Times are changing. No longer are Hindi film-makers sticking to the so-called ‘pharmula’ of larger-than-life settings, super-heroes and romanticized plots. So we are getting to see many true-to-life, deglamourised and yet pretty interesting films in Bollywood. Shor in the city belongs to that genre.

The theme is simple – ‘In the noisy din of this crowded city it is very easy to lose your way. It can corrupt your soul- no matter what and where you are.’ Through peeps at intersecting lives of common people from different walks of life, we get to experience Mumbai’s deeper darker side.  Gangs, murders, robberies, kidnappings, drugs-and-arms dealings, ‘protection money’ demands, pirated books, corruption at all levels…we get to see practically all the flip side of the thriving city of dreams. So what if you are a small-time crook or a budding cricketer or a foreign-returned businessman? The city treats all of them the same way. One bad decision and the lives are changed forever.

Through taut screen proceedings that hold your attention throughout, Shor in the city says what it has to say in no uncertain way. Besides Tusshar Kapoor, there are practically no known names in the cast and yet the film does well on the acting scale. Directors Raj Nidimoru and Krishna D.K. should get most of the applause for writing a fine script and then executing it to perfection. Without ever diluting the serious core theme, they still manage to keep the film enough light-hearted for the general consumption and that makes it a worthwhile watch!