After the decent quality BD of 'Wanted', and the above average BD of DON, this Blu-ray from T-Series come's as a reminder that such companies do not change overnight for the better. This BD is a very average effort, which is further totally marred by a very liberal pasting of the T-Series logo watermarks, numerous (counted atleast SIXTEEN times) during the film, for durations ranging from ONE to Three minutes. I suppose the 'Wanted' and 'Don' BDs were only an aberration and it's basically 'work as usual' for 'T-Series', completely in line with their long standing tradition of crappy DVD releases. The fact is, that our celebrations after the Blu-rays of 'Wanted' and 'Don', was not only premature but also quite misplaced. For, T-Series remains as always very much a company to dread, in the same vein as a Shemaroo or MoserBaer. NOT Recommended.

Title: Sarkar Raj
Year: 2008
BD Release: 2010
IMDB Rating: 6.7
Category: Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller
Distributor: T-Series
Authoring House: Utech (?Taiwan?)
MRP: Rs. 699/-
Region Coding: A/B/C
Media: Main Feature - 50GB BD
Running Time: 02:05:36 hrs
Chapters 19
Video:
2.35:1, HD 1080p 16:9, AVC 24Hz
Peak Bitrate 37.3Mbps | Average bitrate 34Mbps
Audio:
1/2 Hindi - Dolby Digital 5.1 (48khz 448kbps) <-- Default Track
2/2 Hindi - DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48khz) <-- Sounds like the DD track has been used to master this.
The packaging incorrectly states: Dolby Digital 5.1 (Uncompressed PCM Audio)
Subtitles: English.<-- Subtitles are on by default
Special Features:
NONE

Special Mention:
SHAME ON YOU T-Series, for the Ugly RED LOGO Watermark, during all songs for the entire duration and also atleast TEN other times during the movie for a duration of ONE minute each time.<-- Shame on 'T-Series' for a NEW LOW in putting watermarks on a Blu-ray disk. As warned by me earlier, the only reason T-Series did not have logos on the Don BD, is because the producers warned them not to do so. Atleast, until the fabled Shemaroo BDs with logo watermarks actually come out, T-Series is now enemy No. 1 for all those who care about Indian Blu-rays. Not only does 'Sarkar Raj' need to be boycotted, but also we must all write to T-Series and let them know of our displeasure.
No scrolling advertisements during songs. <-- All Bollywood Video companies, please take note.
No advertisements, forced or otherwise, during the movie. <-- All Bollywood Video companies, please take note.
Separate 'Song Menu' to allow direct selection of song. <-- This should be a no brainer for all Bollywood films.

Review:
Detailed Comments to follow.... (Please Excuse the delay, but I am really pressed for time nowadays).

Overall, I 'DO NOT RECOMMEND' this Blu-ray to anyone, except those, who are a sucker for video companies taking them for granted. This BD is certainly an improvement over the DVD. But, is that all we should expect from a Blu-ray and that too of a recent film? Bottom line is, this Blu-ray, is a POOR EFFORT by T-Series, made worse by their abhorrent and liberal use of watermarks, atleast 15 -16 times, during the movie, for durations of One minute to over Three minutes at times.

My REVISED ratings:
Movie: 3.25 out of 5.0
Video: 3.75 out of 5.0
Audio: 3.75 out of 5.0
Extras: 0 out of 5.0
Overall: 2.75 out of 5.0 (Lots of 'Authoring' issues and a lack of any special features, bring the overall score down.
Also, the liberal use of logo watermarks throughout the film, brings down the final score quite a bit.)





