Ram Gopal Verma is back with another story about the underworld. He almost completes a trilogy, if one wants to call it that. First there was Satya, then Company, and now Contract. He has already proved himself to be one of Bollywood's most skilled and accomplished directors, and when it comes to the underworld, he probably has no parallel. The film Contract, evokes mixed feelings. There is a sense of déjà vu, as what the director offers in his latest film, is quite a bit of the same. Whereas with Satya and Company, he broke new ground, with Contract, there is no groundbreaking cinema happening here. He is evidently more comfortable, the film is smooth, no hiccups here, but the fare is more of the same, with just the added element of terrorism.
The problem, unfortunately with the film, lies with its subject and the story. Unfortunately again, for Ramu, one is always expecting something different from this very daring and courageous director. Hence, one is left slightly disappointed with the story. In brief, the story is about an ex army man Aman Mallik (Adhvik Mahajan), who has lost his wife and son in a bomb blast at a temple. He is persuaded by a cop Hussain (Prasad Purandare), to join him in a dangerous operation, which would entail him penetrating the underworld and then busting them. He finally accepts the offer only after the death of his family. He is then trained to infiltrate the ranks of a dreaded underworld goon RD (Sumeet Nijhawan). In the process, he goes to jail and bumps off RD's dreaded rival Goonga (Upendra Limaye)'s righthand man and gains the confidence of the don. Then begins his vendetta trail, as he keeps bumping off the gangsters, one after another. The underworld in Contract is divided into one which has links with terrorists and the other which acts as informant to the Indian intelligence. Quite like Chhota Rajan and Dawood Ibrahim. Eventually, the protagonist manages to get to the head of the fundamentalist group, Sultan. But the end is a little hard to swallow, when Aman does his one man army act.
What really works for the film are its performances, honest and realistic. Debutant Adhvik Mahajan as Aman Mallik, the man on a mission, seems to grow with the role. He has a brooding screen presence which goes well with his character in the movie. He makes an impressive debut. The supporting cast turns in equally good performances. Zakir Hussian as the terrorist, Sumeet Nijhawan as RD the don, Limaye as Goonga, are all of them first rate actors especially noteworthy is Prasad Purandare as the honest cop. The other debutante, Sakshi Gulati, does not have a very meaty role but she still manages to make her presence felt.
It is again a case of déjà vu, in the manner in which the film has been shot, though not as stylish as Company, but some of the same. The music and the soundtrack of the film are also very well worked in with the film's theme. There is the mandatory item number, which is quite impactful, but again not of the 'Khallas' variety. It is the writing which really lets down the film.
In conclusion, one can only say that Varma needs to find something new to say. Thanks to him and his Satya and Company, Bollywood has seen a spurt of films on the underworld. There is hardly any angle there left to explore. It has been done to death. The only novelty possible is in the manner in which the story is told. But this is where Contract's weakness lies. It is unable to tell an old story in a novel and gripping enough manner. The film has some truly masterly scenes, some gritty acting and good cinematography, but it lacks the edge, the punch, which is the trademark of Ram Gopal Varma's cinema. It is a mere shadow of what Ramu has already given us before. That in essence, is the feeling that one walks off with from the cinema theatre.
