Aaman Devgan, Abhishek Kapoor, Ajay Devgn, Andrew Crouch, Azaad, Diana Penty, drama, Dylan Jones, India, Mohit Malik, movies, Natasha Rastogi, Rasha Thadani, reviews, Sandeep Shikhar
January 22, 2025
by Carla Hay
Directed by Abhishek Kapoor
Hindi with subtitles
Culture Representation: Taking place in 1920, in Central Provinces, India, the dramatic film “Azaad” features a predominantly Indian cast of characters (with some white people) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.
Culture Clash: A stable worker and a resistance leader have a bond with a black stallion named Azaad, who becomes part of a horse-racing competition involving a wealthy romantic rival of the resistance leader.
Culture Audience: “Azaad” will appeal mainly to people who are fans of the movie’s headliners and action-oriented dramas about horses.
If you like feel-good stories about horses, then you’ll probably enjoy “Azaad.” The stallion title character often outshines the humans in this drama, which is an uneven mix of thrilling and mundane. The cast members performances and dialogue are adequate, but the action sequences and cinematography are above-average.
Directed by Abhishek Kapoor, “Azaad” was written by Ritesh Shah, Suresh Nair and Chandan Arora. The movie takes place in 1920, in Central Provinces, India, when India was under British colonial rule. There are a few flashbacks that take place before 1920.
“Azaad” begins in the village of Bhusar, where a young man named Govind (played by Aaman Devgan) lives with his widowed father Braj (played by Sandeep Shikhar) and Braj’s mother Nani (played by Natasha Rastogi), who is kind and loving to Govind. Growing up, Govind would hear stories from Nani about a legendary black horse with super powers. Govind has an affinity for horses and wonders if he’ll even find a special horse of his own.
Braj and Govind both work as servants for a wealthy and ruthless tyrant named Rai Bahadur (played by Piyush Mishra), who has strictly forbidden his servants from riding his horses without permission. Govind works mainly in the Bahadur family’s horse stable. One day, one of these horses gets loose, so Govind has no choice but to get on the horse to bring it back to its home. An enraged Rai punishes Govind by ordering Braj to whip Govind in front of other people.
Rai has two adult children, who are both spoiled and conceited. Kumwar “Tej” Bahadur (played by Mohit Malik) is completely cruel and irredeemable. Janaki Bahadur (played by Rasha Thadani) is haughty but she’s not a bad person.
Govind is smitten with Janaki, but she treats him in a condescending manner, by calling him “stable boy.” Govind tries to pretend that he doesn’t care and stands up to her insults. And you know what that means: Janaki will eventually become attracted to Govind.
Meanwhile, Vikram Singh (played by Ajay Devgn) has become chief of a local movement resisting British colonial rule. Vikram has an extraordinary black stallion named Azaad that can kick opponents during battles like a champion kickboxer. The first time Govind sees Vikram and Azaad, he is in awe.
Although Vikram has become a folk hero to many people in the community, his personal life isn’t going so well. He recently broke off an affair that he was having with Tej’s wife Kesar Bahadu (played by Diana Penty), who is in marriage where Tej keeps her under his abusive control. Govind happens to see Vikram break up with Kesar when he saw them together in an open field. Vikram has a long history with Kesar because she was Vikram’s lover before she married Tej.
That’s not the only love triangle in the story. There’s also a subplot about Rai wanting Janaki to marry a Brit: James Cummings (played by Andrew Crouch), the arrogant son of snooty Lord Cummings (played by Dylan Jones). James is an avid horse rider; he and his father think they are superior in every way to the Bahadu family and other Indians.
Over time, Govind befriends Vikram, who entrusts Govind to take care of Azaad. Govind and Azaad have a special bond that becomes intertwined with Govind becoming more confident and having a stronger sense of himself. As soon as it’s mentioned in the movie that there’s a big horse racing contest with a grand prize, you just know who’s going to be in the final showdown.
“Azaad” has vibrant-looking musical numbers and adrenaline-packed actions scenes. Some of the dialogue is generic, but the non-villain characters are realistically portrayed. All the villains in the story are shallow caricatures. “Azaad” is an undemanding, crowd-pleasing film that doesn’t expect viewers to think too much and does a capable job of being entertaining, even if the outcome of the movie can be predicted long before the movie ends.
AA Films released “Azaad” in U.S. cinemas and in India on January 17, 2024.