Nothing new at all. It was too slow to be a thriller and too violent to be a drama. In the end it was a dull tale of a trained killer, with the romance added in for the pleasure of the average Bollywood audience. The whole romance angle was totally unnecessary. Also, musical numbers were not called for given the tone for rest of the movie. Action sequences were pretty average. None of the performances were particularly impressive. On the whole this is one movie that can be avoided without missing out on anything at all. Poor story, screenplay, and direction ruins the movie, with the cast and budget they should have surely made something better than this.
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DesiBaba2 July 2009
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This tired remake of Hollywood's 'Point of no return' is a decade behind its point. Bobby Deol is great as an assassin out to avenge the deaths of both his father and his mentor but he is also wasted in the role as he is too good for a tired action drama such as this. The equally brilliant Priyanka Chopra is also wasted in a role as his love interest who is given nothing to do other than endlessly parade about in beautiful Sarees and pout. The best part of the movie happens at the beginning on a train when a girl about to be raped by a goon turns out to be an undercover hired assassin (a rare occurrence by all Indian standards) but don't get your hopes high as the film goes downhill from there. The music is quite good but even it cannot carry the film. Don't get too attached to any characters either unless you like your heart being broken. Irfan Khan, Rajpal Yadav and Riteish Deshmukh co-star.
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underworld_don00720 October 2008Chamku sounds like a comedy but turns out to be a action film.Chamku is a old wine served in a new bottle. Chamku is an outdated revenge action movie.Chamku is filled with blood and gore. The biggest culprit of this movie is the writer,the writer expects the audiences to be stupid.The first half is nothing special but the second half is very boring.The movie is predictable cause of the screenplay of this film.The second half is basically filled with blood and violence.Monty Sharma's music is below average.Bobby Deol gives his best,he puts energy in this film and he's the Savior of this movie.Priyanka Chopra is wasted,Irrfan Khan is excellent.
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As it was a movie directed by Kabeer Kaushik of "Seher" fame, i was expecting much more than served. The promos were lacking the pull and so was the movie. It started off as a regular revenge drama when a child witnesses the murder of his family and then remembers it to take his revenge later on in his youth.
The child is picked by a naxalite group led by Danny and he transforms him into a sharp shooter Bobby Deol. The twist in the story comes when Bobby is chosen by the Intelligence Agencies to work for them. And thats it, no other novelty is there in the plot and there are the same old sub plots of love and emotions seen several times before on the silver screen.
It is strange why the director selected this script, which had nothing new to offer and had no experimentation which was seen in his first movie "Seher". Subjects on Police and Intelligence Agencies seem to be the favorites of Kabeer Kaushik. But this time he has not given even half of what was there in "Seher".
Though the performance of Bobby Deol needs special mention but that goes unnoticed as the film fails to generate any interest. He shows improvement in his act as an extension to what he played in "Bichhoo". But an entire talented starcast is just doing nothing in the film. Priyanka Chopra looks ravishing but has no characterisation to work on. Irfan Khan, Ritesh Deshmukh, Rajpal Yadav, Deepal Shaw are simply there doing their act unconvincingly. There are no relief moments as both Ritesh & Rajpal are given intense characters for a change, which sadly does not work.
Music also has the same feel of being unimpressive and Monty has just given a regular score for the movie. Action is good but the viewer gets an overdose of bloodshed. In the recent times, similar kind of subjects have been seen earlier in "Contract" and many more.
So there in very less to offer this time by the talented director as his script lets him down. -
riddhimaakaritu27 August 2020For a 2008 film it feels too old even though there are dialogues which refers to it's contemporary films. :/
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virindra26 November 2008I am u huge fan of Bobby Deol. He started acting in films of his father, Darmendra. The acting of Bobby was awful! When he played in movies, not directed by his father, he was far better as an actor.
This movie is again directed by Dharmendra. I've seen Dharmendra's movie for more than 20 years now, when he was an actor himself. I've been knowing this man through his films. I can understand the name Chamku, but knowing that this film is a copy of Hit-man (2007) I don't understand the name. Who calls a professional hit-man "Chamku"? Besides that this film is a copy, noting about this film, seeing it from a Bollywood perspective, is new. Bobby Deol's and Irfan Khan's acting was good, as always. But Ritesh Deshmukh was not great, and that disappointed me. Ritesh is a great actor, but that did not come out in this movie. Priyanka Chopra was awful, as always.
