Shagird is an usual hotchpotch of the nexus between police, politician and gangsters where one feeds on the other, befriends and betrays at the blink of an eye and the line between good and bad, right and wrong and even the antagonist and protagonist keep blurring all the time. Although, the context, texture, language of the film has been used many times in films such as Ab Tak Chhappan, the USP of the film is once again Nana Pathekar and the sharp twists and turns in the plot give the movie a pace which is quite edge-of-the-seat.

It is a tale of two cops -- one experienced and the other a newbie -- and their manipulation of the system to outdo one another for different reasons. The story is scripted in such a way that after a point of time it becomes difficult to understand who is exploiting whom. Though police officers accepting bribes and working for politicians have been done to death in bollywood and hollywood alike, the film scores in the way it shows how the system is at times mutual and also the other way round. The first half ends on a interesting twist but the second half somehow fails to raise to the suspense created by the first half.

Nana as Hanumant Singh is the soul of the film but Mohit Alawat as Mohit is not quite up for the role. At no point of time, it seemed that the new cop will be able to outwit his senior pro and also the reason behind his turning rogue is quite weak. Anurag Kashyap is just okay while the rest of the crew chips in well.

All in all, Shagird is a fast-paced thriller which will keep the audience hooked but not awe-inspiring. So, it is definitely worth a watch but not a must-watch.

I imagine Paradise as a library of cinema

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“I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.” -- said Jorge Luis Borges once. He must have imagined it to be a book library but for someone like me, I have always imagined it to be a room full of racks loaded with cinema and music. I wonder if paradise will have walls, if it does then a high-definition LCD screen supported by a high-decibel sound system won't be a bad idea, of course needless to say about the couch.

But then I wonder, paradise must be a peaceful place where someone, perhaps some guards or doorkeeper would insist on maintaining silence,like my school teachers who would shout at the top of their voice: "Pin drop silence". Although in school, we never bothered to listen to the teachers, paradise perhaps would have stricter rules. so I might need a good piece of earphones, wireless would be better. If this really is what paradise looks like, I would have no qualms of leaving now for the sojourn.

But then again I wonder that people say one has to earn his or her right to be in paradise. It is something sort of an elite community, where getting membership is too tough and a lesser mortal like me, who
have never been a part of any elite group ever, sneaking in could be a bit difficult.

But then, paradise must be having different set of rules and criteria such as weighing one's sins and vices against one's virtues and good deeds. I mean, at least that's what my grand parents and then my parents used to say and even the 'Sadus' and 'sants' propagate that at the jagrans and TV channels. But looking at the current state of things in our world, I wonder if paradise too have made some concessions, I mean making the rules a little flexible. Also if the concept of 'jugaad' is acceptable in paradise.

Well, there is no limit of imagination, no sky can bind the flight of imagination and so many such things keep visiting my brain from time to time at the dead of the night. After grappling for sometime with this
thought of paradise, I give up and settle for a better idea: Lets make that paradise here on earth. And thus starts another day of slogging to keep that idea alive.