Gangs of Wasseypur: The story of one family’s need for revenge

The use of narratives in a film are widely criticised as a lazy attempt by the filmmaker to establish his plot without having to work too hard to reel it into his story. Narratives allows a filmmaker the chance to have one of the characters in the story, or a third person who is independent of the actual plot, to tell the story from their perspective thereby having them talk directly to the audience to say whatever the filmmaker wants to be said. However, the use of narratives cannot necessarily be criticised in every film considering that they are used at certain times to help establish a bond between the narrator and the audience or at times they can be used to describe an event, or several events, in a timeline which would otherwise be difficult to establish without the use of a narrative. That said, one of the most prominent features in Anurag Kashyap’s 2012 film Gangs of Wasseypur is the use of a constant narrator who is a running character in both parts of the film.

Synopsis – Part 1

In pre-independent India, the small town of Wasseypur lay in the coal mine-ravaged state of Bihar. The townsfolk would work in the coal mines to earn their living and lived in fear and awe of Sultana Qureshi, a dacoit who would rob trains that passed through the town and was not recognisable to any law enforcement officer or villager. Taking advantage of the anonymity established by Sultana, a Pathan named Shahid Khan impersonates him to rob trains before Sultana himself can execute his plans thereby bringing down the wrath of one of the most feared dacoits upon himself. This starts a new war within the Muslim sects in Wasseypur as the Pathans and Qureshis start a blood feud and Shahid is forced to leave the village. Shahid moves to a larger town called Dhanbad, to the north of Wasseypur, and begins working in the coal mines at the same time that his wife dies giving birth to their son. After India attains independence, local industrialist Ramadhir Singh is assigned a few coal mines and hires Shahid Khan as his strong-man to make sure his business runs smoothly. While visiting Shahid Khan one night, Ramadhir over hears him speak to his cousin Nasir about planning to kill Ramadhir and take over his business. He immediately plots to kill Shahid by sending him to an assassin in Varanasi. Figuring out Ramadhir’s plan, Nasir protects Shahid’s son, Sardar Khan, and trains him to avenge his father’s death. Years down the line, Sardar grows up to be a fearless young man. He starts his criminal career by usurping the land of Ramadhir’s son JP Singh and reignites the feud as Ramadhir realises that he is Shahid’s son who he had murdered many years ago. Sardar is married to Nagma and they conceive two sons but Sardar is put behind bars for his previous crimes. After plotting out an escape from jail, Sardar takes asylum and marries a Hindu girl by the name of Durga. He returns to Wasseypur to find that the Qureshi clan is the widest known mafia group and tries to grab back power by planning bomb attacks on their shops during Muharram. Sultan Qureshi, nephew of Sultana Qureshi, is made aware of Sardar’s efforts and he resorts to join hands with Ramadhir Singh who supplies him with automatic weapons. In Sardar’s home, Nagma is once again pregnant with Sardar’s child and refuses to have sex with him which prompts him to visit his second wife Durga, eventually leading to Durga giving birth to another of his sons by the name of Definite. Nasir is busy taking care of Sardar’s family in his absence which comprises Nagma and her two teenage sons, Danish and Faizal. One night, Nagma is despondent and receives support from Nasir. They almost engage in intercourse but stop when they are spotted by Faizal who becomes scarred for life and forever seeks comfort in drugs in the future. In the coming years, Sardar’s sons grow up to assist him in his business. He is drawn closer to his first wife Nagma, provides his second wife with an allowance and agrees to have his eldest son marry a Qureshi to establish a temporary peace between the two families. Unfortunately, his second wife has grown tired of playing second fiddle and informs the Qureshis about his whereabouts in order to assist in an assassination attempt which takes place at a petrol pump. 

