User reviews

Ram Gopal Varma's latest offering 'Company' is probably one of the best Indian gangster films ever made (after Nayakan and Satya). This film is so well done that the viewers feel like they are watching real-life events. And people living in India will know that some of the events are actually inspired by real-life incidents, although the film does not admit it.

Company is the story of two friends - Malik (Ajay Devgan) and Chandu (Vivek Oberoi) - how they build up the 'Company' - Bombay underworld on a global scale and thus establish their supremacy. A small misunderstanding between them turns into a large scale mafia war. The cast in this film is great, a special mention must be made of Vivek Oberoi. The son of Suresh Oberoi (former Bollywood star) is talented and seems to have put in a lot of effort for his first film. I only hope he doesn't get type-casted in the future after such a hard-hitting role on debut. Ajay Devgan fits very well into the role of Malik, a cold blooded don who always means business. Manisha Koirala enacts the role of Malik's girlfriend pretty well and is refreshing. However, the biggest surprise of this film was Antara Mali. She has done a great job as Chandu's wife, and it only goes to show that there is no dearth of talent in the country.

The narrative is well paced, and the viewer never gets bored. Some people might find the absence of songs in the film annoying, but their presence would only hamper the pace of the film. The script is well written, and some of the dialogues are really memorable - for example, when Malik says "To forgive a friend's mistake is an even bigger mistake in the 'Company'". The background music by Sandeep Chowta really complements the plot and he certainly deserves some credit. But more than anything, it is Ram Gopal Varma's direction that needs to be appreciated. He has proved once again that with a good story, an excellent cast and a lot of determination, one can make a memorable film and defy some of Bollywood's age old norms. A special mention must also be made of Mohanlal. He is certainly one of the best Indian actors of all time and although his Hindi dialogue-delivery in Company is quite sloppy, he deserves a lot of praise for making a good effort. His portrayal of an honest, determined cop trying to eradicate crime in Bombay (loosely based on Sivanandan, Joint Commissioner of Police, Mumbai) is very well executed.

The film gives us an in-depth view into the dark world of Bombay Mafia, where only the fittest survive, and how their operations have spread on a global scale. One thing I found intriguing about this film was the role that mobile phones play, how everything can be controlled efficiently by just making one phone call, and how business deals and murders can be executed with, quite literally, just one push of a button.

Bottomline: This film is a must-watch. A landmark in Indian film-making, all thanks to Ram Gopal Varma. An easy 9 out of 10.

Satya was Street smart, gritty and had very defined emotions.

Company is different. It shows you the mob in a very Shakespearean way much like Vishal Bhardwaj's films. It is a cold hearted film with utmost details. Ramu did a fine job. It had no unnecessary songs that most films from that time had which slowed the pace of the films. The drama in company is very gritty. Every sequence leads upto a greater motive. The tension in the film feels real and those things make Company a true classic. Also Vivek was outstanding along with Ajay, and a very clinical Mohanlal.

Ram Gopal Varma's SATYA is one of my very favourite Hindi movies, though rather an anomaly in the Hindi movies that I've seen. Much darker in tone than Bollywood usually offers, it's also one of the most intelligent movies about gangsters ever made in my opinion. RGV returns to similar themes with his latest movie, Company, but this time brings a whole new style to his direction that makes the movie stand out even more from the Bollywood crowd. The movie still has a grittiness and realism in its examination of the underworld, but this time it is filtered through post-MTV-post-Wong Kar-Wai sensibilities. I've always found Indian movies to have some of the best cinematography in the world, but never seen one that looks like this. Wide angle lenses, cameras half obscured behind the scenery, bright contrast, quick fire staccato editing... all very modern cinematic tricks, and very well done here.

The Company is in fact an organised crime syndicate, which our hero Chandu (Vivek Oberoi) joins at the start of the film. Chandu is the young leader of a small time gang looking to make it big. He earns the respect and trust of company head Malik and quickly rises to be his right hand man. When Malik makes a bid for power, the two of them have to handle the fallout from the quakes it makes through the criminal infrastructure.

