Source: TOI
Date: September 1, 2011
The response to the one-and-a-half-minute teaser of Dharma Productions' Agneepath that broke yesterday with Salman Khan's Bodyguard has been overwhelming, from both the industry as well as the audience. The film is slated for a January 13, 2012 release, but it already has a fan base in place. Film critic Rajeev Masand says, "I loved it. It is one of the most visually impactful promos I've seen in a long time. The very first visual of Sanjay Dutt, who plays the baddie Kancha, dragging a man (who I am assuming is Hrithik Roshan's father) up the stairs leaves a mark. The montage of the huge Ganpati statue and several such images stay in your mind. The film has an A-list star cast like Rishi Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra and Hrithik Roshan." Masand is all praise for Dutt. "His look is so menacing. I must hand it to the actor for going all out to get this look right. He has bravely shaved his head, donned earrings, bulked up his physique; everything is so larger-than-life. I think he is the meanest character one has seen on screen in a long time." Rajeev continues, "Hrithik is equally exciting as Agneepath marks his return to the action genre. . Hrithik's Vijay complements Sanjay's Kancha perfectly. If Sanjay wasn't such a mean villain, the hero may not have had enough to chew on. But here, you can see Agneepath as being a fight between equals."
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh says, "Agneepath could well be Hrithik's Dabangg. The actor did well for himself with ZNMD and Agneepath will see him consolidate his position. As for Sanjay, it will be the turning point of his career. Kancha is so ferocious, so venomous and Vijay is so angry, so livid that the clash between the two takes on gargantuan proportions. I know a lot of purists felt that Karan Johar and Karan Malhotra shouldn't have touched a cult classic like Agneepath. However, after seeing the promo, I think this version will be a revelation." Vajir Singh, the editor of a film trade journal, feels that the Agneepath promo is a fine example of what commercial mainstream cinema is. Says he, "KJo and Karan Malhotra know mainstream cinema really well. And their promo shows just those aspects. This has been beautifully conveyed in the teaser. The good versus evil formula works very well here and reprising the characters of Vijay and Kancha works beautifully."