A realistic, hard-hitting portrayal of terrorism and youth in the Punjab after the 1984 riots. Following the assassination of Mrs. Indira Gandhi, the Prime Minister of India, at the hands of her Sikh bodyguards, a wave of violence broke out against innocent Sikhs and their families. Pressure was also brought on the police to bring the assassins and their allies to justice. The police, with their limited resources, and the lack of any witnesses, brutally brought in innocent Sikh men and women, and aggressively interrogated them with third degree methods. This created a wave of sympathy for the extremists, and more people started joining them to revolt against an oppressive regime. This story is of one such family, consisting of Veerandra (Tabu), her brother Jaswant Singh or Jassi (Raj Zutshi), and her mom. One day Inspector Vohra (Kanwaljeet) comes to their house with a police escort to find out the whereabouts of Jimmy or Jaimal (Jasjit Shergill). Jassi playfully introduces the police party to his pet dog Jimmy, and is taken away for questioning. He returns several days later, bleeding and badly wounded. Veerandra's boyfriend Kripal Singh or Pali (Chandrachur Singh) vows to avenge Jassi's beating and joins up with Commander (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) and Sanataan (Om Puri), both hardcore extremists. Made on the pathetic political situation in Punjab state of India, this is an excellent movie to watch. Though hampered by Sensor boards narrowmindedness, it is an almost cruel depiction of the reality of Punjab. Maachis (matches) is one of the most realistic Hindi film I have seen and I must say the film is engrossing from the very first frame. Gulzar saab is one of the greatest filmmakers of his time and his artistic ability are not to be doubted here as well. The way he has handled most of the scenes in this film is really mind blowing. Maachis is one of the few films where the narrative is of secondary importance while the performances of the actors are the primary focus. I never liked Tabu until I saw Maachis and I was assured that this girl is not just merely an eye candy in films, she was really irritating in Sajaan Chale Sasural. Chandrachur Singh has given his career best performance as Kripal Singh before sinking into oblivion. Jimmy Shergill was good. Om Puri and Kulbhushan Kharbanda are excellent. Raj Zutsi was also good. Some scenes like the brutality of the policemen who use the anti- Sikh insurgency only as an excuse to beat innocent people up really shock you. The climax is explosive and leaves you to ponder on the aftermath of the 1984 anti-Sikh insurgency. A brilliant movie with wonderful performances and a strong story. A must watch!
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