Chandu is a similar character to Satya (who is one of my favourite movie characters, and not just because he has the best beard in film), but a leaner meaner more ambitious kind of career criminal. Nowhere near as mean or as hardened as the seemingly imperturbable Malik, however. Malik takes his business very seriously.

The rise to power of a young gangster is a theme that has been handled on many occasions before, and Company is not vastly different to its predecessors... although it is a good reminder of what hopelessly romanticised popcorn fodder the YOUNG & DANGEROUS series are. With almost no song and dance routines, the run time is kept down to a lean 145 minutes, but this is still plenty of time to build and explore the characters and their situations very thoroughly. Company is quite a subtle movie, the pacing not too hurried and the situations mostly underplayed. This, coupled with the depth of the script and the very stylish camerawork and editing, gives the movie a very sharp feel. Another intelligent movie about gangsters, and an unmistakably cool one too.

Sadly, the movie is let down terribly on one front - the soundtrack. Not all the time, but quite often the music is conspicuously inappropriate. Most irritating is the over use of Mussorgski's Night On Bear Mountain at completely the wrong times, but there are other problems too.

Ultimately, I don't think I enjoyed COMPANY quite as much as I enjoyed SATYA. Perhaps this is because this time my expectation and anticipation was higher, but mostly I think it's that Chandu isn't as sympathetic a character as Satya was. Oberoi plays the character quite well, with mountains of cool but a certain amount of depth... but he doesn't command the screen in the same way that J.D. Chakravarti did. This is probably because his beard isn't as cool.

I did enjoy the movie a lot though... the 2.5 hours pretty much flew by, and the script kept me interested all the way through, never becoming too predictable. There aren't a whole lot of laughs in the movie, or even smiles... this isn't the kind of gangster movie that has you rooting for the heroes as they gun down armies of cops (which, incidentally, the heroes here never do... the violence is mostly contained within the criminal underworld). It's a movie that explores what it really means to be a gangster, and the position of crime and criminals within society. Chandu and Malik are certainly presented as the 'heroes' of the movie, but it never glosses over what they actually have to do to get their power.

India is a poor country, and it's a fact that a lot of the movies produced in Mumbai are targetted at an audience with a pretty low literacy rate. Bollywood movies don't tend to be too challenging to watch, or if they do wish to explore a more serious point it is usually done with very little subtlety. I am curious as to how successful Ram Gopal Varma is in India, as the two movies of his that I've seen have been challenging in a very subtle way. He's obviously quite a box office draw as Company is clearly a big budget production. Filming 2.5 hours of that kind of camerawork/editing isn't an overnight task, and extensive sections of the film are shot on location in Hong Kong, Africa and... Switzerland I think. Well, I have no doubt that enough of the Indian population are perfectly well educated and will have no problem appreciating the finer points of the movie - but I imagine that the overseas market must have been in his sights as well.

Company is a movie that I'd like to see get pushed in the US, as it's a nice reminder that the TRAFFICs and co of the world are not exclusive Hollywood property. Sadly, American studios have frequently demonstrated that its not in their interest to promote this fact, so I expect it will be left with this semi-decent DVD release and word of mouth to spread itself around. My word of mouth is a strong recommendation that people seek that DVD out.

Ram Gopal Varma pulled off a very beautiful film, full with suspense and action, what every avid film fan secretly desires.

Complete with actual facts and thrill it was a fun movie and could probably be compare to Godfather being the marvel that it was.

Based ON the Bombay underworld the actors had done justice to the roles given to them. My favorite was Ajay Devgan because of his realistic was of portraying the characters and he was basically the life of the film in my view...

I can't help but repeat myself but It was that much of a splendid movie

Of you want to go for a fun filled ride watch it..

Terrific performances from Mohanlal, Ajay Devgan and Vivek Oberoi and a slick, stylish picture about the underworld make this movie a must see. Hats off to Ram Gopal Verma. The direction, story line, cinematography - every aspect is brilliant and the movie on a whole is very gripping and fast paced. My personal favorite character in the movie is Mohanlal who plays a commissioner and I guess he is one of the coolest cops ever shown on Indian screen.

I give Company 10 out of 10.

