Release date: 20 April 2012
		Bollywood3.com Rating : 2.5/5
		Director : Vivek Agnihotri
		Producer : Vikram Bhatt
		Music Director : Harshit Saxena
		Starring: Paoli Dam, Gulshan Devaiya, Nikhil Dwivedi

‘Hate Story’ hit the screens today with a lot of hype and media attention for the supposedly bold content and theme. Vikram Bhat produced the film and provided the screenplay while Vivek Agnihotri directed it. Paoli Dam, Gulshan Devaiah and Nikhil Dwivedi play the lead roles in this movie. Let us see how the movie is.

Story :

Kavya (Paoli Dam) is a reporter who brings a major corporation to its knees with the help of a sting operation. After the storm dies down, the company’s MD Siddharth (Gulshan Deviah) decides to seek revenge and he starts building a rapport with Kavya, with the aim of seducing her. Siddharth succeeds and after having a physical affair, he humiliates Kavya and takes his revenge.

A stunned Kavya decides to become an elite escort to seek revenge! She starts seducing her way into the power corridors of Delhi and very soon, the rich and influential people of Delhi fall for her charms. By manipulating them, Kavya seeks to destroy Siddharth and his empire. Does she succeed? What happens to her in the end? This forms the story.

Plus Points :

Gulshan Deviah gives a balanced and powerful performance as the powerful businessman Siddharth. He is a major asset to the movie. Paoli Dam looks suitably hot and suggestive, but there is actually very little skin show (more on that later).

The story is interesting and the concept holds a lot of promise. Vikram Bhat’s screenplay is good in places and things are interesting in the first half. Scenes of corporate one upmanship will entertain to a certain extent.

Songs have been shot well.

Minus Points :

After showing a lot of promise in the initial stages, the story starts becoming extremely predictable and cliched in the latter half. There are some unexplained aspects of the script and there is no proper logical explanation behind Paoli Dam’s sudden decision to become a prostitute. I mean, if you want to seek revenge against a powerful man, is that the only way?

Nikhil Dwivedi does not have much to do and his role is not well defined. The movie is a tad long, and this is especially evident in the second half. Another big issue is the wrong expectations built up due to the teasers. While they suggest a steamy and very bold erotic thriller, there is actually nothing too bold in the film. Most of the scenes are merely suggestive. You can hear the noises and imagine things, but nothing is actually shown.

The movie slows down considerably in the second half and one gets the feeling that the director lost control over the proceedings. A meek climax is also a major minus.

Technical Aspects :

Cinematography is decent and dialogues are ok. Editing is neat. Production values are good and you can see that a lot of homework has been done for the film. Harshit Saxena’s music is good.

Verdict :

Despite all the hype, hate story is not very different from your regular revenge thriller. There is not too much skin show either, so if you walked into the theater expecting something hot and steamy, be prepared to walk out disappointed. Hate story has its moments, but they are few and far between.

Bollywood3.com Rating : 2.5/5

Reviewed by Mahesh K.S.

Legend:

5 – Flawless

4 – Must Watch

3 – One Time Watch

2 – Wait for the DVD

1 – Stay Away

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