Bholaa movie review: Ajay Devgn's film has a credible plot with a jarring background score
Ajay Devgn in a poster of Bholaa
How much action is too much action? You will constantly ask this question yourself while watching Ajay Devgn's latest directorial venture Bholaa. The film is a remake of the 2019 Tamil film Kaithi starring Karthi and was directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj. While the template and the core plot of Bholaa remain true to its original, Devgn's film indulges in high-octane, elaborate and sometimes mind-numbing action sequences to take the narrative forward. The result is a listless film that backs heavily on action, wastes talented actors in stereotypical characters, and refuses to delve deeper into the plot which the original had successfully done.
The story unfolds in a span of a night when an ex-convict Bholaa (Devgn) has to drive a truck full of poisoned cops to medical aid with a cook and an IPS officer Diana Joseph(Tabu) for company. The trio is chasing against time as a dreaded drug lord and his henchmen are out to kill Diana, who has seized a massive illegal consignment of drugs. The said drugs worth millions are safely tucked in the dungeons of an old British-made building now serving as a local police station. The drug lord, an eccentric Ashu (Deepak Dobriyal) sends men across the state to track Tabu and the truck she is traveling in while he heads to the police station with his entorage to get back the stuff that the police have seized. The police station is manned by only one constable (Sanjay Mishra) and a group of detained college students. There is mayhem everywhere and Bholaa has unwittingly found himself helping Diana. An ex-convict who served jail time for 10 years, he has just been released and is on his way to meet his daughter for the first time at an orphanage. He is more anxious about meeting his daughter but is blackmailed to help Diana, who is running against time.
The story, originally written by Kanagaraj, holds a lot of potentials. A lot is happening throughout the night. Rival gangs are trying to intercept the truck that Bholaa is driving, Diana has to get the unconscious cops to a police hospital in time and also reach the police station before Ashu's gang reaches and seizes the drugs. Bholaa also has to finish his job before he is set free to go meet his daughter. The film, to its credit, wastes no time and digs right into the plot from the beginning. Considering it is an Ajay Devgn directorial, you go in expecting stylised action sequences. Staying true to his roots, Devgn skillfully choreographs the action sequences- many of which are long and involves chase sequences on a deserted highway. But then how many shots of action sequences can you possibly put in a story which is set on a single night? After a point, the said sequences become mind numbing, making the whole viewing experience a bit of an ordeal. The stunts defy logic, they are gruesome and after a point- stop making any sense.
The original was deftly able to create a sense of urgency for the lead protagonist who - with a ghory past- is looking forward to a peaceful future with his daughter. There were layers. Unfortunately, the Hindi remake, written by Aamil Keeyan Khan, Ankush Singh, Sandeep Kewlani, and Sriidhar Dubey is unable to put the soul to Bholaa's character. While the narrator (in this case Makrand Deshpande) talks about the fear that Bhola's presence ensued in his heydays- I honestly did not get why he was a ruthless man as he is projected to be. A CGI leopard whimpers like a cat at the sight of Bholaa, he kills goons with a trishul like one picks chicken tikkas with a toothpick - yet the fear and the ruthlessness of the character is never quite properly translated on screen.
Devgn's film boasts of credible actors like Tabu, Sanjay Mishra, Vineet Kumar, Gajraj Rao, and even Amala Paul in a cameo. Most are wasted. The only actor who shines is Deepak Dobriyal as the sinister, mad Ashu. Some would call it hamming, but It works in a film where everything is over the top. The film's background score is perhaps the most jarring and nonsensical one that I have witnessed in a Hindi film in a long time. After a point, the dialogues appear muffled while the score goes up a few decibels.
Bholaa wins only for Devgn's fans as it presents his brand of films- stuff he made at the beginning of his career. Lots of action, a wafer thinplot, and Devgn in a larger-than-life character. So if you are a fan of that genre of films, go for it- but do take a pair of earplugs with you to avoid complete deafness afterward.
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