Producer: Verma Corporation Ltd. 
Director: Ram Gopal Verma 
Cast: Vivek Oberoi, Antra Mali, Mohanlal, Ajay Devgan, Manisha Koirala
Music: Sandeep Chowtha

High on hype, high on substance as well! That sums up COMPANY, directed by Ramgopal Varma.

One has witnessed underworld sagas since time immemorial. Even the last state of the art exhibit, Satya was from none other than Ramgopal Varma. And what more, this time Ramgopal decides to hit home the point harder, ‘crime does not pay’ even if you call it COMPANY.

Thus starts a saga of two friends - Malik (Ajay Devgan) and Chandu (Vivek Oberoi). While Malik is a trusted lieutenant of an underworld don, he recruits Chandu in the gang when the activities begin to expand. Differences between Malik and his colleagues surface when Malik starts siding Chandu.

Malik decides to take the reins in his hands and together with Chandu, starts running the 'company'. Later, they shift base to Hong Kong and start remote controlling their men from this foreign land.

But a misunderstanding turns the two friends into foes. In a bid to achieve supremacy, they decide to eliminate the other. Malik stays in Hong Kong with his close associates (Manisha Koirala, Ganesh Yadav, Rajpal Yadav), while Chandu shifts to Nairobi.

The dangerous game of death begins!

The storytelling is ordinary and the pace kept to keep the audience interested. While the foirst half revolves around the recruiting and the building up the characters it is the second half that the film gathers momentum when the two friends decide to run the 'company' together. And the narrative gets even more interesting when the friends turn foes.

The best thing about the film is that it catches you unaware at several paces. Just when you start thinking 'What next?', comes up an incident that wobbles you completely.

The film is not completely devoid of emotional scenes, subtle doses of emotions attached to the characters gives the characters multidimensional identity. Malik's sequences with his lady love (Manisha) and Chandu with his wife (Antara Mali) and mother (Seema Biswas) subsequently are brilliantly executed. The climax is unconventional, but just right keeping the graph of the film in mind.

Directorially, Varma takes you to a world that is much-discussed and has become a part of our everyday life. One identifies instantly with the goings-on. Picking up incidents from newspaper and television news headlines, the narrative gives the viewer a microscopic view of how the mafia functions.

Once again Sandeep Chowta comes with aces for Ramgopal, just as he had done with the background score for Satya. It enhances the impact of several sequences. Action sequences (Allan Amin) are realistic and are sure to pick an award or two for their skilful execution. Cinematography (Hemant Chaturvedi) is up to the mark.

Ajay Devgan enacts his role to perfection. A controlled performance, the actor takes to this complex character like a fish takes to water. He underplays his part with admirable ease.

All the hoopla about Vivek Oberoi prior to the release of the film makes him a star with this film. The young man has passed the test with flying colours. His performance is a cut above the rest. He seems to have prepared for the character, bestowing it with finer nuances. The usage of the slum dweller's dialect and the intonations give his character a vividly distinct look. A performance that merits the highest marks!

Mohanlal is excellent as the tough cop. His South Indian accent gels well with his role. Manisha Koirala doesn't have a meaty role, but she expresses herself magnificently through gestures. Surprise package of the film is Antara Mali who has done a ace job in a predominantly de-glamorized.She makes her presence felt in a male-dominated flick and that itself speaks volumes.

Similarly Seema Biswas is outstanding as Vivek's mother. Akash Khurana is effective. Bharat Dabholkar, Rajpal Yadav, Ganesh Yadav and Vijay Raaz support well.

On the whole, COMPANY is amongst Ramgopal Varma's finest work to date. Only a fool would miss this one.