Indian Police Force: Rohit Shetty’s OTT Debut Is Strictly For Those Who Enjoy His Brand Of Action Movies

Timepass…

2.5

Indian Police Force (Hindi)

  • Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Vivek Oberoi, Mayyank Taandon, and Nikitin Dheer
  • Directors: Rohit Shetty and Sushwanth Prakash
  • Producer: Rohit Shetty
  • Music: Lijo George-DJ Chetas
  • No. of episodes: 7
  • OTT platform: Amazon Prime Video

Rohit Shetty is a director primarily known for making two kinds of movies.

On one hand, there are the likes of Singham 1 (2011) and (2014), Simmba (2018) and Sooryavanshi (2022). In these films, the leading men are presented in a massy way, flouting rules and encouraging extrajudicial action.

Then there is the Golmaal franchise (since 2006), Bol Bachchan (2012), and Chennai Express (2013). Here, the comedy strictly falls under the slapstick type, with a focus on wordplay rather than intelligent humour.

Rohit Shetty’s films have never been highly acclaimed, yet they have been massive money spinners except for Circus (2022).

Now, the director has made his OTT debut with the Indian Police Force, which is co-directed by Sushwanth Prakash.

The web series falls very much under his radar. In fact, on certain occasions, the series has a huge hangover of Sooryavanshi.

Synopsis

Sidarth Malhotra in Indian Police Force
Sidarth Malhotra in ‘Indian Police Force’. (X)

Indian Police Force begins with a series of bombings by the terrorist unit Indian Mujahideen. The bombings take place in Delhi on the occasion of Delhi Police Raising Day.

Kabir (Sidharth Malhotra) is a top officer in the Special Cell unit of Delhi Police. Vikram (Vivek Oberoi) is his senior. They both are entrusted with the task of weeding out bombers.

The mastermind of the bombings is the mysterious Zarar/Haider (Mayyank Taandon).

Zarar looks like an ordinary man from the outside with an innocent persona, but deep down, he hides many secrets.

As the plot progresses, Kabir and Vikram are joined by Tara (Shilpa Shetty) from Gujarat ATS.

There is some professional tension between Tara and Vikram. What follows is a cat-and-mouse game between the Delhi police and Zarar.

The web series also looks at the sacrifices made in the line of duty by the numerous police officers.

USP of Indian Police Force

A big USP of Indian Police Force is how the back story of Zarar has been handled.

Sooryavanshi also featured a back-story about the actions done by Jackie Shroff’s Omar — the bad guy. But here, it has been fleshed out far better.

There is a touching love story between Zarar and Fareeda (Suchitra Bandekar). The moments between Mayyank and Suchitra have a certain tenderness.

As a result, Zarar comes out as a flesh and blood human being rather than just a Jihadi sprouting youngster. Mayyank Taandon does a brilliant job of portraying the varied nuances.

Performances

Among the cops, Shilpa Shetty is easily the best of the lot. The actor pulls off her part with élan.

Despite lesser screen time, Shilpa has a commanding presence, particularly in the scenes with Siddarth Malhotra.

Sidharth Malhotra’s act of Kabir is an extension of the patriotic roles he portrayed in Shershaah (2021) and Mission Majnu (2023). He does well in the action bits, which have some chases. But he overdoes the intensity in the serious scenes.

Vivek Oberoi is an absolute miscast. His character comes across as unintentionally funny. His dialogues evoke more laughter than touching a patriotic chord.

Sharad Kelkar has an extended cameo appearing in the sixth episode. The actor makes a significant impact.

Isha Talwar is seen in the role of a dead wife. Her character is only there to show the romantic side of Kabir, but it does not have any emotional heft.

Girish Kant and Raza Mehta’s cinematography is in perfect sync with the genre. They capture the numerous cities and landscapes efficiently through their lens.

A big problem with the Indian Police Force is that it gives the ‘been-there-and-done-that’ feeling. For those who have watched Rohit Shetty’s cop movies, there is nothing earth-shattering they will find here. Also, the trademark car flying sequences have been tiresome.

Final take

Indian Police Force is just about passable. The show can be best called a timepass actioner.

Perfume (Telugu)
Cast: Che Nag, Prachi Thaker, Abhinaya, Bushan, Rayala Harischandra, Meer, and Krishna Teja
Director: JD Swamy
Producers: J Sudhakar, Shiva B, Rajeev Kumar B, and Srinivas Lavuri
Music: Ajay Arasada
Runtime: 2 hours 20 minutes

3.5

Mission Majnu: This ‘Raazi’ Redux Lacks The Required Heft

Not a goosebump spy thriller!

