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Red Alert aims at shocking you. With a fierce dose of violence and reality meant to define what is probably the biggest burning problem in grassroots India right now.

For those who care to the keep track, the shock factor actually comes looking at the film’s credits.

Red Alert is directed by Ananth Mahadevan, and marks a relevant departure from the load of bull he had been serving till now (Dil Vil Pyar Vyar , Dil Maange More and Aksar come to mind among other forgettable attempts).

The film does manage to shock you in parts, in a quiet way. That said, Mahadevan’s effort is far from being flawless. Sure, he had the right intentions. He raises the right points without overt signs of sermonising, too. Yet the film’s thrust on simplifying a pertinent socio- political problem, obviously in a bid to reach out to a larger audience, robs it of value.

Red Alert casts Suniel Shetty as Narsimha, a poor cook who supplies food to a group of people in the jungle. He doesn’t know who they are, and a twist lands him in their camp. He realises they are Naxals waging war on the system. Now, Narsimha is forced to stay back in the Naxal base and do whatever they tell him to do. He is trained to kill without questioning.

In return, his family is taken care of. On one routine session of violence, Narsimha the reluctant Naxalite starts questioning the objective of the whole movement — whether it is at all for the good of villagers like him.

Sub- plots involving sundry characters (played by Ayesha Dharker, Ashish Vidyarthi, Sameera Reddy and Seema Biswas, among others), recreate fictionalised accounts of newspaper headlines related to Naxalite violence.

Suniel tries to add intensity to his role but seems to lack the screen presence to pull it off. The solid performances come from the superb prop cast — Naseeruddin Shah, Ayesha Dharker and Seema Biswas give the best acts here in that order.

Red Alert could have avoided a climax aimed at ensuring a fairytale ending. Still, the film could make urban viewers think about a problem far removed from their secure world. That’s an achievement.

Rating - 2.5 / 5