What makes it different from others?

Let's be realistic.

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Tigmanshu Dhulia is a hit or miss director with his cult classics like Haasil, Paan Singh Tomar & Saheb Biwi & Gangster cementing his place as best directors of bollywood while his Charas ,Bullet Raja often counted as a miss.Shaghird is categorised in the later but I believe it to be a movie which is hugely underrated.A cop in bollywood movies is often depicted in a stereotypical manner a dishonest cop will be corrupt,selfish & stupid , while an honest cop will be courageous & intelligent.This is also valid for politicians etc.,the anti hero or a complex character is seldom shown. Hence police corruption is seldom shown in its true form, I believe Shagird is an exception & so is the Protagonist SI Hanumant Singh & likewise his Shagird SI Mohit.The opening scene is a revelation which shows 2 cops of Crime Branch extorting money from a businessmen.The police corruption in all its form is shown in the movie along with the Politician-Police-Gangster nexus & its depth in the system.Hanumant Singh is a crooked encounter specialist who works for a powerful politician & does his dirty work in exchange of the protection offered to him.He knows every written & unwritten rule in the book as well as knows how to break them for his good.Hence he acts as a extortioner,kidnapper,hired gun in his pursuit of money.He knows the limits of his relationship & hence is planning an escape from India but only blackmailing his boss the politician for the needed money by a threat of exposing his nexus with the criminal named Banty Bhaiya.Amazingly as most of the characters in the movie who are conned or harmed by Hanumant are bad themselves we identify with the character,also due to his dedication to family & his manners.His Shagird a new SI in the CB is equally smart but is also ethically sound which result in some witty dialogues delivered masterly by Nana Patekar who like Ab Tak Chappan is in tremendous form & fits right in,unlike Ab Tak Chapan, Hanumant Singh is more funny as well as more diplomatic. The subtle difference in the body language is absolute brilliance.The final twist is that like a true disciple SI Mohit turns out to be corrupt himself waiting for a bigger opportunity & hence he cracks a deal with the politician & story unfolds.A must watch for brilliant dialogues, fast paced storytelling & moreover as a relevant commentary on police corruption in India.A thoroughly entertaining & interesting view. PS it is only inspired from training day & not a usual bollywood copy.

Tigmanshu Dhulia's 'Shagird' is a well-made, gripping film, that has many twists & turns on its side. But, above all, its Nana Patekar, who deserves the highest praises. Like Always, The National-Award-Winning Iconic Actor, pitches in a Masterful Performance & Own This Film!'Shagird' Synopsis: A rookie cop questions the tactics of his superior, and attempts to track the abductors of his girlfriend.'Shagird' went unnoticed at the box office, and that's truly sad. Its a well-made, gripping film, along-with some clever twists & turns. The film does have some minuses, but overall, the pluses outshine the minuses. Tigmanshu Dhulia's Screenplay is gripping & offers some very good twists. His Direction, on the other-hand, is competent. Cinematography & Editing are ordinary. Nana Patekar's Masterful Performance is truly the Highlight of this under-rated flick. The Amazing Actor sinks his teeth into the part & performs like a freaking rock-star. This performance is among his best to date. Among other performances, Mohit Ahlawat does a fair job. Zakir Hussain & Anurag Kashyap are superb. On the whole, 'Shagird' is a well-made film in all respects. A Must See for Nana Patekar Fans!

