Starring: Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, John Abraham, Dimple Kapadia, Ashutosh Rana
Director: Siddharth Anand
When a Bollywood release causes this much of a stir at the worldwide box-office, there must be a reason behind it. And, Shah Rukh Khan’s mega hyped ‘Pathaan’ has not just one but multiple reasons behind all the excitement the release has generated.
Pathaan (Khan) is one of those Indian armed forces living legends who has acquired superhero status, capable of magical feats of heroism and bravery. His very name sends jitters among the enemy and despite an injury that cut short his combat career, Pathaan uses the Japanese art of Kintsugi – or the golden restoration art for pottery – as the inspiration to convince his boss Nandini Ma’am (Kapadia) to take a chance on broken soldiers to set up a covert spy unit.
Colonel Luthra (Rana) is less convinced by Nandini’s faith in the injured veterans taking on India’s fiercest enemies. But when the deadly mercenary Jim (Abraham) takes on the contract from a rogue Pakistani military chief to bring India to its knees, even Luthra is forced to admit there can be only one man for the job to stop him in his tracks – Pathaan.
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However, besides the deadly and fierce Jim, there is also a very distracting attraction to a particularly alluring Pakistani spy, Dr Rubina Mohsin, in the way of Pathaan’s patriotic mission. Will the indefatigable and invincible superhero overcome all the seemingly insurmountable hurdles to save the day, yet again, or will his faith in the art of Kintsugi get crushed into irredeemable pieces?
For anyone familiar with this genre of Bollywood film, the answer to that question is no big mystery. However, the sheer joyride that is in store for the audience until that climax will undoubtedly be a refreshing treat. For fans of spy flicks of the James Bond and Mission Impossible ilk, there isn’t much of a shocker in store. However, the incredible panache of this slick Bollywood flick’s nod to those great franchises will leave many reeling.
Shah Rukh Khan is an absolute treat to watch, as he age-defyingly declares several times that he is “having a blast”. A surprise cameo by he who shall remain unnamed, for anyone yet to catch the many spoilers around, takes the entertainment quotient up a further notch at the very peak of all the cinematic excitement.
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While it is an all-out SRK show, Abraham as the Bond-style baddie, Padukone as the Bond girl and Kapadia as the spy chief do their bit very efficiently to give India a proud new spy franchise – or in the words of Yash Raj Film’s branding: Spy Universe.
With foot-tapping beats, death-defying stunts, impressive special effects and a seamless journey through different continents – this new theatrical sensation deserves all the hype. Bollywood fans have been waiting too long for an out and out SRK thriller – and he delivers for everyone to join him in having a blast!
