'Jogi' movie review

Ali Abbas Zafar's 'Jogi' is set pat-in-the-middle of the 1984 anti-Sikh pogrom in Delhi but is curiously disinterested in the transpiring violence. To be fair, the film does show scenes of brutality from one of the most shameful episodes in independent India's history. In those three days, appalling, politically-sanctioned violence engulfed the Indian national capital and thousands of innocents lost their lives. But the effect of those horrors -- horrors that serve as a chilling reminder that men are just beasts with less hair and will lose all pretense of compassion at the drop of a hat -- is severely impaired by a trite, dull story involving personal vengeance.

For those who don't know, the 1984 pogrom was a result of the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984, by her radicalised Sikh bodyguards. The assassination was the result of Operation Blue Star, an ill-advised, ill-planned, and artillery-backed full-frontal military operation ordered by Gandhi to eliminate the Khalistani terrorist Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Bhindranwale was holed up with other militants in Amritsar's Golden Temple. But also in the temple complex were civilians, many of whom died in the crossfire. The Akal Takht, the highest seat of earthly authority for Sikhs, was laid to waste.

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I have already given more context to the events depicted her than the script provides. Jogi (Diljit Dosanjh) is a young Sikh man who is unaware of Gandhi's assassination. While on a local bus, he and his elderly father are assaulted by their co-passengers. Unable to comprehend what is happening, he is told bluntly that his very religion is why he is being beaten.

Kumud Mishra's comically-evil politician (a stand-in for people like Sajjan Kumar, no doubt) is seen freeing criminals lodged for serious crimes and arming them with petrol bombs and metal rods. Each man is promised money, assigned to specific localities, and sicced on only Sikh-owned homes like rabid hounds. Never underestimate an enterprising Indian ringleader inciting a mob to violence. He also provides police officers with voter lists with Sikh names marked in red.

One of the cops, Chautala, played by Mohd. Zeeshan Ayyub, turns out to be honest and an old friend of Jogi. Coordinating with his friend, Chautala arranges for Jogi's family to leave for Punjab, even as the rest of the locality's Sikhs hide in a Gurudwara.

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Also in the police force is Lalli (Hiten Tejwani), who, we are told, has hated Jogi, once his pal, for years and is willing to let the entire community get murdered if his foe would also be among the casualties. The reason for Lalli’s vendetta against his former friend is revealed in a flashback that is ludicurously out of place. Lalli is also given a redemption of sorts. He is not the anti-hero the film thinks he is.

'Jogi' is at its strongest when its focus is on the pogromand its immediate impact. Whenever it goes too deep into the characters and their (badly written to boot) backstories, it loses focus. Personal stories surely have a place in overarching narratives. They give a certain flavour and intimacy to horrific events such as this. But those massacres were just not acts of revenge (and assuredly not for personal revenge). They were carefully orchestrated by politicians and targetted a single community with surgical precision.

Watch 'Jogi' only if you are a fan of Dosanjh, who is really in top form here, doing his best with the material he is saddled with. Mishra is also effective in a stereotypical role of a politician who sees the murders and rapes as a means to proceed to higher echelons of the party. Zeeshan Ayyub is also reliably good, but an actor of his calibre deserves characters with more depth than that.

'Jogi' is streaming on Netflix.