‘Is Kashmir only ours or are the people here too?’ This dialogue spoken by Imran Hashmi, who plays the role of a BSF (Border Security Force) officer at Ground Zero, feels very painful and timely in today’s context when the country is grappling with a recent terrorist attack. There is no doubt that Bollywood is currently experiencing a flood of true stories.
Whether it is ‘The Diplomat’ or ‘Kesari Chapter 2’, many films have been taken from different periods of history, and ‘Ground Zero’ continues this trend. It must be said that director Tejas Prabha Vijay Deouskar not only presents the mission to kill the mastermind of the Parliament attack, Gazi Baba, in an exciting manner, but actor Imran Hashmi also shines in his role.
The Story of ‘Ground Zero’
The film is based on the life of Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey (Emraan Hashmi), a BSF officer. The story is set in 2001 Srinagar, where the terrorists are constantly making the jawans their victims. The mastermind of this conspiracy is Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Rana Tahir Nadeem alias Ghazi Baba.
So far, 70 soldiers have been killed in these terrorist attacks. The film begins with a horrific scene where terrorist Ahmed (Hanan) brainwashes young Kashmiri boys like Hussain (Mir Mehrooz) to go beyond stone-pelting and fire a gun. These terrorists carry out their mission by using a code language before their victim. Facing these deep-rooted and inhuman conspiracies is Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey, whose wife Sai Tamhankar is his pillar of support.
Plagued by a series of terror attacks, Narendra Nath is determined to kill the terrorists to save his men, but is also worried about the innocent young Kashmiris who have been tricked into holding guns in their hands. Narendra, along with his henchmen and local informer Hussain, tries his best to foil the terror attacks, but Ghazi outsmarts him every time.
The Jaish-e-Mohammad chief, on the other hand, carries out attacks on Parliament House in Delhi and Akshardham in Gujarat, while Narendra’s informer Hussain is also bombed. Narendra is devastated. He’s constantly losing. He is made a victim of red tape and even put under suspension. Narendra also feels guilty somewhere, but his wife and intelligence team officer Adila (Zoya Hussain) motivates him to continue on the path of duty.
‘Ground Zero ‘movie review
We have so far seen many films based on Kashmir like ‘Mission Kashmir’, ‘The Kashmir Files’, ‘Article 370’, ‘Shikara’, ‘Roja’, but the thriller element in the story of director Tejas Prabha Vijay Deoskar is as strong as the human angle. The heart-wrenching first scene of the film sets up the chaotic atmosphere of 2001 in Kashmir. The director has presented the track in a very emotional way to stop boys like Hussain from picking up the gun along with the spirit of vowing to kill the terrorists.
This story of Tejas Prabha seems even closer to the truth, because his hero is not Larger than Life. He’s disappointed and disappointed. The first half of the film keeps you glued to your chair, but after the interval, the film slows down a bit. It would have been better if the length of the film was reduced a bit. However, it picks up again in the climax.
While Kamaljit Negi’s cinematography manages to bring together the eerie silence, pain and beauty of the valley, John Stewart Eduri’s background score tugs at the heartstrings and makes the story impactful. A song by Tanishk Bagchi, ‘Lahu’ is well made. The music could have been made more effective. In the past, Emraan Hashmi has been famous for his evergreen hit songs. The action scenes of the BSF jawans with the terrorists have been choreographed in a thrilling manner.
Talking about the star performance, Emraan Hashmi has added many fine layers to the role of BSF officer Narendra Nath Dhar Dubey. The way such characters are usually portrayed over-the-top, Emraan goes beyond that to portray it as a feisty and humane character. His performance has been outstanding. Sai Tamhankar has been impressive in a small role, but she should have got more screen space.
Zoya Hussain as Adila of the intelligence team has managed to make her presence felt. The character of Hussain is played by Mir Mehroz. Deepak Paramesh, Lalit Prabhakar and Guneet Singh have done a remarkable job in the role of BSF jawans. Mukesh Tiwari and Rahul Vohra, in the roles of high officials, have done justice to their fellow citizens. However, a better choice could have been made for the role of Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
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