By Shevaal Singh (@being_shevaal)
Directed & Wriiten by: Neeraj Pandey
Cast of Special Chabbis: Akshay Kumar (as Ajay Singh), Kajal Aggarwal (as Priya Chavan), Jimmy Shergill (as Ranvir Singh), Manoj Bajpai (Wasim Khan), Anupam Kher (P.K. Sharma aka Sharma ji), Divya Dutta (Shantiji)
Special Chabbis is 2013’s first film with a strong and a good story. With superb actors like Anupam, Manoj, Akshay and Jimmy in the film, it is a must watch. Neeraj Pandey has done it again, this time even better than before!
The Story takes place in several cities of India during the 1980s and 1990s. Ajay Singh, Sharma ji and their gang carry out a very methodically planned a robbery on people who have black money or are fraudulent. People won’t report the missing of black money therefore their targets are always politician, businessmen and bureaucrats as they are the people who have lots to hide. Their gang’s persona changes as they move from one city to the other. Their con doesn’t remain hidden and CBI officer Wasim Khan starts inspecting them and looks for any clue whatsoever. In one of the incident Ajay, Sharma ji and their group con Senior Inspector Ranvir Singh. As of this point in time he decides to aid Wasim and CBI in tracing them. On the other hand these conmen decides to carry out a final robbery!
As we know that Special Chabbis is based on real incidents that took place in Mumbai in 1987. 26 people posing as fake Income Tax Officer raided a jewellery store and tool away jewellery worth lakhs. Neeraj Pandey deserves utmost recognition as he has perfectly and very rapidly portrayed each element of the real incident to the exact !The original CBI trying to catch the fake one, their cunningness, struggle and final theft are depicted pitch perfect.
After a very long time and a dozen of senseless film movies , finally Akshay Kumar is part of a no nonsense film. He has shown he can do justice to a good script and he undoubtedly can act. He has perfectly put on the role of a cunning Ajay Singh who cannot be caught. Akshay Kumar makes a good fake CBI officer. As Ajay Singh, he does seem a bit too arrogant at times, but it goes well with his persona. There’s something off about his hairstyle though, that goes from suave to weird-80s in certain parts . Anupam Kher is a genius. He can play any role given to him with perfection. His comic timing in the film is perfect. One second he’s strutting into a minister’s house and slapping his secretary, and the other moment he’s red-faced, hunched-shoulders and stuttering nervously. He’s excellent as Sharmaji, no doubt!
Manoj Bajpai’s performance might shadow the performance of others. His “Asli Wale CBI” style is amazing and at the same time hilarious. Jimmy Shergill and Divya Dutta are really good as Ranvir Singh and Shantiji but Divya barely get 3-4 lines in the movie. Manoj Bajpai does extremely well as Wasim Khan and you really want some sort of divine intervention to keep both parties happy. Kajal Aggarwal hams her way through whatever scenes she has as Priya Chavan. Her strange role has her playfully teasing Ajay one moment and sobbing bitterly about her impending marriage to another guy. Tiku Talsania is lovable in his return to the silver screen as a merchant.
Cinematography will be appreciated a lot by anyone who watches the film. Essence of different cities of India shown in the film is perfectly caught. Corruptness and the way thefts were held are also shown like an original! It’s a real treat to watch Akshay Kumar in a no-nonsense role, brimming with as much confidence as his character owns and demands. He is calm, composed and doesn’t have to try too hard to be cool either!
Special 26 is a captivating con-movie with an equally thrilling chase with Akshay Kumar and Manoj Bajpai doing their best chor-police jodi. This entertaining crime flick with a strong concept and story with superbly stunning acting and cinematography gets a 7/10 from me … A must watch for all Akshay Kumar fans as he is back and better than ever !
