I had this movie in my watch list for almost a year! I finally watched it! I am glad I DID!. The characters, chemistry between each of them, acting, cinematography, everything is amazing. BUT the most importantly the poetic dialogues are really amazing and so delicious to listen. Ajay Devgan top 5 movies!Hats off!

ONCE UPON A TIME IN MUMBAAI – CATCH IT ( A- ) Once Upon a time in Mumbaai is quite different take on the Mumbaai Don world… which is less brutal and hardcore then Company or Satya… An amazing movie with amazing performances by all the leading actors… Ajay Devgan yet again proved that he is par excellence… his portrayal of Sultan Mirza is effortless and complete natural… Imran Hasmi in his Bad Boy Avatar again proved he is the best Bad boy Around in Bollywood. Gangana Ranaut looks drop dead gorgeous and exquisite… Prachi Desai looks innocent and extremely pretty... Randeep Hoda proved that he has abundant of talent… Gauhar Khan's item number was Classy and looks Hot as Always. The music of the movie is really enchanting…. Overall a great movie by Milan Luthria, who didn't mess up the movie with hardcore violence & scenes…, must watch it!

Ajay Devgan rocks in this movie. a must watch movie. Excellent. You seldom get period dramas in Bollywood which are not about historical characters. This year that way has been very lucky that way. Couple of months ago we had Badmaash Company and now we have Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai. Of course both are completely different from each other, the first being set in the fast 90s and the latter being set in colorful 70s. And director Milan Luthria makes enough efforts to make OUATIM look very authentic and worth a watch for its settings.Settings apart the film has its pluses with some superb performances and great dialogs. However the problem with the film is the not so new storyline and the very slow screenplay. Though the characters are well established and well rounded the writer takes the entire first half to do that without much movement in the story. And then as you expect fireworks in the second half it fizzles out too fast.OUATIM is the story of two gangsters. While one was ethical the other was reckless. It has inspirations of the characters of infamous smuggler Haji Mastan and now infamous don Dawood Ibrahim. The film is about Sultan (Ajay Devgn) who labored through his childhood and became a smuggler as he grew up completely ruling the sea routes. He however always preferred keeping the city clean and never smuggles which was against his conscience. Shoaib (Emraan Hashmi) is inspired by Sultan's life as a child and wants to it as big. He is a son of a police officer but has no inclination towards the law. As he grows up he makes his way to Sultan's gang and proves himself good enough to go up the ladder fast. However his reckless ambitions soon outgrew Sultan and he decided to take over the city on his own.The story is built on the line – 'behind the myth is the city's greatest betrayal story'. The screenplay does not give much importance to the betrayal. The slow pace of the first half could be a put off. Also funnily Sultan and his girlfriend Rehana never seem to age as they continue to look the same even as Shoaib grows from a child to rustic young crook.The film has its pluses. Luthria has taken care of everything – right from trains to cars to sunglasses to shoes to buildings! Everything takes us back to the 70s. Luthria handles the dramatic moments well and great use has been made of dialoguebaazi. All actors have come up with some memorable performances. Ajay Devgn's overpowering presence is matched by Emraan's charm. Kangna Ranaut and Prachi Desai do their bits well though they don't bear many consequences on the story itself. Randeep Hooda is effective as the police office.Overall, 'Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai' is an entertainer. It does not need any effort to be understood of liked. It is the mere magic of characters created that makes this film worth watching.

"Beyond the Myth lies Mumbai's biggest betrayal" were the closing lines of 'Once Upon a Time in Mumbai'. And it reminds me of the tag line of 'The Assassination of Jesse James by Coward Robert Ford'. A lot can be derived from both movies that is similar, the characters in some way, or the conclusion. But before you conclude that i am accusing makers of plagiarism, you are wrong. This movie has its own pros and cons. And besides that, makers had their reasons to make it.Set in 70's era, its the story of two gangsters, Sultan Mirza by Ajay Devgan & Shoaib Khan by Emran Hashmi and the paths they chose. Once Upon a time will remind of you late 70s and early 80s style of film-making, to suit the story. It has power packed dialogs, steady pace, close-up shots and gritty drama. Bollywood has already seen a lot of Crime Dramas, so you might often feel nostalgic or clichéd but that doesn't take away the charm of it. The only thing which i felt it lacked was character developing, something was missing in them. Direction was worth considering.Ajay Devgan gives yet another convincing performance, won't call it his best but something i'd call applause worthy, may be a better insight to his character would have made it his best. Emran Hashmi gives yet another convincing yet a little charmless performance, nonetheless he stood by Devgan in one frame. The supporting cast did not suit, i don't even know why Kangana Ranaut got into crew.Randeep Hooda did cover her lack of portrayal in some way and delivered a fine performance. Prachi Desai was wasted. The Background score along with music were good. Cinematography was excellent.Without saying much, i'd say slightly better crafted/written characters would have taken this movie to another level. Having said that, movie still is gutsy drama cum thriller with in to the face dialogs that will easily find it's share of audience. And Yes i'm one of them.7.5/10 (Very Good)