Screenshots courtesy DDR

Equipment used for testing:
Projector: Panasonic PT-AE2000U
Screen: Da-Lite 4:3 120" 'Model B' - White Matte
Viewing Distance: 11' 6"
A/V Receiver: Denon AVR5800
Speakers: 5.1
Front/Main: Paradigm Reference 100 v2
Center: Paradigm Reference Studio CC v2
Rear: Tannoy - Mercury M5
Subwoofer: Paradigm Reference Servo 15
BD Player:
Oppo BDP-83 (Hardware Modified 'Region Free' with 'BDP-83-48-1224' firmware)
PS3 (80GB US 'Region A' with firmware v3.15)

PS: This BD proves, that unless we all act as one in boycotting ALL BDs with visible, logo watermarks, irrespective of title and label, companies such as T-Series will continue to take it's paying customers for granted. Unless we treat them with the same disdain and contempt, that they treat us with, be prepared for more of the same. In fact, unless T-Series blatant disregard for the consumers demands, is met with a total failure of this 'Sarkar Raj' BD, how long do you think it will take other companies such as MoserBaer & Eros to also start doing the same.

thanks Sanjay! That is called gayee bhenss paani main.

As a thumb rule, people need to stop pre-ordering, or ordering titles from T-Series (for watermarks) and MoserBaer & Eros (for quality reasons). That is, atleast until we have feedback from someone reliable, regarding watermarks and quality. We need to be wary of 'Shemaroo' too, based on their history of DVDs and rumored watermarks on their Blu-rays. As of now, atleast based on their last couple of releases, 'Yash Raj', 'BIG' & 'UTV' are the only labels that can to some extent be trusted.

Everyone who cares about these issues, please do your part. DO NOT BUY the offending titles and also please spread the word on as many online forums as possible and also to your personal friends and family. It might also help to write and complain to T-Series, MoserBaer and Eros. Also forewarning Shemaroo would be a good idea.

PS: Anyone who knows someone in the media, please try to get them involved too. It is about time we did something about this plague, that infests most Indian video companies. For, if we don't nip this in the bud, we will be stuck in the same sick situation, that we have had with DVDs for over a decade. Do not forget, Indian companies, historically have always gone from bad to worse, never the other way around.

That the video sucks is a bit of a surprise. Sarkar was a 4K DI so the source is there for a very good quality BD.

The primary reason for the low video score is the colors, which are very dull with the whole picture having a very strong yellowish tint. The whole movie seems to have a very limited color pallete. Now, if this is how it was conceived by the director, I don't know. But, it definately does not look appealing to me. I remember the DVD also suffered from the same issue. Also, I found no evidence of any film grain suggesting a lot of DNR which has also resulted in reducing the sharpness level. To be honest, there may be a little bit of bias too, due to my ire with the whole 'watermark' issue, which may have sub-conciously made me be harsher than usual.

I think your earlier theory may hold true. T-Series may have had the makers of Don behind them with a stick that resulted in a decent release with "Don". I hope the same makers stay behind them with a bigger stick for DCH and not yield such a travesty like Sarkar Raj!!!

Thanks for the warning Sanjay!

NO logos or watermarks of any kind in future T-Series BDs, authored by Digital Entertainment. --> viewtopic.php?f=13&t=11325

I think the yellowish tint throughout the movie was something the director intended, I remember that the DVD of Sarkar Raj was truly exceptional with regards to detail. Hope we can see some screenshots of Sarkar Raj Blu-ray soon.

It was like that on the 35mm print I saw. Is correct. But there should be grain. The print source was not waxy and grainless.

Actually this was the one thing that I was not sure of. Not having seen the movie in the theaters, I kept wondering if this is how Ram Gopal Verma had originally intended it to be. Regardless, the net effect of this is a very dull and and uninspiring picture, which at times does seem to fit in with a certain look the director may have intended. But more often than not, it just does not look like a good Blu-ray picture. Also, the grain and sharpness that one would expect to accompany such a look, is lacking almost throughout. But, I suppose, with this added knowledge I ought to revise my 'Video' score a bit to reflect this.

they just HAD to add a watermark in the bluray!

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh - do these stupid bollywood companies EVER learn?

colors/hues are consistent with dvd release, but detail is good imo in SS

from ramu loco what else would you expect lol haldi lagaey ke

Looks more or less as expected. Not grainless and not waxy. If it holds up in motion it's good. But the watermark is not acceptable. No purchase.