When the opening credits started to roll, I was mighty impressed by the animated work in the background. However, half an hour later, I started to get this sinking feeling that "this animated work" would probably be the only thing impressive about the movie.First things, first. When you make a realistic or "art type" film and that too based on/inspired by true events, the handicap faced is that most viewers are already aware of the topic and those who aren't have this knowledge thrust upon them by the untiring media. Therefore, the filmmaker has no choice but to stick to the basic storyline and extract extremely good performances from the star cast to be able to hold the viewers' attention and this is precisely where Gulab Gang fails miserably. Yes, even with two good box office bets of yesteryears – Madhuri Dixit & Juhi Chawla.The script demanded dialogue delivery of typical Hindi belt. If that be the case, then casting Juhi as the villainous politician mouthing lines in desi accent defies all logic. Some Juhi fans will argue that she was a superstar of her time. Well, she was a star who was "part of" quite a few hit films but that doesn't necessarily mean that she was brilliant in all of them. Even when she was in her prime, she was at best above average, never path breaking. She was and will be best known for her liveliness, youthful charm and disarming smile which is why her being cast as a negative character created such a buzz but then as it turned out, the bee just buzzed, it lacked the sting! Juhi's crooked smiles and shifty glances were grossly overdone. She was trying so hard that it hurt. Can't villains and vamps speak normally? It is difficult to comprehend why Juhi was given such rustic dialogues when she was so ill at ease delivering them.Coming to Madhuri Dixit, well, sadly for her fans even she couldn't do much to save her Gang. She too struggled with her vernacular skills albeit lesser than Juhi. Madhuri had the chance to make the most of this opportunity but she faltered. She is also let down by the template of the film. Just because Madhuri's name is synonymous with jhatkas and matkas, does it mean that post every action sequence, a song and dance routine is a must? Needless to say, the ill timed song and dance pieces distract the viewers from the core issue. That the songs were nothing to write home about, is a different story altogether. The action sequences are well shot and some of the one liners are good but does portraying a woman as the protagonist necessarily mean that she copies what a male hero does best which is - utter seeti inducing dialogues and execute slow motion action stunts? In fact, the woman as the Hero can add absolutely new dimensions. Cases in point, Smita Patil in Mirch Masala, Meenakshi Sheshadri in Damini, Tabu in Chandani Bar, Vidya Balan in Kahaani and Madhuri herself in Mrityudand (arguably her best performance) and Lajja.Another thing not understood is why it is a prerequisite even in a movie based on a serious/real topic to cast an actress with a beautiful face (even at the cost of acting). I mean Madhuri is (or was?) a good actress but wouldn't someone like Mita Vashisht with undeniably great acting skills but with unconventional good looks been a better choice? Add to it, her ability to convincingly look and sound rustic and she would have fitted the role to the T. Cutting back to the actual movie, we have Madhuri (although staying in a remote, dusty, nondescript village) appearing on screen, looking as if she has just stepped out of a beauty parlour – flowing hair, tastefully styled and coloured, not to mention the flawless skin and eye makeup. Even the rest of the gang is dressed in designer cut blouses and fashionably pleated saris. And I am sure I espied an exquisitely manicured hand in the background. The only ones looking and sounding somewhere near real are Tannishtha Chatterjee (the talented "Brick Lane" actress), Divya Jagdale and Priyanka Bose. In fact, they are the only ones who manage to hold your attention. The climax seems to have been inspired by Total Siyappa because that is what it is – "totally siyappad!!"A documentary based on the original gang titled GULABI GANG was (thankfully) released prior to this masala version and I have heard that it is extremely hard hitting. So I would say three cheers for Sampat Pal and her gang. As for Madhuri's Gulab Gang, I would say that this GULAB has too many thorns.

