Ghulam (1998)

This is (apparently, I didn’t notice it until I read wikipedia) a remake of On the Waterfront that translates really well to a Mumbai neighborhood run by a vicious and short-tempered gangster, Ronnie. Siddhu (Aamir Khan) is a petty criminal and boxer whose brother Jai works for Ronnie. Siddhu’s not interested in following Jai’s path, but he sees no reason to oppose Ronnie’s reign of fear, either. He’ll take the odd job match-fixing by beating up a cricket player, but he’s busy with his own stuff, like romancing a stunning, motorcycle-riding, and tragically dubbed Rani Mukerji (Alisha).

I love the lighting in this movie. It's not subtle, but boy is it pretty.

We are to understand that Siddhu is very brave, or at least brash, after a game playing chicken with an oncoming train. (That goes for Aamir Khan, too, who did the stunt himself. And by “stunt” I mean actually jumping out of the way of a moving train like you see in the movie.)

There’s like 5 shots of this from different angles. I love 90s Bollywood.
They always made sure to get their money’s worth out of every dramatic moment.

His only advice to Ronnie’s victims, though, is stay down and stop making trouble. Does his apathy temper his bravery, or does it cover for cowardice? He doubts himself when he remembers his father, who stood against the British for independence and taught his sons to fight injustice. He gradually becomes unable to ignore the violence by Ronnie and his gang, and finally has to face it when he’s inadvertently responsible for the death of a social worker at Ronnie’s hands.

There’s finally a shift in him during the boxing match-- midway, Jai tells Siddhu to throw the match because Ronnie put a bet on his opponent. He seems to consider this, but when he’s knocked down, he gets back up again despite Jai’s instructions. I was just waiting for the big defiant move that wins the match, but it doesn’t happen. He gets beaten back against the ropes, his face all bloodied, and loses anyway. That’s how it goes when you’re under the thumb of those with money and power, and Jai has accepted it, telling Siddhu to face the real character of their father, who wasn’t the brave hero he wished he was.

Despite all this, Siddhu makes the decision to live up to his father’s ideals instead of his actions, and we watch his resolve deepen as the dawn breaks. (Did I already say I loved the lighting? I really loved the lighting.) 

I know that the journey from apathetic petty criminal to a fighter for justice isn’t exactly new, but this is Aamir, and he makes you believe in Siddhu every step of the way. So it’s all the more satisfying when the tough, idealistic lawyer convinces him to testify in court against Ronnie. She exerts the opposite influence from Jai, recognizing the strength inside him, and refusing to give up until he does the right thing.

Also she just kicks ass. I liked her a lot.

The ending is what you’d expect. It’s gratifying to see the people finally take a stand for their rights and all that, and to see Siddhu fight and get back up again, and for justice to finally triumph, but I wish they’d explored more of what we saw in the boxing match. What happens when you try and the bad guys still win? What if you do something wrong, and people can’t forgive you, even if you didn’t foresee the consequences? Ghulam is gritty and dark enough to satisfy me, though, and because it does bring up those questions I think it makes the the triumphant ending much more worthwhile.

Plus, it's not all dark and violent. There's Aamir/Rani songs galore, and the adorable Aati Kya Khandala is actually sung by Aamir himself.