By Filmfare / Times of India / Indiatimes, March 20, 2009 - 17:26 IST
1 of 1 people found this review helpful Nandita Das still tries to end her film showing ray of hope as the Muslim musician strikes a chord with his two Hindu disciples. Also, Sanjay Suri comes to terms with his minority identity and shows courage to coexist amongst the majority community including his wife...
By Buzz18, March 20, 2009 - 17:27 IST
Firaaq to some extent fails to really tug at your heartstrings, maybe because we have recently watched a slew of films dealing with similar emotions. The novelty was perhaps missing somewhere. But do watch it for Nandita's direction, Naseeruddin Shah and Deepti Naval's powerhouse performances.
By Rediff, March 21, 2009 - 11:55 IST
Firaaq does not romanticise or dwell upon the science of hope. While some may heal, others still don't have an option. And so you leave the theatre with a discomforting and haunting image of a clueless, orphaned Mohsin, still in search of his 'Abu' to cope with.
By Now Running, March 21, 2009 - 11:56 IST
"Firaaq" first and foremost deserves the highest praise for the remarkably even-pitched writing by Nandita Das and Shuchi Kothari. No character jumps out of the screen in trying to make its presence felt. The people who live in Nandita's film are the people we know in one way or another.
By Hindustan Times, March 21, 2009 - 11:57 IST
The film opens in a graveyard, with a truckload of corpses filling the screen. It is the aftermath of the Gujarat riots of 2002. A horrific event that has been dealt with in earlier films, most notably Parzania...
By Apunkachoice, March 21, 2009 - 11:58 IST
It's a film made with conscience and noble intention, as reflected in a scene in which Raghuvir Yadav (a domestic help) tells Naseer that Muslims are being killed. Naseer replies: "Insaan Insaan ko maar raha hai, gham toh iss baat ka hai. A statement that entreats us to see humans beyond their religions, it pretty much encapsulates the soul of 'Firaaq'.
By Filmfare / Times of India / Indiatimes, March 21, 2009 - 12:00 IST
This is an assured debut by Nandita Das, who has already proved her forte as an actor of substance. The film is a balanced, sensitive documentation of contemporary India's most trying times and posits a much-needed plea for sanity, peace and tolerance...
By Indya, March 21, 2009 - 12:01 IST
The story is set a month after the communal riots in Gujarat, depicting how everyone's lives continue to be haunted by the riot. Deepti Naval, a Gujarati housewife punishes herself for not giving shelter to a Muslim girl during the riots; Sanjay Suri is scared to death because he is a Muslim...
By Full Hyderabad, March 21, 2009 - 12:09 IST
Naseeruddin Shah is brilliant as an aging Muslim artist who won't see evil, and the film in general has good performances and intelligent portrayal of emotions - and good dialogues for Bollywood standards. A low-budget movie that shows it by appearing in 35mm, this one may not be the greatest of arthouse flicks, but is rather okay from a debutante director...
By Ibnlive, March 21, 2009 - 12:13 IST
Firaaq is an important film because Das never shies away from showing the ugly side of her characters. I'm reminded of a disturbing scene in the film in which Paresh Rawal's character gleefully asks his younger brother if he enjoyed a gangrape he'd participated in...
