Laal Rang Hindi Movie

Who could think that stealing blood and selling it for profit would be the stuff that could have you grinning in the dark of the theater? It is. And the characters that have been created seem to be unrepentant and brazen in their greed. If only the exaggerations could be reined in, this would be a wonderfully dark comic film. Apr 22, 2016 By Manisha Lakhe

Randeep Hooda is Shankar. Brazen and wild and the god of small town Karnal in Haryana. He is flush with money and his silver tongue and his motorbike and everything about him makes him hero in the eyes of a young upstart Rakesh who wants to be Shankar, or at least be his apprentice. Rakesh joins the blood smuggling racket and you watch with your jaw on the floor as learn how casually blood smugglers use nicknames 'Dracula', 'P.D.' (Professional Donors), how they squeeze as much blood as they can how they can from police, unsuspecting public...

The young lad Rakesh is played by Akshay Oberoi who has practically no acting skills but widening his eyes. The male 'ingenue' act is all right because Randeep Hooda has that effect on the audience. But he just becomes annoying and after a while you wish they had cast someone else instead.

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eep Hooda on a motorbike accompanied by that all-knowing grin and 'don't care a whit' attitude is a pleasure to watch. You forgive a lot when there's so much eye candy to behold. But the young director spends too much time on the bike, holding the camera to display the product as though it were a placement rather than a genuine homage to the classic. And the bike rides are repeated so often, you begin to suspect that it may be more of a commercial arrangement rather than a genuine love for the bike.

The writing is clever and funny and keeps you wondering 'what will they come up with next!'. You like the minor characters like Dracula, Neelam the office admin lady, Rakesh's parents, Rakesh's ditzy girlfriend (the 'I studied English with Rapidex English Speaking Course') and Babuji co-conspirator of the Blood Bank (Rajendra Sethi). Each one owns the role they play. Which makes for an amazing watch. But then there are too many clever things being attempted here. And that slows the pace of the film until you are ready to give up. The music is forgettable and feels like an intrusion. But the film scores all its stars for the unusual treatment of a problem, the clever writing and of course the gorgeous body that is Randeep Hooda.