Synopsis – Part 2
When word of Sardar’s death reaches his family, his sons visit the petrol pump where he was murdered and Danish, the eldest son, kills the lone captor from the assassination plot. Realising the eminent danger, Sultan orders for Danish to be killed as well. Although the younger son Faizal is always inebriated, he vows to his mother that he will get revenge for all the killings. Lying low and waiting for the right moment to strike, Faizal announces himself to the rest of Wasseypur by brutally murdering his friend who won a local election and was an informer for the Qureshis. Faizal marries his sweetheart Mohsina and takes care of his father’s business. He enters into a truce with Ramadhir under the condition that he will receive political support if he does not carry on with his plan for revenge. By extension, Sultan is unable to carry on any attacks on Faizal because of the truce but Fazial carries on assassinating Sultan’s goons to reach the men that assassinated his father and brother. While the feud between the families carries on, many smaller criminals try to establish themselves as goons in Wasseypur thus bringing out new small gangs. Shamshad Alam, owner of a transport business, enters into a deal with Faizal to benefit both businesses but skims profits illegally without informing Faizal. At the same time, Definite, who is Durga’s son and also Faizal’s half brother, is yearning to make a name for himself in Wasseypur. Faizal’s younger brother, Perpendicular, is also gaining fame for his notorious acts in the town. This eventually leads to Perpendicular being killed by the Qureshis who were hired by the townsfolk and Shamshad double crossing Faizal to put him in jail. Definite and Shamshad face off to be the next big criminal in Wasseypur which leads to Definite being imprisoned alongside Faizal. Together they scheme to have Shamshad killed while Ramadhir joins forces with Shamshad and instructs him to bail Definite and recruit him against Faizal. Eventually, Definite sides with Fazial by dropping a bomb in Shamshad’s office which leaves Shamshad handicapped and bedridden. Meanwhile, Ramadhir is losing faith in his son JP Singh which leads JP to plot behind his father’s back. JP instigates Sultan to attack the Khan house after Faizal is released from jail. Faizal and his family survive and plot to kill Sultan which is carried out by Definite and Faizal’s goons. Definite is imprisoned and waits for Faizal’s orders but is neglected when the educated Iqlakh joins Faizal’s army and revolutionises they way he conducts business. Iqlakh, however, has an agenda of his own to kill Faizal because Sardar’s orders many decades ago had destroyed Iqlakh’s family. Faizal is aware of Iqlakh’s plans but goes along with his ideas as long as they profit his business. Under advice from Iqlakh, Faizal decides to contest the elections in his constituency by rigging the ballots. Ramadhir is shaken by Faizal’s growing power and orders for him to be killed, a plan which is carried out by Iqlakh along with the support of Definite who JP Singh has had released from jail. Definite double crosses Iqlakh, murders him and reveals the plan to Faizal. Enraged by the plan, Faizal gathers all the automatic rifles in his arsenal, stocks them up in an ambulance and drives to the hospital where Ramadhir is visiting Shamshad. Faizal’s goons easily overpower Ramamdhir’s security and Faizal has his revenge in the most gruesome manner imaginable before surrendering himself to the police along with Definite. While being transported to the jail, Faizal is killed by Definite who planned out the whole ordeal with JP Singh. JP Singh was fed up of his father’s taunts and formulated a plan to eliminate him as well as Faizal thereby allowing him to control Wasseypur and Definite to walk free.

At roughly five and a half hours in length, Gangs of Wasseypur is the longest film in the history of Indian cinema. The film was made in two parts to facilitate an easy theatrical release. The first part features a protagonist in the form of Sardar Khan while his son Faizal Khan is the protagonist for the second part of the film. The plot documents a fictionalised account of the gang wars in the town of Wasseypur over a period of 70 years. The story focuses particularly on one family that was involved in the wars over three generations and their blood feuds with the other mafia families in the town. By establishing a constant narrator in the film, director Anurag Kashyap was also able to tell the story through the eyes of the only family member who survived through all the battles thus turning the film into a personal account of the events. Most of the characters in the film are based on real life personalities that were known to have been part of the gang and political wars in and around Wasseypur.

Anurag Kashyap puts another notch in his belt of brilliance with Gangs of Wasseypur. The film uses the cinematic style of narration to break away from the clutter of other standard films. The narrative ensures the film is told from one particular angle thus lending it a prejudice and endearing the audience to one particular side of the gang wars i.e. the Khan family in the film. Although the political corruption, family vendetta and bloodlust is visibly practised by all the families, by virtue of having the protagonists and the narrator in the ranks of the Khan family, the audience does tend to have a soft spot for the family. Kashyap also uses humour (black humour most of the time since it is often associated with death and murders) to break the constant feeling of stress that develops during the film as a result of the innumerable number of deaths and other illicit activities that take place in the film which can put a strain on the audience’s sense of morality. However, at times, the humour seems to be forced and does not come across naturally; particularly the scene when Sultan is about to be murdered and his killers are hassling about his desire to buy bananas instead of mutton. As is his style, Kashyap does leave subtle clues to the audience about current affairs and his thoughts on the same as he has a character speak about a fascination with Bollywood and how people have become increasingly influenced by films in their day-to-day lives. He has also used other film techniques, most notable of which is a non-linear style as he uses flashbacks to narrate the story. The film also has multiple angles in the story since the list of characters is vast and the film does justice to explore the backstory of every character that affects the main plot. The film also has breaks and freeze frames when a new character or location is introduced. In such sequences, there is excellent use of animation and colours to stylise the sequence; one particular scene which stands out is after the cold start where a backstory is established and the British occupation of India and coal mining in Wasseypur are explained in detail. The level of gore in the film is meant to lend an effect of reality. However, the gore in the final action sequence and the blood splatter seem unnecessary; although it could been seen as the character making a statement and Kashyap himself, as the director, making a statement through his character. The soundtrack in the film is strongly influenced by Indian folk music but also has international styles with rock and dubstep being utilised in parts. The lyrics of most of the songs used in the film are explicit with many sexual references being made by virtue of music.

Gangs of Wasseypur is another excellent film churned out by Anurag Khasyap. The film is loosely based on true events and was originally penned down by one of the writers and actors of the film who is a resident of Wasseypur. Although lengthy, it is a stellar piece of cinematic work.