Ardh Satya
Tags: cult, murder, flashback

Plot synopsis:
The film opens at a party where Anant Welankar (Om Puri), a police officer, meets Jyotsna Gokhale (Smita Patil), a lecturer in literature at a local college. Anant is a sub-inspector with Bombay police. They seem to hit it off despite some initial skirmishing about ideology, and the friendship blossoms into a relationship.
Anant brings diligence, enthusiasm and a definite idealism to his job. But the job is harsh. There is a deep nexus between the local mafia, the cops and the (corrupt) politicians. Honest himself, Anant falls among the lower rungs of the police hierarchy and has very limited scope of authority on the state of affairs in his area.
When Anant arrests three common thugs, he is asked to meet with their boss, Rama Shetty (Sadashiv Amrapurkar), a don in the local mafia. Anant refuses all of Rama Shetty's attempts to get his men out or to entice Anant to join him. Shetty decides to watch over Anant.
Some time thereafter, a meek fellow from a local slum lodges a complaint about some ruffians who harass his wife. Anant finds them, locks them up, and administers a severe beating. As a fallout, the local MLA asks for Anant to be suspended.
Anant's boss, inspector Haider Ali, explains to a mystified Anant that the ruffians were the MLA's henchmen, providers of muscle during elections and political rallies. Anant is defiant with a clear conscience (he did nothing wrong) and ready to face a tribunal. Haider Ali explains that it will hardly get that far. Tribunals are either delayed indefinitely or are rigged (by corrupt politicians), and suspension during that time is a permanent black mark on one's record (for no other politician will be willing to deal with such a troublemaker).
Anant is initially baffled but goes along with Haider's plan to bring in Desai, a mediator or middle-man with connections in New Delhi, the "Centre" or national seat of power. Desai invokes higher powers to quietly cover up the matter. Anant's morals are shaken by this incident: He had to use means barely legal to uphold his righteous actions upon criminals.
Anant reflects upon his childhood. His father (Amrish Puri) retired as a Faujdar (constable) in the village police force. His father was a hard and violent man, quick to slap or beat his wife on the slightest pretext. Anant recalls looking on and being powerless to intervene. When Anant graduates college, he expresses his desire to pursue higher education but is forced into joining the police force.
Things get interesting when Anant finds one of Rama Shetty's goons, badly beaten, burnt and left to die. Anant brings the man into the hospital and takes his statement where he names Rama Shetty and others who inflicted this assault. Anant storms into Rama Shetty's rooms to arrest him. But Shetty is unfazed. He makes a simple phone call to a high ranking cop who immediately asks Anant to back off. Anant cites the context and the overwhelming evidence but is still ordered to step away. A consternated, resentful and hapless Anant leaves, feeling intensely humiliated.
Haider Ali explains yet again: Rama Shetty plans to run for city council in the upcoming municipal elections and simply cannot afford to let a petty matter distract his ambitions. Anant is horrified and enraged, and takes to drinking. His relationship with Jyotsna suffers. He is distraught when he is sent to provide security cover for Rama Shetty's campaign rallies.
He suffers another career setback when he leads an assault team to capture a dangerous daku (armed bandit) in the hills outside Mumbai, and the credit for the arrest is ultimately handed to another officer. His relationship deteriorates further and he takes to drinking fairly heavily. When Jyotsna confronts him, he confides in her.
Jyotsna tries to be supportive and suggests he consider another career. (She is motivated by recent news stories about police brutality and has decided that she will not marry a police officer.) He has always tried to do the right thing, but his well-intentioned actions always seem to be thwarted by the tentacles of corruption in the police force or the political strata. In the alcoholic trans a prisoner is killed by Anant in the jail when he uses 'third degree' and now Anant is not only likely to be arrested and jailed, but also has to lose his entire career. Finally he surrenders to Rama Shetty for political protection. Now, in the clutches of Rama Shetty, Anant has to obey his every order and humiliation. The dirty conditions put by Rama Shetty angers Anant and he kills Rama Shetty and then surrenders voluntarily to the Police for any punishment.
