Laal Kaptaan


Laal Kaptaan is 2019 Indian Hindi-language epic action drama film written and directed by Navdeep Singh. The dialogues are written by Sudip Sharma. The film is produced by Eros International and Producer Aanand L Rai's Colour Yellow Productions. It features Saif Ali Khan as a bounty hunter called Gossain throughout the film; who goes on a killing spree with the intention of exacting revenge upon a Subedar named Rahmat Khan, who is also being chased by the Marathas since he double crossed them and was trying to get away with their treasure. The film co-stars Manav Vij, Zoya Hussain and Deepak Dobriyal, while Neeraj Kabi and Sonakshi Sinha appear in guest roles.
The film was released theatrically in India on 18 October 2019.

Plot

In the late 18th century, a Naga Sadhu goes on a killing spree in a quest to find his archenemy Rohilla chieftain Rahmat Khan, who has escaped with his convoy after looting treasure of overlord Raja Hukum Singh Bundela and killing all the subjects. In the meanwhile, a tracker helps a rival find Gossain. In the ensuing fight, Gossain kills the rival and his army but is himself wounded. He manages to reach Rahmat Khan's palace where a widow rescues him, feeds and accompanies him on his vengeance trail. Gossain doesn't want her to accompany him, but after some men threaten her, he kills one of them and allows her till the Yamuna River. On the other hand, the tracker joins forces with the Marathas to help them track Rahmat Khan in exchange for 20 gold coins. The next morning, the commander remains asleep due to which the captain and the tracker are accompanied by a group of Pindaris. Gossain and the widow then meet with the former's Naga Guru who tries to convince him not to continue with the revenge spree. Gossain reveals that six years ago, in Banda he saved Rahmat Khan and his wife from a dacoit attack before revealing his intention to kill Rahmat Khan. After that, Gossain couldn't find him. The tracker, the captain and the Pindaris find the corpse of a man killed by Gossain while saving the widow but it turns out useless when the Pindaris try to loot the corpse and distort it. After departing, Gossain and the widow locate Rahmat Khan and his army. At night, Gossain tries to attack Rahmat Khan but is captured, and the widow is revealed to have betrayed him.
The widow is Rahmat Khan's concubine, who also gave birth to his son now under his wife's possession. The tracker leads the captain and the Pindaris to the spot where Rahmat Khan and his friend Adam Khan are meeting a British East India Company official–Theodore Munroe. The greedy Pindaris try to attack them but retreat when a few of them are killed by the British sepoys' guns. A tortured Gossain reveals a man named Sadullah Khan sent him, a name that surprises Rahmat Khan. At night, the tracker, the captain and the Pindaris are joined by other Maratha soldiers of Maharaja Mahadaji Shinde of Gwalior. Gossain attacks the British official, following which Rahmat Khan tries to blind him but suddenly the Marathas attack the camp. The widow escapes with the child and Gossain survives the attack but promises to return. He refuses to trust the widow who betrayed him for the sake of her child. As a result, she is captured and Rahmat Khan kills his wife when she insults his child. Gossain is now joined by the tracker who was left unpaid by the Marathas. Gossain reveals that 25 years ago in Buxar before the battle, various Indians gathered to plot the East India Company's defeat. Sadullah Khan was among them, but was betrayed by his older son Rahmat Khan who was joined by Adam Khan. Sadullah Khan was hanged to death and so was his younger son, who left Rahmat Khan scarred in a violent attack.
Back to present, Rahmat Khan kills Adam Khan believing him to be conspiring against his child. Soon, the tracker attacks both the British and Rahmat Khan's forces with the help of improvised rockets. The British flee, while Gossain himself emerges out of the river and attacks the people on board. He jumps into the water along with Rahmat Khan, before the tracker fires another rocket and the boat explodes. The widow and her child survive. The Marathas arrive and the tracker departs after informing them of the treasure's sinking along with the boat. Before hanging Rahmat Khan, Gossain reveals himself to be his younger brother who didn't die despite being hanged due to putting in his throat a bullet given by an older war monk. He was found alive and taken in by the Naga Sadhus. Before being hanged, Rahmat Khan tells him his son would avenge him in the future. The dying widow hands over her child to Gossain, who takes him and rides away.

Cast

The first look of Saif Ali Khan's character from film Laal Kaptaan as a Naga sadhu was revealed on 20 May.
The official teaser was released by Eros Now on 15 August 2019. The official trailer was released by Eros Now on 24 September 2019. The official trailer was released by Eros Now on 28 September 2019. The official trailer was released by Eros Now on 1 October 2019.
Previously it was stated to schedule on 6 September. Then it was shifted to 11 October 2019. Finally it was released theatrically on 18 October 2019. It is available for streaming on the online platform Amazon Prime Video.

Soundtrack

The music of the film is composed by Samira Koppikar with lyrics written by Saurabh Jain, Puneet Sharma and Sahib.

Critical reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has scored 13% based on 8 reviews with average rating of 4.25/10. The three-part trailer was released on the official channel of Eros Now to moderate appreciation.The film received mixed reviews from audience & critics, praising the performance of Khan, the direction, the visuals & cinematography, but the plot and lack of originality received some criticism. Sreeparna Sengupta writing for the Times of India said that " has a tedious narrative and a very lengthy runtime pull it down." and gave it 2.5 stars. She also went on to appreciate Saif Ali Khan's performance as Gossain. Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave it 2.5 stars. Writing for India Today, Nairita Mukherjee wrote that 'Laal Kaptaan's biggest flaw is that it is too heavily dependent on Saif, but doesn't offer the necessary support for him to pull it through. Ultimately, it remains a film that had all the right ingredients but is still under-cooked.'
YearAwardCategoryRecipientResult
2020Filmfare AwardsBest Costume DesignMaxima Basu