Tigmanshu Dhulia had carved a niche for himself through his very first directorial venture - Haasil. And this underrated movie is another illustration of his abundant talent. It's a brilliant movie whose class can be felt and understood by seeing it only.Though several Bollywood movies have come before the audience which are based on encounter-specialists and several others have come which are based on the corrupt cops. However this movie is unique. It's neither Gangaajal nor Apharan, nor Ab Tak Chhappan nor Kagaar nor Ye Saali Zindagi. It has a class of its own. Encounter specialist cop, Nana Patekar is thoroughly corrupt and works for the corrupt politician, Zaakir Hussain, eliminating his adversaries and those who can prove dangerous for him. He gets a newly recruited junior cop, Mohit Ahlawat to work under him in the police station. The real drama starts with the kidnapping of some journalists consisting of Mohit's sweetheart, Rimi Sen too. Some hardcore terrorists are released for getting the journalists free and alongwith them is released the ex-henchman of Zaakir Hussain, Anuraag Kashyap. How the main protagonist Nana Patekar and his Shagird (pupil), Mohit Ahlawat get involved in these developments and what's the climax of this story is a treat to watch.Shagird is a rare thriller made in Bollywood which keeps the viewer spellbound right from the very first frame to the very last frame. There is no unnecessary dragging and no useless incidents to add to the length of the movie. Even the smallest incident shown in the movie has a link with the main story. It's something unusually pleasant and evidences the proficiency of the script-writer and the director. The narrative keeps the viewer hooked throughout 140 minutes long duration. The first half prepares the ground for the second half and the second half keeps on rendering electric currents to the viewer, scene after scene. There is a twist in the tale even in the ending scene. The superfast pace of the movie does not give the viewer any time to think. But it does not challenge his intelligence and after watching the movie completely, if the viewer ponders over what he has seen, he does not feel cheated because everything is logically knitted and in proper place. Even the title of the movie is just perfect according to the story told. The second half of the movie is just like a game of chess, containing checks and checkmates upon the chessboard of the Indian police system. It reminds of Abbas-Mustan's movie - Race in which it becomes difficult for the viewer to identify as to who colludes with whom and who deceives whom.Though the kidnapping episode is not very impressive and the Mohit Ahlawat-Rimi Sen romance track is half-baked, these are minor flaws in this otherwise highly admirable movie. The director has shown his better sense by keeping the movie sans any songs and the flow of the narrative is nowhere blocked. The background score and the technical aspects of the movie are topnotch. The action and chase sequences are outstanding. The cinematographer has captured Delhi and nearby areas quite realistically and impressively.I also admire the director for keeping the movie free from expletives which is also unusual now-a-days. Given the milieu of the story, he could have filled it with expletives under the pretext of showing reality. But it's very nice of him to keep the movie clean. He has not shown any vulgarity also.Nana Patekar has outshined his co-actors in the author-backed role of the smart, yet corrupt cop who is very fond of old Hindi movie songs and whose knowledge about them is extra-ordinary (like the author of this review). His role reminds me of the main protagonist of a Hindi pulp-fiction bestsellter - Vardi Waala Gunda (penned by Ved Prakash Sharma). However I feel that he is now typecast in such roles. Mohit Ahlawat has wasted a golden opportunity and he is just average. Anuraag Kashyap has proved that he is not only a class director, but also a class actor. Rimi Sen and others are OK. Murli Sharma leaves his mark in the cameo of a coward journalist. But the distinction marks go to Zaakir Hussain who has infused life into the role of the corrupt politician.Tigmanshu Dhulia has taken cinematic liberty of ignoring several aspects of the Indian police system in telling his story but he can be excused for that because keeping the narration focused at the desired place instead of covering several diversified things on a large canvas, has helped keeping the movie engrossing and entertaining. He has shown as if all the encounters and killings by Indian cops are motivated only and nothing happens in Indian police stations except killings for vested interests and warming own pockets which may not be true.My final words - I strongly recommend this movie for the thriller fans who will find the experience of watching this movie akin to a roller-coaster ride. Just sit in front of the screen and keep on watching it holding your breath tight. It's an edge-of-the-seat thriller.A great one time watch.

Old and dated Shagird Nana Patekar plays a smart cop who is not honest but likable. He mouths smart and witty dialogues, Kills anyone for money, wires money to New- Zealand and takes the politicos by his stride. Ab tak chappan guys is more witty and plays more dangerously for more green bucks. But the buck stops here with loopholes. Haasil director Tigmanshu Dhulia who once made a good college - political drama, doesn't go strong with Cop-politicians game. Indeed he calls it Chor -police khel rahe hai. The casting was good from the likes of Dil se and Bandit queen and so was the screenplay. The witty humor and rustic north Indian touch were fantastic . Although a senior inspector mouthing those lines may look unreal but was good. The Tarzan one was really hilarious.The casts include Mohit Alawat, a tall and handsome hunk into the police with the unfading dearth of mysteries around him. He is one actor play best without dialogues. Other casts like Zakir hussein was brilliant. Looks like the casting director Tigmanshu Dhulia himself picked the whole casts from Ram Gopal Varma's factory and it strikes a general note. Anurag Kashyap tries hard to play a cool Allahabaadi criminal and mouths some silly humors too. He was fitted in the character. Only misfit was the female protagonist, Rimi Sen, who plays a modern journalist from Aaj-tak covering all king of stories and wears a spaghetti top. The loopholes continues with senior Inspector holding a press conference, in-charge of terrorist kidnapping case, cops beating terrorists in tihar jail, embezzling crores of cash crops and many more. But when I treat this movie as Masala action twister, it doesn't betray me.The twists are boggling but story is flat. Nana Patekar plays Hanumant singh like the way he is. He got most of the screen space and screenplays and he did quite a good. He lacks when he cries and fails completely. There was no need to bring the old muse Hrishita Bhatt for kissing old politicians, Thank God, we were saved from another item number.The music and background score didn't made and mark and went unnoticeable. Not so Far yet Not so Near.It lies in between Haasil and Charas.