The story was not new, the action wasn't new, the story twist was not a surprise. I'm glad Dharmendra introduced Bobby to the Bollywood cinema, but time has already come that Bobby Deol has to let go his father's hand. The first baby steps have already been made, there is more for Bobby in the Bollywood cinema than to play in his father's films. Bobby deserves much more than that. -
love-shri8321 October 2008Well i just saw this movie. Only good thing about this movie is it is short 1 hr 41 Min's. Music is a torture. No intensity in script. You keep thinking when will this movie get over. Nothing new to watch in this movie. Its a slow place, scenes are in random order or can say in no order. Even after good star cast there is nothing in story for actors to show their talent. Anyway its your call.
I recommend recent flick " Wednesday " extremely good movie with awesome script , actors and performance. Edge of the seat entertainment with a social message.
Have a great day. -
pushpargha30 August 2008When Chamku was released,there were no high expectations from it but those who spent the money to watch the movie, I can safely say that they must have had their money worth it.Chamku is a good movie and the performances by the actors were also pretty good.To be honest, the storyline has nothing extra special except for being well crafted and drafted but the direction,cinematography and screenplay were excellent and very well done.The director has done a very good job and has chosen the right actors for each character role. Bobby Deol is back(I won't say with a bang but with a decent performance after a long time)and with Irfan has worked out a thumbs up combination.The movie was intense and has been well dramatized by the actors' performances.Irfan as usual does justice to the role with exceptions on some occasions when it comes to the delivery of his lines in English and the accent he uses. The editing was also good and there were less of the unnecessary song sequences and character inclusions that would have added nothing to the plot.The plot was a well conceived one and the USP of the movie was its uninterrupted run of the plot and the dramatization.The usage of background music was good but on occasions some scores sounded familiar and heard of.
I won't criticize the movie much but if at all I have to speak something negative about it then it would be a couple of things.First, Priyanka Chopra again has nothing much to do other than being Bobby's love interest and being the cause of him drifting away from his job of assassination.Priyanka Chopra again didn't have much of the opportunity to showcase her acting skills and instead has been used as a fill up for the gap of the important character role that she plays.Honestly any decent actress could have done justice to that role as it really does'nt require a Priyanka Chopra or any other glam quotient.It doesn't really cause any harm to the movie though because she plays her part well but as I said it's not a very significant performance role from her in the movie.The second negative aspect is that the movie has shades of Badal and Bichchoo in its plot and the role of Bobby also signifies that and indicates towards it.The movie has the same elements of the hero avenging his father's death but with a different storyline but nevertheless the direction of the film and other fore said factors cover everything up pretty well. All in all, a very well made movie with no nonsensical approach and no extra uninteresting additions and the time limit was also kept fine keeping in pace with the plot and approaching climax.Not bad at all! -
aroop_d4 September 2008i concur with all the other reviews on this board, this film has been mistreated by the critics, its a tout, fast paced , action packed thriller that pulls all stop, yup, everyone in cast is expandable,the tone of the film is very nihilistic, stark and gritty..it requires a amount of suspension of disbelief, but so does Dhoom 2 or Tashan , SarkarRaj or any other film that has released in past couple of years, a lot have been said about the gore and violence in the film- which is true and works in the favor of the feel of the film..the splatter effects by using over inflated squibs are effective..And for the critics information Ritesh Deshmukh or Aryan Babbar or Deepal Shaw are not wasted in there small roles, only a idiot will compare a role with the screen time instead of effectiveness..the idea was to make characters out of star and not make stars out of characters...its progressive, but Indian mindset (read critics) still don't seem to be ready for it..maybe thats why, if Steven Segal is dispatched in the middle of "Executive Decision" the element of surprise is applauded but if the similar thing happens in India, critics don't appreciate it..I thought Aaryan Babbar was very effective in a small role without any lines and so was Deepal Shaw..they both made me feel bad when they got shot. Also unlike Sehar..this film also belongs to the little child in Kabir Kaushik who has seen too many Hollywood films (with CIA operative working for the agency as hired assassins)when he was growing up..the surveillance,the training, usage of terminology like "ETA" , "Locking the Position", "The target is Moving"..but its alright, who really cares..its not based on a true story..is it..yea i do agree, Priyanaka Chopra track was not needed, but rest of the film is a noteworthy attempt in taking the cinema to the hard boiled action roots that used to be its forte in late 70's and early 80's and then it got lost between all those romcom and brainless comedy..this surely is a boyz film,..thats why i can understand why some panzee's didn't like it.
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saxena_ashes12 October 2008Another one-film old writer-director Kabeer Kaushik presented Chamku the same Friday. However, it failed to match his earlier venture Sehar. Chamku is the story of an eponymous character played by Bobby Deol, whose parents were brutally murdered by naxalites when he was a kid. He later gets picked up under a covert Govt intelligence program to carry out political assassinations. The character is almost unbreakable as he survives several gun shots and multiple murder attempts. Though a female character was not required, Priyanka Chopra looks good in a perpetual blue chiffon saree with a stringed blouse in her kindergarten teacher role. An outdated revenge drama, Chamku failed to shine at all.