This has to be one of the best underworld movies ever made in India. After the disappointment of jungle and mast Ram gopal varma has bounced back to deliver one of his best works. It rivals his own earlier work Satya. Though based on the underworld both films are completely different as his own words put it company is above the underworld unlike satya.

the direction, camera and background score are superb. the cast consisting of Ajay Devgan, Mohanlal and newcomer vivek oberoi perform exceedingly well. After having seen oberoi's later works this performance is easily his best. while Ajay Devgan lives the role to perfection, the Malayalam super star Mohanlal brings a breathe of fresh air by enacting the coolest and most realistic cop Hindi cinema has ever seen. the screenplay written by jaideep sahni is of highest quality. superb dialogues are well delivered especially by Ajay devgan and mohanlal. on the whole a different movie with artistic and technical perfection.

Where Satya was moving but not very original, Company mixes HK, US and indian influences to look like something unique. The dancing scenes are better integrated than in Satya, the movie is short for an indian movie but more efficient, the story is well written although the idea of mafia as a business has been seen many times, acting is wonderful. But the best thing here is Varma's masterful visual style combining a dirty photography, an editing influenced by Hong Kong cinema, a documentary like visual style to create his own unique style and giving the movie a hot, heavy, dark, dirty atmosphere. It might be edited like an MTV video sometimes, being sometimes too long but although Varma is not (yet?) a director of the scale of Tarantino or Ferrara this movie brings something new in gangster movie. Highly recommended.

This is a stunning film, awesome story, acting and music makes this one of the most enjoyable movies i have ever seen - hindi or english. The performances are excellent, with special mention to the new actors- Vivek Oberoi and Antara Mali, who played their parts with such expertise and conviction.

Highly recomended

One of the few Bollywood films that manage to be both well made and entertaining and intriguing to look at.Of course it has flaws and some plot holes with goofs.

The film is a story of the Mumbai Underworld.How the organization works and all that.And takes certain twists and turns and keeps things interesting with its slick atmosphere and impressive cinematography which sometimes feels borrowed from various Hollywood classics.

Yes,I was entertained, or more so intrigued the way the director holds your attention despite the painful running time.And it was one of the more matured and smarter Bollywood films,with less focus on songs and dances.And more on its story.It's one of the few bollywood films that I enjoyed and surprised me.I started watching them from Lagaan and so on.

Yet,it bears a lot of resemblance and similarities both in its looks and execution to many Hollywood Gangster masterpieces.For one ,it's always been Godfather.Bollywood owes a lot to that Landmark film.

The performances are all terrific for one thing.Especially newcomer Vivek Oberoi who gives a stunning performance and Ajay Devgan giving a fine performance.And the rest of the cast,such as the Cop played by Mohanlal is all well done.The camera work,or photography was well done and gives a new look to a typical Bollywood flick.But it's all familiar sometimes.

The director seems to be an expert at handling gangster films that revolves around mumbai underworld and he really handles things really well.

An ambitious,dark film that tries and succeeds in only minor parts.But it just can't get rid of the Bollywood pedigree.Still,it's a bold feet and a great step ahead and defies bollywood conventions.And for that,it's a success.It's probably the most interesting and gripping Bollywood Dramas.

Company is far and away the absolute best non-traditional plot Hindi movie ever. I think it is even better than Sholey. It ranks up there with Scarface... no, I take it back, Company is BETTER than Scarface. I am a big gangster/mafia movie fan, and there a lot of great ones out there -- both Hindi and American -- The Godfather, Scarface, Goodfellas, Heat, Sathiya, Gangster, Khattay... but Company takes the friggin cake.

Gripping plot, phenomenal acting, engaging soundtrack... this movie will have you enthralled from the moment you hit play till the closing credits, after which time you will think about the movie for hours. Vivek Oberoi is masterful, Ajay Devgan is flawless. Based on a true story, this is THE Indian movie of the decade. Ram Gopal Varma hits a home run with this masterpiece.

"COMPANY " make me fan of AJAY DEVGAN.He was supper in the movie ......................His way of dialogues delivery was so good . He speak very less in move but his way of speaking was super n acting was brilliant

"COMPANY" is a good movie but it fall to my expectation after interval . Before interval it was really good but after interval it become little slow and boring ..............

