Rustom was written by Vipul K. Rawal and directed by Tinu Suresh Desai in 2016. Akshay Kumar, Ileana D’Cruz, Arjan Bajwa, and Esha Gupta play key roles in the film. The story of a naval officer whose wife has an adulterous affair with a businessman is told in the film, which is based primarily on the K. M. Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra court case.
The movie, which had a $500 million (US$6.3 million) budget, started main production in February 2016 and had its theatrical debut on August 12 in Indian cinemas. The movie was very successful in India. It was among the highest-grossing Hindi movies of 2016.
One of the highest-grossing Indian movies, Rustom has made over 2.1 billion (US$26 million) at the box office globally and his depiction of the title character, Kumar won the National Film Award for Best Actor at the 64th National Film Awards.
The events depicted in Rustom actually happened in Mumbai (then Bombay) in 1959. In the film, a navy commander accidentally kills his wife’s mistress. One of the earliest instances of moral police being replaced by the media and the populace being influenced by it occurred in independent India.
It’s interesting to note that Rustom is not the first movie about the historic case being produced. Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke, starring Sunil Dutt, was largely based on the circumstances of this case and was released in 1963. This case served as inspiration for the 1973 Vinod Khanna and Gulzar film Achanak.
Plot
Honorable Indian Navy officer Rustom Pavri (Akshay Kumar) arrives home from the sea earlier than expected. He longs to see his wife Cynthia (Ileana), thus his bafflement at her absence from the house comes as a shock.
He learns through their maid that she hasn’t been back for two days. When Rustom contacts his friend Preeti Makhija (Esha Gupta) to ask about Cynthia, she replies that she doesn’t know where she has gone. Vikram, Preeti’s brother (Arjan Bajwa), is also contacted by Commander Pavri, but his servant reports that he isn’t at home.
Rustom searches through Cynthia’s belongings to find some secret love letters she’s sent to someone named MR V. He visits Vikram’s house in an effort to see Cynthia and Vikram together.
Cynthia breaks down after confessing her adultery. Rustom is startled and instantly departs to meet Vikram. He kills Vikram three times before turning himself in to the police.
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He admits to the crime and rejects being placed in naval custody, even with the help of a defense attorney. He enters a not-guilty plea and declares that he will defend himself. Rustom killed Preeti’s brother, and she wants him to be punished.
The prosecution tries to show during the jury trial that Vikram’s death was a premeditated murder and not an accident. Rustom asserts that after confronting Vikram, he got into a fight with him and shot the latter to protect himself. Cynthia meets with Rustom’s senior, she demands Rs 5 crore in exchange for the papers. When she accepts, the officer gives her the check.
However, the investigating officer discovers a tape that proves Rustom had vowed to kill Vikram. He plays the tape in court and is aware that he might have influenced the jury’s verdict. But since he was implicated in a fraud that endangered national security, Rustom admits to the policeman that he did plan Vikram’s murder.
He asked Rustom to approve the inspection of a plane carrier that was damaged, but Rustom refused. He cautions the other dishonest police not to purchase the carrier or he will release his findings to the public.
After Vikram claims he doesn’t want Cynthia and won’t marry every woman he sleeps with, he shoots him. Amidst widespread popular backing and his impeccable reputation, the jury finds Rustom not guilty.
Review
Although Tinu Suresh Desai successfully imprints his touch on this film, it ultimately feels insufficient. He strives to keep homogeneity between scenes, but there are some nice transition effects.
That’s pretty much the only interesting or original thing about the courtroom historical drama, which only transports Bollywood to an era when the details feel rushed and the characters are sleazy clichés with
uninspired twists.
A weak guy like Rustom shouldn’t have been transformed into a jingoistic patriot who is above the law because of the fictionalized account of actual events. The second half isn’t exciting or fast-paced enough, with the majority of the action taking place in the courtroom.
Rustom feels uneven despite the director’s persistent efforts to keep everything consistent, and that is due to the inconsistent production design, simple costume design, and subpar visual effects.
The major courtroom moments felt silly and slow as a result of the editing, which also could have been more concise. The tracks of Rustom are catchy and have a nice musical quality.
Conclusion
Thriller with suspense that succeeds in keeping viewers’ attention up until the very end. The entire audience is pleased. This movie is a productive use of time. Akshay Kumar’s supporting cast members do a superb job of complementing his performance.
The plot changes in surprising ways as the history is gradually revealed. Because the film was so compelling, I was unable to experience the anguish. We feel as though we are in the 1960s thanks to the attractive graphics. It is without a doubt definitely worth a look for movie fans. You’ll like it more if you don’t know the intricacies of the story.
With a distributor’s cut of between 60 and 65 crores versus a 39 crore investment for the domestic theatrical rights to the movie, Rustom is one of the most lucrative movies of the year.
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Authored by Vvanshika Singhal, a 2nd year Student at National Law University Odisha.