Mission Majnu (Hindi)

  • Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Rashmika Mandanna, Parmeet Sethi, Sharib Hashmi, Mir Sarwar, Kumud Mishra, Arjan Bajwa, Zakir Hussain, and Rajit Kapur
  • Director: Shantanu Bagchi
  • Producers: Ronnie Screwvala, Amar Butala, and Garima Mehta
  • Music: Tanishk Bagchi, Rochak Kohli, and Arko
  • OTT platform: Netflix
  • Runtime: 2 hours 9 minutes

Stories about unsung heroes, both fictional and based on real-life incidents, have become a genre in itself.

If we talk about fictional narratives, we have War, and The Tiger franchise, both produced by the Yash Raj banner. On the other hand, we have Meghana Gulzar’s Raazi and Vishnu Vardhan’s Shershah which are based on real-life events.

Shantanu Bagchi’s Mission Majnu tries to have the heft of Alia Bhatt’s Raazi. At the same time, it tries to be larger than life. This mixed khichdi never takes off.

Sure, the film has its moments but you get the feeling that it could have been so much more.

The timeline of Mission Majnu is set in the 1970s. It narrates the story of a covert spy agent who resides in Pakistan.

In the beginning, audiences are told that India has successfully carried out its first nuclear bomb test which shocks Pakistan. Now, the neighbouring country wants to build a nuclear bomb to destroy India.

Pakistan takes the assistance of a great scientist, Abdul Qadeer Khan (Mir Sarwar), for the job. On learning this, the RAW hires spy agent Tariq alias Amandeep Ajitpal Singh (Siddarth Malhotra) to find out the location of and neutralise the nuclear facility.


Tariq is a tailor working in Pakistan. The rest of the story deals with how he finds the secret location and, in the process, saves India from the evil plan of Pakistan.

There is also the subplot of Nasreen (Rashmika Mandana), a visually impaired woman who has no idea about the real identity of her husband Tariq. Now, this reminds us of both Raazi and also Fanna.

Emotional quotient missing

Mission Majnu begins on a rather slow note with the unnecessary love angle of Tariq and Nasreen. The portion between Siddarth and Rashmika tests the audience’s patience in a big way.

What also doesn’t help the film is the convenient manner in which Tariq goes about his mission. You don’t feel tensed for Tariq which is a big drawback for a film of this genre.

The scenes where Tariq extracts sensitive information from the army brigadier appear too easy. Even random strangers don’t feel anything amiss when Tariq asks for crucial details.

It is only with the entry of Sharib Hashmi that things take a move on.

The scene before the interval takes the audience by surprise with an important twist revealed about the supporting character played by Kumud Mishra.

The scenes featuring the trio are easily the best part of the film. Their camaraderie elevates the film in a big way.

The second half gives some goosebump moments like an important train sequence featuring Sidharth.

Special mention must also be made of the shootout involving the various Indian RAW agents living in Pakistan. It is a sequence that has been well shot and leaves you sad.

Performances & technical crafts

Sidharth Malhotra as Tariq gives his best shot and is somewhat successful in making the audiences empathise with him, in spite of a fractured script.

Kumud Mishra and Sharib Hashmi as the Indian agents are brilliant in their respective parts and their death scenes have a certain poignancy.

Rashmika Mandanna doesn’t bring much depth to her part. Her chemistry with Sid is rather flat. This becomes a major hindrance in audiences empathising with her when Tariq’s secret is out.

The music composed by Tanishk Bagchi, Rochak Kohli, and Arko is quite good. Special mention must be made of the songs sung by Sonu Nigam.

Verdict

In a nutshell, Mission Majnu might not be a goosebump spy thriller but a necessary story to be told.

Thank God: A Fantasy Ride That You Won’t Mind Hopping On

Indra Kumar’s Thank God is an attempt at creating a make believe world that wants to entertain, as well as give a message. This is a difficult tightrope and the dramatic bits don’t completely land but still there is no denying that Thank God is a film that leaves you in a good mood. For those who are not aware Thank God is based on the Danish social comedy Sorte Kugler.

Ayaan Kapoor (Siddarth Malhotra) is a bankrupt real estate agent married to a cop played by Rakul Preet Singh. Ayaan is someone who has many flaws. He has anger management issues, low self-esteem, and doesn’t get along well with either his wife or the daughter. Additionally he is very jealous and adores Nora Fatehi as a fantasy figure. One day, he meets with an accident. Instead of waking up in a hospital room he wakes up to afterlife. Indra Kumar’s version of afterlife consists of a giant stadium full of people who would be judging him in a game show called The Game of life. The host is C.G shortcut for Chitragupt (A flamboyant Ajay Devgan). If Ayaan gets enough white balls he would be sent back to be resurrected. However, abundance of black balls would mean hell.

What follows is a roller coaster journey where Ayaan has no other option other than to win this Game of life. There are many life lessons along the way presented in the format of an escapist fantasy.

