Team FC
Of the several meme-worthy scenes in Gangs of Wasseypur, one has stood the test of time – routinely used as Whatsapp gifs, as the live-action equivalent of an exasperated emoji. I laugh every time I watch it, largely because it's not supposed to be funny
Faizal's introduction is perfect: he is watching a Bachchan entry scene on the big screen, simultaneously being inspired and dwarfed by the larger-than-life-ness of it. It's fitting that Nawazuddin Siddiqui's star-making performance began with a riff on the tallest of our film stars: Siddiqui is everything Bachchan isn't.
It's during Sardar Khan's first meal after his jailbreak that he sets his eyes firmly on Durga, the Bengali woman brought to Wasseypur to be "pimped" by the local butcher. As the gangster savours his first taste of freedom after a spell in prison, he's also trying to feed another form of hunger.
'Beta, tumse na ho payega', Ramadhir Singh says, voice thick with impatience, weariness and frustration, after his son JP tells him that he went to the movies last night and watched Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. That one line captures a world view.
In the movie-mad universe of Wasseypur, one line sums it up all: 'Hindustan mein jab tak Cinema hain log chutiye ban te rahenge'. It's as funny as meaningful in the context of the story:. throughout the film we see characters act like Hindi film heroes – whether it's Faizal Khan, Definite, and of course Ramadhir's own son J.P – leading them to make rash decisions.
By the time Faizal scales the wall to Mohsina's bedroom in Gangs Of Wasseypur 2, he is a certified gunda and an unquestionable heir to Sardar Khan's vast estate. And yet, to Mohsina he says, "Ek permission lena chahta hoon tumse" before asking her to have sex with him.
Using the gamcha, the cotton cloth that men in North and Central India wear around their necks to wipe off sweat, as a marketing ploy at Cannes was an inspired choice. The photograph of the whole cast and crew wearing the gamcha over their black suits and cocktail dresses at the Cannes carpet produced a memorable image.
According to Sneha Khanwalkar, the music director of the two-part Gangs of Wasseypur films, the sound of revenge doesn't always have to be one loud explosion. Khanwalkar and Amit Trivedi's slithering vocals in "Keh Ke Lunga", written by Varun Grover, mirror Sardar Khan's (and then Faizal Khan's) dogged quest for vengeance, one that's been brewing for decades.
Aided by landmark casting by Mukesh Chhabra, Gangs of Wasseypur was an antecedent to the kind of sprawling ensembles we see in series format on the Indian OTT today.
Talk about setting the tone. Talk about intertextuality. The stunning opening of Wasseypur ushers us into the opening credits of Kyunki Saans Phi Kabhi Bahu Thi – that mega serial of all serials – and then fires bullets through the TV set playing it.