – with lyrics by Irshad Kamil, in the vocals of Shashwat and Shanya Kashyap, particularly stand out. Nitin Baid’s crisp editing makes the film’s runtime of two hours 15 minutes highly engaging and gripping. Production design by Rita Ghosh and art direction by Krishnanand Sharma too are quite effective in recreating pre-independence colonial British India milieu. The dialogues by Sumit Saxena and Akshat Ghildial are written quite well and will draw quite a few applauds, especially in the courtroom sequences with the monologue in the climax being a clear standout.
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Verdict:
Even though the film doesn’t vouch for historical and chronological accuracy, and quite a lot of creative liberties have been taken in order to up the ante on the drama quotient, Karan Singh Tyagi succeeds in delivering a heartfelt and sincere tale with a lot of empathy and gravitas. With a tight screenplay, commendable performances, a rousing background score, impressive music, some applaud worthy dialogues, and genuinely gut-wrenching scenes, Kesari Chapter 2: The Untold Story of Jallianwala Bagh makes for a compelling watch.
Kesari Chapter 2: The Untold Story of Jallianwala Bagh
Watch in: Theatres
Director: Karan Singh Tyagi
Writers: Karan Singh Tyagi, Amritpal Singh Bindra, Sumit Saxena, Amit Ghildial
Cast: Akshay Kumar, R Madhavan, Ananya Panday, Amit Sial, Simon Paisley Day, Regina Cassandra, Krish Rao
Rating: 3.5 stars