To rule out one thing upfront - except for the Pink saris there isn't much similar between Gulaab Gang and Sampat Pal's life who has been going all out to oppose the release of this film. That however, is not a good sign for the dramatisation of events in Anubhav Sinha's Gulaab Gang is what takes this film to unfathomable lows of boredom. Rajjo (Madhuri Dixit) is a messiah for unfortunate or suppressed women who not only provides for basic schooling for girls but also runs a gang of pink sari clad women called Gulaab Gang to stand up against the atrocities on downtrodden women. She is a powerful figure in a village called Madhopur where a local politician wants her to lend support to politician Sumitra Devi (Juhi Chawla) who represents all things bad. In a typically hero vs villain plot, the battle begins between the two women, and needless to mention it's the good that wins in the end.Soumik Sen takes a different approach towards addressing women issues in the Indian heartland but in the bid dramatises the plot to make the film appear extremely boring and banal. The movie is highly predictable and borders lunacy, especially in scenes like the one where Rajjo in a bid to run for the cover sprints on an open ground when she knows people out to get her are open firing. Gulaab Gang is caricaturish from the word go. Not only does the movie have set-ish backdrop with raw huts being places in shooting locations instead of real locations but also has characters that are very filmy. So you have pink sari clad rural women with manicured hands, waxed legs, lipstick and kohl in eyes portraying their parts in a flawed manner. Perhaps it is filmmaker's over dramatised attempt to show equality in genders or an idea of showcasing heroism gone wrong, you have Madhuri Dixit in a female Salman Khan manner doing action stunts of beating countless men to pulp or flying in the air. Who would've though actors like Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla would come together for the first time after years for a film as indolently written as this? Both leading ladies appear miscast for a film that requires women who don't get on board with an image that may be far too strong for them to fit into a character that realistic. However, even at that, it's Juhi Chawla who outshines Madhuri in this film. In fact it's quite a tragedy when some of the interesting characters from Rajjo's gang who actually bring some spunk in the sordid tale die much too soon. What's worse throughout the film is the music which keeps interfering for no reason time and again. There are way too many numbers in the movie which is supposed to be hardhitting and it isn't quite a convincing sight to watch a gang leader such as Rajjo break into jigs or croon away to glory. To sum it up, Gulaab Gang is a half baked attempt to present a gritty action drama. A movie which wastes potential of two brilliant actresses.

GULAAB GANG is a political thriller directed by Soumik Sen, starring Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla.The film revolves around how a woman named Rajjo (Madhuri Dixit) started the Gulaabi Gang, who fight to prevent injustice to women, and teach education to children for free. However, the Gulaab Gang gets compromised with the entrance of the corrupt politician, Sumitra Devi (Juhi Chawla).Gulaab Gang had gone through a lot of controversy near the release date, and in addition to that, the trailer and soundtrack hadn't quite pleased the critics. That being said, the film was only recognized due to the fact that two of the most iconic actresses in Bollywood were sharing the big screen together.And Gulaab Gang pretty much delivered what we expected in terms of acting. Madhuri Dixit gave a stellar performance but Juhi Chawla clearly overpowers her, playing the film's antagonist. But the film does have many flaws. Firstly, the plot isn't very steady as it tries to focus more on how the Gulaabi Gang operate without having any real plot to help the audience refer to what's going on. It is that same reason why we aren't really on the edge of our cinema seat, wondering what is going to happen next. Juhi Chawla is only introduced a few 20 minutes before the interval, and it is only then where the real (I think) plot begins. One more problem was that Juhi Chawla didn't quite have much screen time compared to Madhuri Dixit. That being said, she is STILL able to overpower Dixit's acting, but there should have been equal screen time for both the lead casts. Since the film is dedicated to women's rights, you could see it does quite live up to the main reason why the film was made, however, the plot could have been better. Also, the film tends to be a bit slow, so everyone may not like it for the way it drags its story.So, in conclusion, GULAAB GANG is quite an okay movie. If you're a die hard fan of political flicks, you might just find this movie good. If you're a die hard fan of Madhuri Dixit or Juhi Chawla, you too might enjoy, purely because the acting keeps this film together. The film tries to be original, but at times, you do tend to feel that it is one of those masala flicks trying to be serious but ends up not being. The film had a lot of potential, which you could say was quite wasted... however, it being dedicated to Women's Day, I will give this film credit for trying to get the message through that women are people and not objects, except in a more violent way to attract all types of audiences.GULAAB GANG- 5.5/10

After watching the movie on the first day of its release, I was eager to read the reviews. But i was shocked to learn that critics have rated this film as average to poor. If you watch a film wearing magnifying glasses you will surely find errors in every film. But this film, which is made with such conviction surely deserved better reviews. The highlight of the film is its star cast. Juhi Chawla is excellent as the evil politician. She brings so much life into the diabolic character that you get goosebumps whenever you see her on screen. Juhi is totally believable as as a malignant and immoral lady. Madhuri too has acted well, but something was lacking in her characterization , due to which this does not make one of her memorable performances. Rest of the cast is also good. The actresses who played madhuri's associates have delivered a great act. Despite having no male lead actors, the film is thoroughly entertaining. It is thrilling to watch the confrontation between Madhuri & Juhi. I wish the critics had set aside their double standards and watched the movie from audience's perspective. This film is far better than multi million grossing films which i feel are making fool out of the audiences.