DIALOGUES were supper in the movie specially every AJAY'S dialogue like ------" THERE IS A ANIMAL INSIDE EVERYONE "......." I NEVER ASK FOR PERMISSION " well i will give only 6 \10 for this movie because it loose it strength after interval .................

As compared to recent standards of indian cinema its a routine movie with routine jokes and screenplay

'Company' opens with Malik's haunting introductory monologue about the underworld and this is followed by Urmila Matondkar's bloodthirsty sadistic number, the tune of which will echo throughout the film. The song sequence itself, 'Aaja re Mere Gale Lag ja' describes the underworld. 'Company' ranks among one of Ram Gopal Verma's best and one of the best crime films of Indian cinema. A fellow commenter has wonderfully made comparisons with Shakespeare's King Lear. Sahni's writing is of high quality and it just keeps one's eyes glued towards the screen.

There are several words that can describe the film-making. A few that pop up include: realism, slick, gritty, stylish without being over the top, and fine editing. Cinematography deserves special mention as the camera acts as an eye. Use of lighting is remarkable as this gives the city and crime-world a darkly raw look and use of sound effects e.g. the ringing mobile phones is skillfully done.

The songs are thankfully relegated to the background except for one, 'Khallas'. All the songs add to the narration and 'Khallas' is a situational song that takes place in a nightclub, the lyrics of which cleverly describe the events.

Verma also displays the relationships between the characters in a very concise manner. Even though, the main focus is the relationship between Chandu and Malik, with just a few scenes who shows us the significance of the connections between the other characters. For example, just that one scene where Saroja is in bed telling Malik about her mother's wish for them to get married is enough of an indication of their bond.

Ajay Devgan formidably underplays his part. He could safely add 'Company' at the top of his list of achievements. Vivek Oberoi delivers a knockout debut performance. The actor has shown tremendous potential and like Devgan, he too can add this to the top of his list. Mohanlal is adequate. However, I don't quite understand this respect he has for Malik. The guy's a cold-blooded killer (well he has other's to do the dirty work) and Sreenivasan is shown as a good cop so what's the basis of this mutual respect? Manisha Koirala again does what she's best at doing. She gives a subtle but enigmatic performance. Seema Biswas is likable and she naturally gets under the skin of her part. Antara Mali is mind-blowing, and like the men, she too can include 'Company' at the top of her list.

Finally, 'Company' is Verma's masterpiece. He's the one who brought it all together to make the film and tell the dark story of the underworld. One of the best films of the genre.

This is easily the greatest Hindi film ever made. It is perfect in everyway, there is no way to improve upon it. The problem with Hindi movies is that they have stupid LONGASS songs. But in here the songs are needed, as they tell a story, and aren't extremely long. If this was re-released in English theaters and properly advertised, it would make millions. I simply love this movie, and it is the top 1# movie in it genre of gangster/mod movies. I've seen Godfather, and this movie is on par with it. It just so well written, and acted, that I could've of easily mistakin it for an English film.(except for many many things done in the film).

First I would like to add that I am not very much fond of the crop of Bollywood movies. They are convoluted and hackneyed story lines with excruciatingly long dance numbers but I stumbled upon this film, "Company". At first thought, I realized the parallels to Scorsese's "Goodfellas" but once the story digresses it is more than that. There are clear influences of the great mobster films of Coppola and others but the story in the way it is told is quite refreshing for Bollywood standards. We see the rise of this slum dweller Chandu, who meets upon this respected underworld leader, Malik, and slowly progresses up to the top of the hierarchy. Ram Gopal Varma is a very effective director. He displays very bizarre camera angles through exquisite cinematography. The editing is sharp and quick with the running time flying by. The only criticism is the song sequence in the beginning and the dance club number. Totally pointless. With the recent influx of Chinese films being displayed in America such as "Hero" and "Shaolin Soccer", I hope someone like Tarantino brings a film like this to a larger audience because not doing so would do it an incredible injustice. What more can one say,It's "Company".

I am actually a person who hate Indian movies , not because they aren't directed good or the story isn't good ,it's because I watch English Movies , and as you all know there is no match of an English or Indian Movie,so ....

