Dharma Productions, Cape Of Good Films and Leo Media Collective’s Kesari Chapter 2 (A) is about a lesser-known epic legal battle which an Indian barrister (working for the British empire in India), Sankaran Nair, fought against the mighty British empire after the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar. It is based on Raghu Palat and Pushpa Palat’s book, The Case That Shook The Empire: One Man’s Fight For The Truth About The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.
Barrister Sankaran Nair is emotionally so moved by the Jallianwala Bagh genocide that he drags General Dyer to court for committing the dastardly act. He is aided in court by lawyer Dilpreet Gill (Ananya Panday). The defence advocate is Neville McKinley. What is the outcome of the historic but lesser-known case?
Karan Singh Tyagi and Amritpal Bindra have written a story largely based on the aforementioned book. Since it is not a well-known fact that the British empire suffered a huge setback when the case was filed against it in the court for genocide, the story does have immense shock value. The story speaks of an important chapter in the lives of Indians and our freedom struggle. In that sense, it has the power to instill a sense of patriotism in the viewers as it is extraordinarily compelling. The duo’s screenplay is superb. There is not a single scene which looks out of place. Although the drama moves on a single track, there is never a boring moment, which speaks volumes for not just the research but also for the fast-paced screenplay. The climax is simply remarkable and will win a huge round of applause. Why, Sankaran Nair’s use of the F-word thrice in the pre-climax will also stun the audience and draw huge applause from them. The pre-climax as well as the climax, besides several other scenes, have a good dose of patriotism to excite the viewers and make their chests swell with pride. Sumit Saxena’s dialogues, with additional dialogues by Akshath Ghildial, are brilliant. Several of them are clapworthy.
Akshay Kumar is fantastic in the role of barrister Sankaran Nair. He delivers such a controlled performance that it is sheer delight to watch him throughout the film. Ananya Pandey springs a pleasant surprise as lawyer Dilpreet Gill. She delivers a noteworthy performance and lives the role. R. Madhavan shines as advocate Neville McKinley. He uses his facial expressions and body language to great advantage. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that the courtroom drama becomes extremely entertaining because Akshay Kumar and R. Madhavan are perfect matches for each other. Regina Cassandra is suitably restrained as Sankaran Nair’s wife. Simon Paisley Day is first-rate as General Dyer. He acts with aplomb. Amit Sial is phenomenal as Tirath Singh. His facial expressions are to die for. Krish Rao is memorable as Sardar Pargat. He is so outstanding in the scene with Sankaran Nair in his house that he moves the weak-hearted to tears. Steven Hartley makes his presence amply felt as judge McArdie. Mark Bennington is lovely in the role of governor Michael O’Dwyer. Michael James Parr delivers a very fine performance as Major Briggs. Luke Kenny has his moments as the appeal court judge. Jaipreet Singh impresses as Kirpal Singh. Shrikant is realistic as Kartar Singh. Rohan Verma lives the role of Jaan Nisar Akhtar. Alexandra Moloney makes her character completely believable as witness Martha Stevens. Nitish Kapoor provides good support as Tanveer Chaudhary. Moumita Pal (as Pargat’s mother) and Kiara Sadh (as Pargat’s sister) lend lovely support. Alexx O’Nell makes a mark as Lord Chelmsford. Sohan Bandopadhyay is natural as lawyer Chittranjan Das. Andrei is adequate as young Dyer. Masaba Gupta (special appearance) provides oomph in a song-dance number. Anthony (as Colonel Smith), Carl Harte (as William Hunter), Atul Kumar (as the Crowns lawyer), Shahalam Khan (as the European Club washroom guard), Deepak Atani (as Mahatma Gandhi) and the others do as desired.
Karan Singh Tyagi’s direction is excellent. Although he is a debut-making director, he has made an almost flawless film. Not just his script (co-written by him with Amritpal Bindra) but his narration is also terrific. Music (Shashwat Sachdev; Khumaari by Kavita Seth and Kanishk Seth) is melodious and goes perfectly well with the film’s mood. One hit song has intelligently been used from Kesari. Irshad Kamil’s lyrics are weighty and meaningful. Choreography (Khumaari by Vijay Ganguly; Kathakali by Kruti Mahesh; ballroom dance by Khyati Panchmatia) is beautiful. Debojeet Ray’s cinematography deserves distinction marks. Florian Hotz and Sunil Rodrigues’ action and stunt scenes are thrilling and chilling. Rita Ghosh’s production designing is of a high standard. Editing (by Nitin Baid) is super-sharp.
On the whole, Kesari Chapter 2 is a box-office winner. Notwithstanding the relatively slow start it has taken, the film will ultimately go on to do very good business because the super-strong word of mouth will see collections shoot up. Business in cities and multiplexes will be better than that in smaller centres and single-screen cinemas.
Released on 18-4-’25 at Inox (daily 11 shows) and other cinemas of Bombay by Dharma Productions. Publicity: so-so. Opening: average. …….Also released all over. Opening ranged from ordinary to fair. But collections picked up as the day progressed.