Yesterday saw the release of Azaan, the Indian International espionage thriller by new comer Sachin Joshi and ad filmmaker Prashant Chadha (who previously directed Aap Ka Suroor with Himesh Reshamiya, but we shouldn’t hold that against him).

Although surrounded by controvery within its home country – India – due to the sensitive nature of a movie about terrorism whilst having one of the largest Muslim populations in the world. Also mixing religious iconography, lyrics and playboy bikini models might not have been the best way to do things? But I’ve been aching for some new faces in Bollywood and usual song and dance, although we all love the songs and dance don’t we?

Sachin Joshi seems to fit the bill after his foray in South Indian cinema with his previous releases, plus he has been training different martial arts forms including Krav Marga for a couple of months and that kind of dedication always impresses us. Being the producer of the film too (apparently he is a proper busines tycoon in India) he wanted to make a movie inspired by the Bourne series and loved the shakey cam.

Azaan’s also been shot in a gajillion countries which might be a double edges sword as almost no Indian director has ever been able to succesfully direct a non-Indian cast, you can quote me on that.

Here is the synopsis from the press release:

Synopsis: ‘Aazaan Khan’ (Sachiin J Joshi) – a young, upright army officer working for RAW (India’s Research and Analysis Wing) with a mixed lineage of Afghan and Indian parents, as part of his duties, gets drawn in to the murky world of espionage only to find his younger brother a suspected terrorist. Torn between his love for his country and his brother, Aazaan embarks on his mission of unravelling a conspiracy of science and technology, which turns uglier when he realises that it stands to threaten the 1.2 billion population of one of the largest developing nations in the world – India. What unfolds is a fast paced story of one man’s determination to save his country against all odds of human defiance. Strengthening him in achieving his mission is his relationship with Afreen – a beautiful Moroccan girl who grounds him with human love and emotion to help him reach his goal.

A harsh and hard-hitting portrayal of an issue that continues to plague the modern world, ‘Aazaan’ is a captivating story that delves into the global issue of terror, presented on screen by one of the key influencers among the new generation of pioneering Indian filmmakers, Prashant Chadha. Touted to be Bollywood’s biggest espionage thriller ever, ‘Aazaan’ is set in one of the world’s now top five economies, India, but travels to international territories as far afield as Germany, Morocco, France, Poland, Thailand, China and South Africa, highlighting how a single seed of hatred can spread so rapidly across the world.

 

The movie also has former Playboy Model Candice Boucher making her Bollywood debut. I guess you are sold now right?

 

Here is the trailer:

 

Azaan is in UK theatres now.

@asimburney