After reading the above paragraph , It's hard to believe that I've seen this movie for more than 100 times I guess ,the reality that has been shown in this movie , and apart from that it's not like conventional Indian movies that describe only revolving around a female and how to get her and love her the whole life of yours ....they never bother to show the realities of life as we saw in COMPANY....

The camera-work was simply outstanding , acting of AjayDevgan was all time great....well I believe that movie'd have been more successful if "Malik Bhai" had not died . ... A Brilliant Movie to watch

A very good way to portray how the Mumbai underworld works. Ajay devgn gives an amazing performance as usual. A very good actor who always does justice to the character. The music is very good. Overall great movie direction with good message. Bollywood should have more movies like this

A sort of Sopranos or Godfather done Bollywood style, with the rise and fall of the 'Company' in India. Good for novelty value and not a bad film, but not quite as good as the best western equivalents. Also rather long, but at least they added a couple of song and dance numbers.

Company is one of the RGV's best work. The movie screenplay Is fast. Very gripping one. Vivek Oberoi is an intense performer. Ajay Devgan is Good. No songs(except one bg song) . Locations are good. The movie was filmed in various places. Cinematography work is excellent. The second part of Gangster Trilogy 🔥. Must watch movie. Highly recommended

None of your cringeworthy "typical Bollywood fashion" Mafia dialogues. The bad guys don't talk in riddles and come the closest to having believable personalities amongst all Bollywood gangster movies so far. It also has the most plausible account of Mumbai police and for the first time, we see what a sensible IPS officer looks like. I also quite liked that there was no unnecessary violence and item numbers. The entire cast is really good, but Ajay Devgan and Vivek Oberoi stand out for their stellar performances. Definitely recommended!

Seeing main review on IMDb was really disappointing,since i am a big fan of this site,in terms of reviews,But this review i am afraid is ridiculous in terms of comparison making.Comparing Goodfellas with this masterpiece is an insult to Ram Gopal Verma.I think,Indian reviewers or critics are in habit of seeing plagiarization of English movies and therefore they alway go on with Grandiloquence about the Movies that are made with exceptions.I have always been a great fan of RGV films.probably because i have watched English movies throughout my life and i hated the mainstream Genre of commercial films(the so-called Formula films) viz Karan Johar or Shah Rukh tag films.Amidst all this chaos,there emerged Ram Gopal Varma who had the guts and creativity and perhaps technical excellence to compete with Hollywood.The Film "COMPANY" is no exception.It wastes no time,the story is tight.Even the Song-Khallas with which Isha Koppikar gained popularity was a "PUN" or a double meaning song and provided some lightness to otherwise tight plot.The story of "COMPANY" draws inspiration from real Life(In case of GOOD FELLAS,the real life inspiration was not that accurate,Tony De Vito was called a psychic Killer and a Murderer,whose role in the robbery wasn't apparently well known and wasn't established,so as to say.Only Joe Pesci had made this guy more popular.The story as we all know is about feud between two gangsters,namely Malik and Chandu which reminds us of real life feud between Chhota Rajan and Dawood Ibrahim(which Mr. RGV promptly denies in having association with).The story spills out details with generation of thrill in every frame of the movie and manages to keep us up till the end.Narrations are excellent.Unlike Godfather,in which the first half you feel like sleeping,because of lack of any pacy background scores etc,the music keeps us interested till the very end.

Ajay Devgun shows what an actor can do in a film without having to say much.He's given powerful(and yes,better than Marlon Brando) performance.

Vivek A.K.A chandu Oberoi is magnificent in his first role.

And no! Rani Bai's character is NOT a wasteful one.

Ram Gopal Varma's SATYA is one of my very favourite Hindi movies, though rather an anomaly in the Hindi movies that I've seen. Much darker in tone than Bollywood usually offers, it's also one of the most intelligent movies about gangsters ever made in my opinion. RGV returns to similar themes with his latest movie, Company, but this time brings a whole new style to his direction that makes the movie stand out even more from the Bollywood crowd. This has to be one of the best underworld movies ever made in India. After the disappointment of jungle and mast Ram gopal varma has bounced back to deliver one of his best works. It rivals his own earlier work Satya. Though based on the underworld both films are completely different as his own words put it company is above the underworld unlike satya. 9/10