According to film expert Rajesh Subramanian, Amitabh Bachchan was first offered the lead role. The superstar, due to tight schedule, declined it. Om Puri was cast as Anant Welankar and it went on to become a career defining role.

Review: A cop story with a difference; Om Puri nails it.
Ardh Satya is an excellently made film.
Govind Nihalani leaves no stone unturned in his portrayal of the trials and tribulations of the main character Anant Velankar.
He never wanted to be a policeman, but he reluctantly accepted the job because circumstances forced him to as his domineering father did not give him any other option.
Now, as a policeman, Anant is honest, hard-working and justice-seeking.
No, not at all what we get to see in mindless action films with their exaggerated portrayals of policemen going all nuts over their profession and their fake patriotism being the main issue.
Ardh Satya is a realistic film, its authenticity is more present than anything else in it.
It's a true depiction of the life of an Indian cop and it does not submit to stereotypes, which could have been the easiest way to go.As Anant, Om Puri plays a man who tries to fight criminals and those who break the low, but ends up having to fight against injustice within the system itself.
This movie is just his story, not necessarily as a cop.
Nihalani directs this feature with great integrity, and Vijay Tendulkar's script and dialogues are fantastic.
The sequences showing his interaction with Jyotsna, a young lecturer of literature, are stupendous and are of the best in the film, right from their first meeting which opens the film to the time when they are already considering a future marriage.
Even the portrayal of his relationship with his parents, in spite of the minimal screen time it is given, is spot on and is very troubling.Ardh Satya is a one-man show, and needless to say, it is Om Puri who dominates the proceedings with his heartfelt, brilliant performance as Anant.
Puri is an actor who has very rarely delivered something unworthy, although he has been given stuff unworthy of his talent.
This performance ranks amongst the finest works of his illustrious career.
The acting in general is very good in this film, but the rest of the cast are just here to support him, and they do it well.
Amrish Puri, as the tough, violent and authoritarian father, is unsurprisingly excellent.
He manages to convey a lot of his character's essence through just a few scenes.
Shafi Inamdar is also pretty good as Anant's boss.Last but certainly not least, Smita Patil is first-rate in a role that was totally in need of someone with her intellectual capabilities and would have turned into inconsequential by a lesser actress.
This is not at all one of those powerful author-backed roles she was known for playing, but it's still a very special one in her career.
As Jyotsna, she is natural, pleasant and exudes a certain warmth that is missing in the film.
I highly recommend you to observe the scene in which Anant shares with her his deep devastation towards the end.
This scene, devoid of clichés, is one of the finest in the film, showing Om Puri's highpoint but at the same time Patil's wonderfully unconventional reaction of just being there, quietly listening and ultimately lending him a hand of support.
The film's climax is most unexpected, and Ardh Satya is overall an excellent, involving movie that is highly recommended..
Hard Hitting Cinema Classic.
The most definitive movie on Mumbai Police.
This movie has stood the test of times.Om Puri gives a stellar performance, Smita Patil no less.
All the actors have done their best and the movie races on thrilling you at every moment.
This movie shakes your whole being badly and forces you to rethink about many issues that confront our society.This is the story of a cop (Om Puri ) who starts out in his career as a honest man but ultimately degenerates into a killer.
The first attempt in Bollywood to get behind the scenes and expose the depressing truth about Mumbai cops.
After this movie a slew of Bollywood movies got released that exposed the criminal-politician-police nexus.
This trend dominated the Hindi movie scene for more than a decade.
This movie was a moderate box office hit.
Govind Nihalani's directorial venture of Vijay Tendulkar's novel is brilliant.
Om Puri plays an inspector Velankar who is forced to protect underworld don rama shetty, played brilliantly by sadahiv amrapurkar.
This is Govind Nihlan's Most talked about movie.
This is a very good and a classic film.
Smita Patil plays the female lead opposite Om Puri.
