Sooryavanshi

That being said, Sooryavanshi isn't driven by a great script neither does it have any extraordinary suspense that could bring nail-biting moments. Yet, it keeps you on the edge for the sheer joy of watching that over-the-top action. Shetty picks various elements — romance between Sooryavanshi and his wife Riya (played by Katrina Kaif), their relationship with their son Aryan, his camaraderie with the members of his ATS force — and weaves them together for a fulfilling climax. While Devgn's Singham was more intense and Ranveer's Simmba was the quirkier one, Akshay's Sooryavanshi is a mix of both. He is tough in scenes that require him to be that, evokes laughter in lighter scenes, or awe with his smashing entry on the helicopter. Though at some places, Akshay struggled to remain in character and looked perplexed with a busy storyline.

Did Shetty intend to make a third Singham film or a Simmba sequel? The presence of Devgn and Singh, far better at playing the over-the-top supercop, in a movie that is meant to emphasise Akshay Kumar’s continued machoness, is a sign that the director is taking no chances. A minor army of actors queues up to pad Akshay Kumar’s tired attempts at comedy and valour, including Javed Jaaferi, Nikitin Dheer, Vivan Bhathena and Gulshan Grover. The gist of the 145-minute movie is contained in the extended climactic action sequence. It comes after much hectoring by Sooryavanshi and Shetty’s earnest history lesson on the link between riots and terrorism.

Sooryavanshi isn't the kind of masala entertainment that many film-makers have tried to force feed the audience. It is pure big screen entertainment, something that truly works right through its near two and a half hour duration.

So let me come to the point right away. SOORYAVANSHI is amongst Rohit Shetty’s best works. Like Manmohan Desai, he knows the pulse of the audience and serves a dish that they relish. He integrates the right elements in those 2.30 hours and at the end of it, you can’t help but exclaim, this one’s a paisa-vasool entertainer.

The action is top class, jokes connect and there is no limp in the pacy narrative. Flaunting grey sideburns, and aviators, Akshay, in the Tom Cruise mode, performs a series of whistle-inducing stunts, and his comic timing hasn’t aged. The self-reference jokes reminding him of his age consistently hit the target. Singham (Ajay Devgn) and Simba (Ranveer Singh) add both muscle and merriment to the climax and till then a robust support cast brings out the layers in the narrative. Gulshan Grover shines as the evil Usmani and Kumud Mishra makes us empathise with the dilemmas of Bilal Khan. Jackie Shroff, Javed Jafferi and Abhimanyu Singh are not found wanting either. But it is Katrina who surprises in what seems like a typical two-songs, three scenes kind of role. It will go down as one of her most convincing performances.

Net net, is ‘Sooryavanshi’ worth getting into the movie halls for? I’m conflicted, good people, and here’s why: first off, there’s a bit too much clunky emotion shoved in between the action (terrorists also have families; tears are spilled when offspring are offed; mothers’ graves are to be visited, because after all, mothers are mothers, no?). And then, which is even more of a bummer, there’s too much Akshay, not enough Ajay and Ranveer. All those brimming eyes, and sentimental lines about ‘santaan’ and ‘shaheedi’. Oh please. A Rohit Shetty flick is meant to deliver non-stop rat-a-tat, risible dialogue, and our heroes being invincible as the bad guys go flying in the air.