Sarzameen

As if it isn’t dodgy enough to link Vijay’s decisions with Harman’s journey, Sarzameen has one of the most ludicrous and asinine twists in recent memory. The side-splitting revelation wipes out Vijay’s much-vaunted reputation as a highly decorated officer. Whither Army intelligence – or, for that matter, basic intelligence? The mishmash of parenting lessons, terrorist hunting and personal sacrifice only suits the characters played by Prithviraj Sukumaran and Kajol. The other actors, including Jitendra Joshi as the token good Muslim and Mihir Ahuja as Qaabil’s aide, barely register. Ibrahim Ali Khan is unequipped to portray Harman’s seething rage or emotional conflict. Whatever flicker of psychological depth there is, is soon extinguished for an anything-goes melodrama about a dysfunctional family dynamic that doubles up as an unintended comedy.

Unpacking this puzzle properly could have led to some depth. But the weak writing-and-execution renders it frustratingly flat. It has no business being so. Prithviraj is capable of ratcheting emotion, as is Kajol. And Ibrahim, playing a boy cruelly bullied for an impairment who grows into a young man on the opposite side of the loyalty divide, doesn’t have to do any solo lifting, unlike in his disastrous debut Nadaaniyan.

But here's the problem: It's very predictable. In the first 20 minutes, you can guess how things will unfold. And so many loop holes in the plot! For instance, even though the army has been warned of a terrorist attack during a major event, a bomb is planted under the stage without anyone noticing. No metal detectors? No sniffer dogs? No basic security? This is the Indian Army we are talking about! The writing feels lazy. It expects the audience to suspend all logic. Prithviraj tries hard. He is a talented actor and commits to his role. But even he can't save the film.