Although Sadashiv Amrapurkar has only 4 scenes in the movie he dominates the movie.
This was Sadashiv Amrapurkars acting debut.Om Puri won a national award for this film for the best actor.
Filmfare award winner for Best Film,Story,Supporting Actor(Sadashiv Amrapurkar)..
"Ardh Satya" is one of the finest film ever made in Indian Cinema.
Directed by the great director Govind Nihalani, this one is the most successful Hard Hitting Parallel Cinema which also turned out to be a Commercial Success.
Even today, Ardh Satya is an inspiration for all leading directors of India.The film tells the Real-life Scenario of Mumbai Police of the 70s.
Govind Nihalani creates a very practical Outlay with real life approach of Mumbai Police Environment.Amongst various Police officers & colleagues, the film describes the story of Anand Velankar, a young hot-blooded Cop coming from a poor family.
The film is here revolved in a Plot wherein Anand's constant efforts against crime are trampled by his seniors.This leads to frustrations, as he cannot achieve the desired Job-satisfaction.
Resulting from the frustrations, his anger is expressed in excessive violence in the remand rooms & bars, also turning him to an alcoholic.The Spirit within him is still alive, as he constantly fights the system.
Finally he gets suspended.The Direction is a master piece & thoroughly hard core.
One of the best memorable scenes is when Anand breaks in the Underworld gangster Rama Shetty's house to arrest him, followed by short conversation which is fantastic.
At many scenes, the film has Hair-raising moments.The Practical approach of Script is a major Punch.
Alcoholism, Corruption, Political Influence, Courage, Deceptions all are integral part of Mumbai police even today.
Those aspects are dealt brilliantly.Finally, the films belongs to the One man show, Om Puri portraying Anand Velankar traversing through all his emotions absolutely brilliantly..
Ardh Satya's premise is summarized by the poem of the same name scripted by Dilip Chitre.
The line goes - "ek palde mein napunsaktha, doosre palde mein paurush, aur teek tarazu ke kaante par, ardh satya ?".
"The poem is recited midway in the film by Smita Patil to Om Puri at a resturant.
At the end of the film, Om Puri ends up in exactly the same situation described so aptly in the poem.The film tries mighty hard to do a one-up on the poem.
However, Chitre's words are too powerful, and at best, the film matches up to the poem in every aspect..
A man is given a choice.
If he picks the tougher one there is a good chance he won't be given another.
It is not just true of Anant Welankar, the young policeman in Govind Nihalani's Ardh Satya.
Developed from a poem by the same name, Ardh Satya is about the limbo marking the spot between cowardice and courage.
On a scale of courage, this marks the middle between "impotence" and "manhood".On one side is Impotence, and on the other is Manhood, and right in the middle, is the half-truth.The sub-inspector played by Om Puri is much respected by his colleagues.
For every move this upstart of a cop makes towards the upkeep of his "manhood" – by ramming into the local goon's criminal activity or correcting eve-teasers – he is reminded of his eventual powerlessness.
The system won't allow for his manhood because it is a secular place full of compromises.
For Welankar, there is no half-truth.
There is only trouble at the other end, but he pushes on, all the time answering the inner call to be a man.
All the while, the policeman opts for courage, but is forced to accept cowardice.
Perhaps, there is no Ardh Satya and it is all just plain lies.
But then, what's the point of the complete truth if it won't allow you another choice..
Inspectar velankar- a definite role for Om Puri.
Directed by Govind Nihalani, this is definite cop film of Indian cinema.
May be the first one which portrayed the stark reality of corruption in the police force & politics with no holds barred & how it effects on a young cop.
A man forced to join a career of a cop by his cop father.
Agreed that we grew up watching lot of good cop/bad cop Hindi films but this is different.
Today's generation, which grown up watching dark & realistic films like- 'Satya', 'Company' may be consider it inferior product in comparison but look at the time of its making.
The film was made absolutely off beat tone in the time when people didn't pay much attention to such kind of cinema & yet it becomes a most sought after cop film in class & mass audience when it released.
