We see movies, we read books, but it is all the more fun if they have the same story in a movie and a book and we can do a comparison. Today, I bring you the first ever Movie plus book review and comparison. So, this blog will suffice both the movie buffs and the bookworms out there. The book I will be reviewing today is written by an Indian author and of-course, the movie is a Bollywood blockbuster! Isn't it great? that you can enjoy popcorn with a movie and a cup of coffee with a book! If you haven't checked out my previous book and movie reviews, don't wait! check them out now! All right then, lets not waste any more time and get to the review, Lets jump right in, folks!
The book is called "Calling Sehmat" and the movie inspired from this book is called "Raazi". Both of them are based on the true story about a female Indian spy. It's genre is 'Patriotic thriller'.
The Movie
The cast of the movie, ‘Raazi’ is as follows-
Alia Bhatt as Sehmat
Vicki kaushal as Iqbal Syed
Jaideep Ahlawat as Khalid Mir
Soni Razdan as Teji Khan
Rajit Kapur as Hidayat Khan
Amruta Khanvilkar as Munira
Shishir Syed as Brigadier Syed
Arif Zakaria as Abdul
Ashwath Bhatt as Mehboob
The plot of the book and the movie
The movie talks about a young college girl’s transformation into a dangerous spy. A sweet girl who feels squeamish even at the very sight of blood, is sent on a mission to protect her motherland, her country, India. She obeys her father’s wish and adopts the principle of “Country before self”. She gets trained by professionals at the art of being a spy. A girl who has never even killed a fly, has to pick up a gun to defend her country. She bravely jumps into the mouth of danger. She is married to the enemy’s family. Her role is not to be a good wife, it is to be a cautious spy who needs to inform the cruel plan the enemy is plotting against her motherland. She does not let anyone in the enemy’s family get the slightest idea that she is a spy. She fights against all the odds to accomplish her task, but will she be able to hide under the covers for long enough? Will she save her country’s pride? You shall see for yourselves.
The Review.
Both the movie and the book raise a feeling of pride and patriotism for one’s country. The movie and the book alike are very gripping and interesting, it would hold the viewer/reader on the edge of the seat. The characters are described well and the actors and actresses have played their roles amazingly. The plot does not seem slow or talkative at any point of time and neither is there any unnecessary melodrama or extending of emotional scenes. Being a Bollywood movie, it has many songs and an amazing background score which fit perfectly with different scenes and situations of the movie. The book helps build a good picture in the head and even if it moves a little slower than the movie, it does not seem boring at any point.
The Comparison
Even Though the movie has music and background scores, the book is no less interesting. A plus point about the book is that there is an after-story included which is absent in the movie. It has nothing to do with the suspense and does not affect the plot but it gives a really good ending to the story and a proper conclusion about the things which happen after the part where the movie ended. In my opinion, the ending given in the book was much better than the ending shown in the movie. Also, in the beginning, the movie moves straight away to the plot but in the book, the beginning is about Sehmat the protagonist of the story and her college life. It does not affect the main plot but it helps build a bigger picture knowing the character’s detailed background. The prologue and the epilogue are also very interesting in the book. The middle part of the story is pretty much alike in both the movie and the book. The best thing is that if you have already seen the movie, you can still read the book and have the same fun as the book is quite detailed. Compared to the movie, the book is a little slow but at the same time very interesting.
So, if you do not want extra details, backstory and conclusion; You can go for the movie. If you want to know it all, the book is your cup of tea.
If you want a ‘lil bit o both’, just read the book, see the movie and compare them like I did!
About the writer
Harinder S. Sikka is currently the group director, strategic business, Piramal Group. After graduating from Delhi University, he joined the Indian Navy. He was commissioned in January 1981 and took premature retirement in 1993 as a Lieutenant Commander. He recently produced a film, Nanak Shah Fakir, which won acclaim at the Cannes, Toronto and Los Angeles international film festivals. The film won three national awards including the Nargis Dutt Award for best feature film on national integration.
Calling Sehmat is his second book and has been made into a film, Raazi, by Meghna Gulzar. He lives in Delhi with his family.
About the director
Meghna Gulzar is an Indian writer, director and producer. The daughter of lyricist poet Gulzar and former actress Raakhee, she was born on 13 December 1973 in Maharashtra, Mumbai. She started her career as a freelance writer for times of India. She won the award of 'Best Director' for her film 'Raazi'.
Music from the movie
Today’s music recommendation is from the movie itself. The song is called ‘Ae Watan’ beautifully sung by Arijit Singh. It raises a feeling of patriotism in the listener. Another song from the movie Raazi is called ‘Dilbaro’ It is a sweet Kashmiri song whose sweet melody makes you sing along. It is sung by Harshdeep Kaur, Shankar Mahadevan and Vibha Saraf.
Thank you so much for reading the blog! I hope you found it useful.
Stay tuned for the next one!
See ya!
I loveeee the movie!! 😇