SRK’s ‘Dunki’ Drop 1 fuses action, socio-political comedy, love, bleakness

On his birthday, Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has finally given the first glimpse of his much awaited and discussed film ‘Dunki’. Titled ‘Drop 1’, the video combines action, socio-political comedy, love, and bleakness.

A rather experimental yet a mainstream film, ‘Dunki’ looks like a mix of bleak action with some social-comedy. Also touted to be a political-commentary, ‘Dunki’ is tonally very different from ‘Jawan’ though harbours the same aesthetic.

Starting off in a desert, the first glimpse sees SRK alongside his gang consisting of Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal, or mercenaries walking by as one one of them is aimed at by a shooter from a distance.

An intense first sequence, this is made very real due to the bleak and morose BGM in the background as Sonu Nigam sings the film’s track ‘Badi Door Se Aayein Hain’.

But then the video suddenly takes a very different turn as it turns into a full-fledged comedy in the vein of some very classic Bollywood action. Actor Vikram Kocchar, who essays the character of Buggu, is getting yelled at by his mother who tells him to swear on his grandmother that he will never dream of going to London.

The grandmother is angrier about to why Buggu’s mother is asking him to swear by her every time. Buggu then swears that if he should ever dream of going to London, his grandmother will die. Then in the very next scene, she is dead and his whole family are rather humorously taking her for cremation.

At this point, the BGM dishes out a full on Punjabi style comedy music and cuts to various scenes which show SRK as a much younger man. SRK actually pulls off the look of a youngster very well.

Then the characters are introduced with SRK playing the role of Hardy, Taapsee Pannu playing Manu, Vikram Kocchar playing Buggu, Anil Grover as Balli, Boman Irani as Gulati, and Vicky Kaushal as Sukhi.

Throughout the introductions, there are various scenes showcasing a police chase, the beautiful outskirts of Punjab and more, all the while they are intercutting with sounds of gunshots.

For Hardy, all these four are family and all of them dream of going to London. Narrating his story to a man, Hardy tells him that he wants to marry Manu and will name their child after him. Asking him his name, the man gives a very long and lengthy South Indian name to which a baffled Hardy says: “No matter sir, please write it down and I’ll do it.”

The glimpse ends with a bloodstained gunshot announcing the film’s Drop 2.

Evoking nostalgia with a new kind of take on filmmaking, director Rajkumar Hirani, who has been hailed as a master storyteller, is leaving no stones unturned as ‘Dunki’ looks like one of his most experimental outings yet, combining very traditional Bollywood style with a more unconventional and non-linear style, making it extremely interesting.

Drawn from real life experiences, ‘Dunki’ is a saga of love and friendship that brings together some wildly disparate stories, and provides hilarious and heart-breaking answers packed with some bleak action and political commentary.

‘Dunki’ will hit theatres on December 22, 2023.