Agni
Introduction
The firefighters are one of those unsung heroes who haven’t yet being established well on celluloid. And keeping that in mind, the new Hindi film is automatically a novel concept with its setting – it dares to show us a glimpse into the chaotic lives of firefighters who really have a thankless job as a part of their daily chores. In a scene, two characters working with the fire department exclaim on naming one firefighter that the general public have acknowledged and praised (be it on social media or media in general). And the answer was zilch while offering enough moments to ponder on. So, this notion of being oblivious to the public eye is one of the few social commentaries that the drama has to offer here. And in a way, the drama also acts as an understated ode of sorts, even with the writing that occasionally strays into the flames but slightly being conflicted with what it was trying to portray even with the allegory of a potential mischief that has frequently lit up the city of Mumbai in the film. It was kind of bittersweet in an otherwise well-intended drama.
Story & Screenplay
The opening sequence of Agni is an irony in itself – the camera allows the viewers to take a fleeting walk around a fire station in Parel even as a character holds a puja thali comprising of a fire, only for all characters to worship it. This was interesting given that firefighters are the ones who fight fire in a way – or even have the potential of calming a raging flame while doing their bit in rescuing the people trapped amidst it. The mythological relevance of worshipping the fire doubled up as a counter-metaphor of sorts – that it is the fire that saves their lives, much they what they offer in return. It is a symbiotic relationship of sorts, even as the mood of the camp suddenly changes following a blaring alarm that adds to the intensity of the drama. You are tactfully introduced to a couple of the characters Vitthal (Pratik Gandhi) and Jazz (Udit Arora), both outside their working hours who suddenly have to rush to the spot of the fire – a searing commentary on how a firefighter never sleeps. This, followed by a tantalizing rescue-op that presents the firefighters are ‘superheroes’ of the night!
The focus then shifts to the character of Vitthal (notice the continued mythological tone through his name) who continues to struggle in winning the trust and respect of his son, who is more inclined towards his uncle Samit (Divyendu Sharma), a top cop in his own right. In fact, this strained relationship brews the rivalry between a firefighter and a top cop, professionally speaking, wherein the former continues to remain an underdog while the latter is the more glorified superhero. One look at the financial condition of Vitthal living in a humble abode compared to Samit, who lives in a seaside duplex, you get a gist of the indifferent behavior between the two. To further highlight the cause, it is implied that cops are corrupt while often resorting to bribery as seen through the lens of Samit, who has earned the respect of his nephew through the ‘glamorous’ life that he has been leading, much to the dismay of Vitthal. In fact, Samit might be one reason why the cop universe is given so much importance on celluloid, but then I digress…
The proceedings are supremely intense when the focus remains on the multiple firefighting missions that the group collectively participates in. But the itch to introduce an antagonist in the fray is where the drama falters. One of the reasons while Mumbai Diaries is a much celebrated show is because the drama unfolds through the gaze of health workers who combine together to fight a situation, or an unseen establishment, in what forms an underdog story. The issue with Agni lies with its identity, or rather its aspiration – it probably wishes to have a physical formidable opponent in order to further highlight the underdog story, that in turn makes it, its own victim. To be fair, there are stray instances of the politics in play wherein even the character of a politician is shown to side with the cops, even as Vitthal and his team smell foulplay in the multiple fires that have fought through. For Vitthal, it is a trend of sorts of fires suddenly originating out of manual intervention, as opposed to occupational hazards that has been the theory of the cops.
The problem for Agni isn’t so much in the establishment of the drama as a thriller, given that it still is successful in establishing a rivalry between the cops and the firefighters. The issue lies in exposition of the concept that treads on the lines of a serial killer, which slightly felt disconnected from the universe. In fact, the grand reveal itself wasn’t entirely shocking along with a loose character motivation, even as the stakes in the drama are further elevated by the death of a character. That said, the events leading up to the finale also seem slightly staged while being simplistic with their approach. More so, the messaging for me remained skewed which kind of conflicted with the potential underdog story that it initially set out to be. If the focus was just on the characters collectively engaging against the system and their individual circumstances, the impact would have been much higher. The screenplay still boasts of novelty in terms of its setting and characters, and that itself is enough to provide a little leeway with its flaws, while celebrating our unsung heroes who we talk very little about.
Dialogues, Music & Direction
The dialogues by Vijay Maurya are conversational and they definitely keep up with the intensity that the drama has to offer. Moreover, the lines allow the city of Mumbai to play a silent character through the lingo presented by various characters of the film. The BGM is pulsating and contributes well to the thrills which the drama has to offer. The cinematography comprises of multiple drone shots that set the tempo of the drama so well during its opening act. Even the VFX and the production design wonderfully contributes to the tense ambience of the drama. The editing is decent but it doesn’t exactly nullify a few lags in the screenplay, particularly in the transition between the second and third act wherein the writing just went in circles with regard to the conflict. Director Rahul Dholakia does a pretty solid job here, firstly braving through a subject and a world that is essentially new to be built on celluloid, and secondly with the commentary which he presents through his characters. The only minor stumble is in the final act because he chooses to play it safe in a drama filled with fluff without much collateral damage, but other than that, the direction is pretty solid, and how I wish the writing was a little layered to further elevate the impact of the direction.
Performances
The performances are pretty good by the members of the cast. Twinkle Tshering has a good screen presence wherein she shines in a tidsy role of a hostess in a Japanese restaurant. Anant Jog as Deputy CM and Pramod Pathak as Pankaj are decent with their respective performances, each aided by a trait which coukd have been avoided. Sakhi Gokhale as Sayali is sincere and earnest while being supremely understated with her performance. Kabir Shah as Amar is good too while having a flair to be spontaneous at an early age. Udit Arora as Jazz is a supremely affable character that is vibrant with his body language, so much so that you do feel a little pain towards the end of his character arc. Saiyami Kher and her knack of choosing unconventional roles is a fascinating story in itself. As Avni, she is assertive and makes her presence felt with a powerful little act.
Sai Tamhankar as Rukmini is wonderfully understated while offering a comforting presence to Vitthal, that truly makes her an earnest character. And she was a delight to witness. Divyendu Sharma as Samit is natural to the core, and his sharp retorts in the form of one-liners coupled with a few glances, really make for an effortless performance. Jitendra Joshi is a layered character, and he manages to leave a mark as Mahadev. I am at that stage wherein I would watch Pratik Gandhi in anything that he does – be it on stage or celluloid. He will probably end up as one of the most versatile actors of his generation, a virtue that also stems from his incredible prowess as an actor. I was so convinced that his character of Vitthal is a Maharashtrian here (and he has played a bunch of characters this year, each with a different dialect). His prowess also lies in the fact that he always has a leash with respect to his performance, something that controls the momentum of his character so as to never go overboard. In the process, he touches upon some tender emotions coupled with moments of intensity, thereby ending up as a wonderfully measured performance of the highest order. Always a fan, and always will be!
Conclusion
Despite its flaws, Agni is an understated ode to the unsung ‘Firefighting’ heroes of Mumbai and backed by solid performances that makes for a decent watch. Available on Amazon Prime.