For Om Puri its first breakthrough in mainstream Hindi cinema & he delivered a class performance as Inspector Velankar.
Its more than cop character, he internalized a lot which is something original in acting.
Watch his scenes with his father whom he hates & Smita whom he loves.
Smita Patil maintained the dignity of her character to the expected level.
Shafi Inamdar was truly a discovery for me & he's a brilliant character actor if given a chance & here in some of the scenes he outsmarted even Om. The movie is also a debut of a promising villain on Indian screen- Sadashiv Amrapurkar as 'Rama Shetty'.
It's another story that he didn't get such a meaty role & almost forgotten today as one of the loud villain of Dharmendra's B grade action films.
Watch the scene where Om 1st time becomes a rebel for his father (played by Amrish Puri) & next both are sharing wine together.
How inner truth started revealing for both the character with confronting feelings of love & hate for each other.
Two faces of Indian Police Force- Masculinity & Impotency and in between lies- half truth (ardh satya)Kudos to Nihalani's touch.
The film won 2 National Awards as Best Hindi Feature Film & Best Actor- Om Puri & 3 Filmfare Awards in Best Film, Best Director & Best Supporting Actor Categories.
Recommended to all who are interested in nostalgia of serious Hindi films.Ratings- 8/10.
After 'Aakrosh' , this was the second film for Govind Nihalani as a director.Till this movie was made there was no audience for documentaries in India.This movie proved a point that a documentary can fulfil the requirements of a commercial film without diluting its essence.
She was not like an usual heroine to do the usual stuff of running around the trees and shrubs.At one time,she even gave up her love when the hero's ruthlessness touched the roof top.There was another character in this movie, which was played by Om Puri contemporary, Naseeruddin Shah.He played as an inspector-turned-alcoholic character.The role conveyed the message of the end result of a honest cop who rubbed the wrong side of the system which also gave the viewers a chance to forecast the hero's ending.In his debut film,Sadashiv Amrapurkar captivated the audience with his cameo role which ultimately won him the best supporting actor by the filmfare.The cop in the movie was not a complete straight forward personality he was able to adjust to the system to an extent.
The anger which left half handedly continued in Govind Nihalani's other film "Drohkaal".
Even after two decades, this movie is remembered just because of the director and the entire crew.
The Best Movie Ever.
The performance by Om Puri, Smita Patil, and Sadashiv Amrapurkar and the whole chemistry comes off nicely, along with the minimalist approach to story telling and direction by Govind Nihlani.
The dialogues by Vijay Tendulkar is also great.
I have not seen another movie like this.
You cannot not be impressed by this movie.
Om Puri is the young man caught between his sense of duty and his inability to fight the system.
Sadhashiv as Rama Shetty gives just about the right touch to the movie with his smiling and soft speaking villain.
The first meeting of Anand Velankar with Rama Shetty's at Sadhashiv's place is absoulely stunning.
Smita Patil does not play a main role, but her part is also not distracting from the main plot.
And to add to this all Kafi Inamdar plays the role of a cop who has come to terms with the system and its workings.
He is also the 'guru' of Om Puri and helps him whenever he gets into trouble.The movie not only brings to focus the difficulties faced by a police officer trying to do his duty but also the other side of brutalities in police custody.
Om Puri captures hopelessness and the burning desire to break free in this exceptional performance in Ardh Satya.
Govind Nihalani's Path-Breaking 1983 Cult-Classic 'Ardh Satya' is indeed A Landmark!
A Hard-Hitting, Mind-Bending Cop-Drama, that offers a solid punch!
Even the performances, are spell-binding.'Ardh Satya' Synopsis: A newly appointed police rookie deals with corruption, romance, and brutality.'Ardh Satya' left me astonished.
As mentioned before, Its a Hard-Hitting, Mind-Bending Cop-Drama, that offers a solid punch!
The Journey of its protagonist, Anant Velankar, played impeccably by Om Puri, is haunting, blunt & ruthless.