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AvinashPatalay19 December 2008There was no hype about this movie and in all fairness is not too bad. But yes, it definitely could have been a lot better. The plot had lots of scope and potential.
Broadly the story can be divided into three chapters the childhood, naxalite and the assassination agent. IMO either it should have been a linear progression as opposed to jumping back-and-forth in the narrative or simply trimmed it into two chapters. BTW the childhood has shades of Agneepath.
Bobby Deol:: Simply put - he attempts Jr. B of Sarkar. The restrained performance doesn't suit him yet. It was clearly evident that it was forced down his throat. Halo-effect perhaps? Priyanka:: Very average performance. The role was similar to Dimple Kapadia's in Arjun.
Ritiesh Deshmukh: A very-very special appearance kind of role.
Danny:: Should have given more screen time to develop his character and the basis of his ideology. In terms of performance, there wasn't anything special to mention about.
Irfan Khan:: Very impressive considering the fact that the role demanded various shades to it and effectively strikes a fine balance between his duty and personal agenda.
Songs were unwarranted. -
lediscipledessocrates10 March 2010CHAMKU- doesn't sound quite promising does it? This fact made a huge impression upon my friends' minds and hence I decided to my old habit of watching movies all by myself in the movie hall.
The ticket counter girl smiled a little as I approached demanding a single Gold Class ticket for Chamku. She complied rather readily but not before confirming the fact of my solitary appearance. I mean, she expected intelligent couples who were interested in making out casually , to book tickets for the show , where the audience count was going to be minimal.
In stead we had quite an assortment that day. I remember it clearly and distinctly. A father along with his daughter..probably in her late teens, a group of uninterested tourists who wanted to kill time before leaving for the station ( 4 in number) , A husband and wife along with two tiny tots, A fellow like me who had for some reason come to watch this movie all alone and of course me.
To be honest I like watching movies alone. In fact I have become used to the idea of watching them alone. No one to disturb you by asking you what just happened. No chance of continuously staring at your companion's face to record his/her reaction or join him/her in their subdues laughter or moment of nostalgia.
By the interval the husband and wife had left the theater along with their kids.
Chamku , is a good decent action movie. In the 90's it would have been a hit.
Irfan Khan , Bobby Deol star in this simple straightforward movie, which for some reason loses it's way in the middle and ends up trying to be a little pretentious in appearance.
A typical storyline and chain of events hold the movie together.
Not by any means a great movie but better than all those pseudo intellectual duds which are coming out from production houses nowadays. -
Pratik1123 September 2008I was totally amazed with the contents of this movie from Dharmendra, even though I had did have some inkling from the promos.
Chamku, whose real name is Chandrama, is taken care of by Baba, after he is forced to watch his parents being murdered. Baba, however, trains him to become a sharp shooter and is one day killed by the Police in an encounter and Chamku joins a Government agency and gets involved in covert operations where those that are felt as threat to the system are assassinated. Then his life takes a twist when he meets Shubhi and falls in love with her.
Produced by Dharmendra, the movie stars Bobby Deol, Priyanka Chopra, Danny Denzongpa, Irfan Khan, Arshad Warsi, Riteish Deshmukh, Rajpal Yadav and is Directed by Kabeer Kaushik while Monty Sharma provides the music score.
Don't be misled that since the star cast includes Arshad Warsi, Riteish Deshmukh and Rajpal Yadav, that this is some sort of comedy because there isn't and they have proved that they are able to do some serious roles as well. Once again, Irfan Khan has shown his talents and has done an excellent job of a character relating to Government agency and who can be ruthless. But one actor who has gone beyond all my expectations is Bobby Deol. He has played his role very well and one which can be believable and it has suited him. Lastly for Priyanka Chopra, who has also done well, this can be said, was better then her last movie, "Love 2050," and was one of her best films since "Don."
Conclusion: This has delivered some fresh air into this sort of genre - worth watching. -
Vineet_MishraPrayagraj_Dibiyapur1 September 2019We Indians certainly have very poor choice in appreciating good movies. This movie is certainly not a masterpiece And the time it was released, it sure deserved to collect at least 60-70 cr. You can see the hard work of actors scripts writers and directors. We don't respect hard work, that's why we don't have culture of making movies which can win awards at international level. This movie has very good script, good background music And overall sufficient entertainment for all kinds of audiences. It's really sad that movies like Race3 and thugs of hindostan earn 100 cr and movies like this one gets only 4/10 stars and 26 cr business.