ahujarajiv MADRAS CAFE ★★★★★★★★★☆ As a young boy I remember adoring Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. His assassination will always remain a dark spot in the history of this country and in India's efforts to bring peace on the sub-continent and in Sri Lanka's civil war through its peace keeping forces.It forever changed the history of this nation. And the movie more than lives up to this tag line.That said, Madras Cafe is not just a movie. It is more of a documentary on the days and events leading up to the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi.There are no songs. There is no item-number. It is 2 hrs & 10 minutes of nail biting history like it was never told before.This is not an escapist movie. It is hard reality and it is blunt.Engrossing, gripping and amazingly edited it makes you wonder what if....? And that is where it succeeds.Shoojit Sircar succeeds in making you ask yourself what if...? He also makes you understand the age old saying that one man's revolutionary is another man's terrorist.In the end we walked out moist eyed, saddened by one man's destiny with death and the failure of those who wanted to save that one man even in the face of the ruling Govt's opposition and traitors in their own midst.The best and most emotionally moving scene comes in the end when a tired senior RAW agent walks into his home and his wife in tears asks why did they kill Rajiv... he was so young.His reply is what hits you, listen to his tired voice as it chokes with suppressed emotion. The great TV Game Show Host Siddharth Basu, shows us with just one simple line what the covert operatives in this country face each night as they crawl in their beds, lives and hearts devoted to this nation.Watch it without expectations. And John, I forgive you Shootout at Wadala... You can come home from the Madras Cafe.

rajukumar-earth One of the best movie's of Bollywood.Every Indian should know the facts that has been shown in this movie. Shoojit Sircar's Madras Cafe starring John Abraham and Nargis Fakhri is not just another typical Bollywood masala flick but is a thought provoking, heart touching political drama. It's a film that will keep you and your eyes glued to the seat and the screen, effortlessly. Sircar has given meaty roles to all his characters and not just the leads.The opening scene of Madras Cafe showcases khoon kharaba and merciless killing of innocent people. The scene then effectively moves on to the present where we see John in despair trying to overcome his sorrows with alcohol. Our hunkalicious drunken John Abraham (Vikram Singh) then visits a church where he recalls the blood-curdling tales of the Lankan wars and then the flashback begins. From here, the film takes us back to the 1980's and is set against the backdrop of Sri Lankan wars.John Abraham is a military officer who's ordered to carry out covert operations in Sri Lanka during the rise of Anna Bhaskaran (played by Ajay Rathnam ), the leader of a fictitious rebel group LTF. On John's arrival in the war struck country, he meets Nargis Fakhri (Jaya) who is a British war correspondent. No, there isn't any filmy style 'love at first sight' that evolves between the two. We're glad that Sircar has delivered his film with practicality. What we notice is that, while John speaks in Hindi, Nargis responds in English. Maybe she could've delivered at least one Hindi dialogue, but we aren't complaining. We guess the Rockstar babe got her acting right because she spoke a language that she's well-versed with… Moving on, during John's stay in Sri Lanka a lot unfolds including a tragic death, followed by double crossing, kidnapping and many more twists.While being engaged in the politics involved, it's quite apparent that Sircar hasn't ignored the importance of relationships in a person's life. Newbie Rashi Khanna (Ruby Singh), who plays John's wife in the film doesn't have a lot of screen presence but all the same she serves her purpose. Sircar has delicately portrayed the kind of relationship that a military officer has with his wife and how the love for our own country overshadows any other kind of love…Throughout the film, we're aware that there's going to be an assassination. Despite knowing it's going to happen, we still dread the scene and hope against hope that John saves the day. However, Shoojit knows what he's doing and ensures that John only plays a hero and not some larger-than-life superhero in the film. We love the way Sircar has facilely designed a realistic fiction film!The cinematography is mind blowing with terrific visualisations and sound effects. Nothing is overdone in the film. Madras Cafe sticks to its genre and remains a political thriller throughout the film without romance, item numbers, vulgarity and unnecessary skin show. Music by Shantanu Moitra is pleasing to the ears. The film isn't force-filled with unnecessary naach gaana just to add a romantic factor and we totally love that!The film ends with an intriguing thought, who really won the war. It keeps us pondering for a while that nobody gains at the end of a war, there's only loss… As the narration ends, the beautiful track Maula Sun Le Re starts playing. Hmmm… Is John asking the Lord to listen to his pleas for his film to work? He surely doesn't need that for this film to work as it's the best political thriller that Bollywood has ever se

Arup Ghose Hats off to Indian cinema for making such a film! Madras Cafe goes down to the raw truth of the Sri Lankan civil war and shows that India can make real films with real story linesMadras Cafe is a John Abraham film throughout! He dominates and takes his role to new heights. John's found his niche with roles like Force and now Madras Cafe. Nargis is pleasant in her role (perhaps as she did not have to speak Hindi), and isn't annoying like she was in Rockstar. All supporting actors do their job perfectly well.One big problem with Madras Cafe is that if you're not political clued up, or necessarily find it interesting then you might lose interest in this film quite early. However, just like I did please go and watch until the end, especially for the climax scene as it is truly fantastic and teaches the younger generation like myself history about our great country India!

Jasrick Johal Madras Cafe has left me SPEECHLES,its one of best thrillers made in India.A spy thriller thats at the level with a film like Argo.Madras Cafe is based on the Rajiv Gandhi assassination the film highlights the civil war in Sri Lanka in the 90s.The film explains the Tamil conflict and why and how the ex pm was murdered. Madras Cafe is a film with supreme performances, John A gives a career best performance he is just superb in every scene. Nargis Falhri surprises and does a great job.Siddarth Basu and Dibang also stand tall and surprise because they are newcomers, amazing job by both.But the real hero of Madras Cafe is the script and dir Shoojit Scrar .He after Vicky Donor gives his career best with MC.Award worthy job!!!Another special mention to the Madras Cafe climax it leaves you in awe,one is left speechless/ in tears and one is frustrated with Indian Gov. But overall Madras Cafe is a realistic film,with no commerical trappings,no songs,etc.A gritty action thriller,with amazing acting. A perfect film for the class audience around the film, a must watch for all Indians!!!