Govind Nihalani's Direction is Remarkable.
Cinematography, Editing & Art Design, are good.Performance-Wise: As mentioned before, Om Puri is impeccable in the lead role.
He Won a National-Award for Best-Actor & Deserved To. Its a Hallmark Performance, that deserves an ovation.
Smita Patil, like always, is fantastic.
Amrish Puri is excellent.
Sadashiv Amrapurkar is superb, while Shafi Inamdar delivers his careers finest performance.
Naseeruddin Shah is as usual.On the whole, 'Ardh Satya' is A Landmark!
Among Hindi Cinema's Best Films!.
Half-Truth and All Lies.
While Govind Nihalani's 'Ardh Satya' may not be the only movie of its kind (a decent cop trying to survive the corrupt system within the police force), its rawness, insight, grit and Nihalani's minimal approach in making the film make this film something outstanding.
There have been numerous movies made since that attempt to tackle the very issues 'Ardh Satya' presents but hardly any of them (with a few exceptions like E.
Themes like alcoholism, corruption, deceptions and power play are dealt with sensibly.The subtlety in art direction, dialogue and acting, toned down score is very effective.
Anant's despair and helplessness in a corrupt world where power trumps, his choice of joining the academy and his resentment towards his father are easy to relate to.
His and Jyotsna's love story is a treat to watch and a welcome angle to the film.'Ardh Satya' showcases Om Puri's acting as he delivers a transcendent performance.
He captures Anant's nuances with conviction and appears very natural on screen.
Amrish Puri, Shafi Inamdar and Naseeruddin Shah (in a small role) are superb.
Smita Patil deserves special mention.
How does one play an ordinary character so extraordinarily?
Watch Ms. Patil in this for an answer.
Her performance is natural to the core.
She doesn't try to overshadow anyone nor is it one of those 'award-winning' roles but Smita Patil's presence beautifully balances the film.
Her warmth, subtle charm, sincerity and quiet attentiveness complement 'Ardh Satya'.I found the ending a little predictable but this is mostly because I have watched so many movies of this kind that have come out since (but pale in comparison).
A film with a strong theme.
A social film with a strong theme.
based on corruption in the political system, police and society in India-that's what Ardh Satya is all about.Story is about an honest and efficient cop who soon finds that he cannot stay that way in the corrupt system that prevails in India.The concept is very strong.
It is somewhat an explicit film, with hardly any background music at all.
Acting is good on the part of Om Puri and Naseruddin Shah.
The film is also not suited for kids.7 stars.
hard hitting, brave and real: om Puri take a bow!!.
Ardh Satya is not just a movie on corruption in police force (we have seen this in quite a few ) but rather this is the journey of a person who is searching, it seems, the purpose of his life, who is trying to seek the somewhat passive masculinity that resides within him.
the human weaknesses, existential crisis, emotional catharsis and angst of the policeman all done in such a brilliant manner that you can just feel awestruck at the marvelous portrayal by gem of an actor- Om Puri.
this is clearly the best performance of his illustrious career.
if not for the hard hitting content watch the movie just for the angry young man Om Puri whose performance will fill you full of admiration for the man and his craft..
Pathbreaking cop film.
Govind Nihalini started his career with AAKROSH, he made pathbreaking films which didn't follow commercial formula.
Ardh Satya is a cop film, but with a difference, being it's simplicity.
The film became a benchmark and still remembered as one of the best cop films.
It is seen through the eyes of Om Puri an inspector who faces problems while living an honest life.
It also has several sub plots which are well handled like Naseeruddin Shah's track who plays an alcoholic suspended cop and also Om Puri's interaction with his father Amrish Puri with whom he shares a love hate relationshipDirection is superbOm Puri is brilliant as always, he gives his best to the role and is simply brilliant, Smita Patil does well Naseeruddin Shah too is amazing, Sadashiv Amrapurkar is amazing as Rama Shetty, Amrish Puri is as always brilliant, rest are all good