The text packs a punch; It’s the Subtext of Rohit Shetty’s Action-Entertainer That’s Problematic
The decision to hold off the release of Rohit Shetty’s most ambitious film till the pandemic went away was the right one. The film’s Sonic and Fury demanded a theatrical release and it is good that the audience was not asked to converse with the two pandemics at once.
Like its protagonist, the screenwriter indulges in several sommeliers to ‘balance’ the narrative, but that can’t save the Akshay Kumar-starrer from constantly sowing seeds of suspicion against a particular community.
With Sooryavanshi, Rohit, who is known for goofy entertainment and visceral action choreography, attempts to tackle complex issues. He opens with much of Gandhi’s slang: Eye for eye will make the whole world blind, but loses faith midway through, and decides to turn the ‘rival’ into a pulp.
Much like a section of politicians, the politics of the film uses the shields of our brave policemen to scratch the wounds of the past and cover them with a tape of fundamentalism. It tells us that one community moved on but some members of another religion got stuck in the past and are now using religion to strike back.
The film makes us believe that a large number of neighboring country citizens are living around us under false identities. They marry local people, do business and await orders from their masters to make Indians bleed by plotting a repeat of the 1993 serial blasts in Mumbai. Rohit is silent on who is sheltering him, perhaps, this will be the subject of a future film in the franchise. Right now, all we can do with common sense is that a key member of the sleeper cell in the film is named Mukhtar Ansari.
As for the specifics, the film differentiates between a long beard, a short beard and a clean shaven Muslim. Those going to Ajmer are not shown praying, but those who bombed the cities are shown praying religiously. And during the climax, with “Quit tomorrow ki baatein” playing in the background, it provides a guideline for a safe existence in the neighborhood. Really!
What is not so subtle is the constant reminder of the cop’s surname through the background score. No one knows about Rohit’s cop universe but wonder Vijay Khanna (chainAnanth Velankar (half truth) and Ajay Rathore (Sarfarosh) must be thinking!
Each time Rhea (Katrina Kaif), perhaps the film’s conscience keeper, reminds her husband Veer Sooryavanshi (Akshay), a one-to-one army, to see what’s in her own ‘home’. Happening and he doesn’t listen, one gets the feeling that this is some meta-context fabricated by the writers to tell the audience that we all live in glass houses. Had she been given a little more voice, she would have told Simba, when she gets into a lecture mode during the climax of The Wall, that terrorism is not only affecting tourism and entertainment in the neighboring country, we are also feeling the heat of hatred. are facing.
On the surface, Rohit lives up to his strength. The action is top class, the jokes connect and there is no lameness in the pacific narrative. Showcasing gray sideburns and an aviator in Tom Cruise mode, Akshay performs a series of whistling stunts, and his comic timing hasn’t aged. Self-reference jokes relentlessly hit the target, reminding him of his age.
Singham (Ajay Devgan) and Simmba (Ranveer Singh) add both muscle and fun to the climax and till then a strong support cast brings out the layers of the story. Gulshan Grover shines evil Usmani and Kumud Mishra make us sympathize with Bilal Khan’s dilemmas. Jackie Shroff, Javed Jaffrey and Abhimanyu Singh were also not found. But it is Katrina who surprises in a typical two-song, three-scene kind of role. It will go down as one of his most relatable performances.
Overall, it is a Diwali cracker that lights up the sky but leaves the soul covered with soot.
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