The best parts of Thank God are easily the interactions between Ajay Devgan and Siddarth Malhotra. The one liners of Ajay will leave you in splits. The first half has lot of situational humor. Thankfully Indra Kumar stays away from making it a vulgar comedy. One of my favorite bits in the first half is when Siddarth Malhotra tries to bring his inner Singham but ends up failing miserably. There is also a KBC reference when Ajay Devgan talks about how a superstar had come here once, and took the idea of his game and adapted it as KBC.

Another good thing about Thank God is how the director portrays the transformative journey of Ayaan. The way CG makes Ayaan relive episodes from his own life make the drama more interesting.

The gradual progression in his character and how he learns to appreciate the good happenings in his life and letting go off the bad has been well portrayed.

Thank God heavily relies on the shoulders of Ajay Devgan and Siddarth Malhotra and both don’t disappoint. Siddarth Malhotra is successful in capturing the different shades of Ayaan. This is the first time that Siddarth has tried his hand at a situational comedy and the actor does a pretty good job. The scenes in the first half where he pretends to be a broker in order to sell his bungalow are hilarious to say the least.

Ajay Devgan makes for the perfect modern Chitragupt. The actor is a delight to watch as the all knowing game host who has nothing but the best interests of the contestants at heart. You can clearly see that Ajay is having a ball.

Rakul Preet Singh is good as a devoted wife but suffers majorly due to a one note characterization. Like numerous female characters in this year Rakul ends up being a prop later on. More scenes between Siddarth and Rakul would have enhanced the romantic portions. The talented Seema Pahwa is also relegated to the backseat.

The music is more situational but thankfully the songs do not come across as speed breakers. The song Manike filmed on Siddarth and Nora Fatehi is easily the best song in the album.

Final word: Watch Thank God for some lighthearted moments and if you are in the mood for some life lessons.

Shershah: An Engaging War Drama Within The Confines Of A Familiar Space

Indian war films do follow a certain template and the challenge as a director is how you make it engaging within that genre. Director Vishnu Vardhan’s biopic on Vikram Batra has all the typical ingredients but to the credit of the director he takes a restrained approach, the result is a very watchable film. It also helps that leading man Siddarth Malhotra is in good form. The film can be a game changer for Siddarth. Shershah was a code name given to Vikram Batra during the war.

For those who are not aware Vikram Batra was an officer of Indian army. He was posthumously awarded with Param Vir Chakra for his actions during the 1999 Kargil war. He led one of the toughest operations in mountain warfare in Indian history.

The film’s narrative arc is quite similar to Jahnvi Kapoor’s Gunjan Saxena which was also produced by Dharma. In the opening scene we see Captain Vikram Batra and his troops in middle of the action while they are on their way to destroy the last Pakistani bunker that would recapture the peak. From here we move to the structure of a flash forward narrative. The story of Vikram Batra is narrated by his twin brother also played by Siddarth Malhotra.

The most interesting aspect of the film is Vikram Batra’s equation with the Kashmiri people during his first posting as a lieutenant. We see him getting along with a lot of ease with the local people. He calls them Chacha, uncle etc. The elders also trust Vikram Batra more than his senior officers.

A good example of that is the scene where an elderly man talks to Vikram Batra regarding his son. The son had joined the militants and now he wants to come out of it. While it is difficult to imagine whether all this happened in reality but nevertheless it makes for an engaging watch.

The film comes alive more in the second half when the action shifts to the war. The cinematography by Kamalijeet Negi effectively captures the atmospherics of war and the action scenes along with V affects combined get you into the mood.

The music by Tanishk Bagchi, B Praak etc is also fine and the songs don’t act as speed breakers. My favourite song is the Ranjha one.

The supporting characters have also been written with certain amount of care. Whether that is Shiv Pandit or Sahil Vaid. These supporting characters add quite a lot to the film. Shiv Pandit is particularly impressive out of the supporting cast. The camaraderie that Vikram Batra shares with these men is quite nice to watch.

The love track between Siddarth Malhotra and Kiara Advani’s character Dimple has its share of moments but it isn’t something memorable. It also doesn’t help that Kiara’s Punjabi accent is all over the place.

A big strength of the film apart from its real life story is Siddarth Malhotra’s performance. The actor looks the part and manages to capture the spirit of the real life Vikram Batra. The part of the twin brother isn’t much but he shines there too.

What pulls down the film is some unnecessary things. For example there is a Madhuri Dixit reference in a middle of a war. It feels quite out of place and could have easily been done away with.

Also the writing will remind you of several other war films like Uri etc. But that has also got a lot to do with a fixed template that lot of filmmakers have been using to narrate these kind of stories. A film like Raazi is an exception.

In a nutshell watch Shershah for the spirit of Vikram Batra.