Vikram Vedha Review: Hrithik Roshan’s Transformation and Saif Ali’s Top Notch Performance
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Saif Ali Khan, Radhika Apte, Rohit Saraf, Yogita Bihani
Director: Pushkar and Gayatri
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 3/5 (three stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
In the film Super 30 released about three years ago, actor Hrithik Roshan won a lot of praise for playing the role of a Bihari teacher different from his familiar style. Now he is in the role of a gangster in Vikram Vedha. It is a remake of the 2017 Tamil film of the same name. It is inspired by the famous folk tales of Vikram Betaal. The role of a police officer in the original film was played by R Madhavan while the gangster was played by Vijay Sethupathi. The originality of the director in remake films is enough to stay close to the original and cash in on its popularity. Here Pushkar and Gayatri, who directed the original film, are its writers. He has directed the remake. In such a situation, keeping in mind the audience of the Hindi belt, he has shifted the background of the story to Lucknow and Kanpur. The rest of the characters and story are kept in the same environment.
There is a world-famous quote by the famous Sufi philosopher Rumi, which was also used by Imtiaz Ali in his ‘Rockstar’. “Far far from here, beyond right and wrong, there is a field. I will meet you there”. Now put the dilema of everyday life in this statement. Where the definitions of right and wrong keep changing according to the time and situation. The journal of some such lives is Vikram Vedha. Thriller film by Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan. Which is a remake of the Tamil film of the same name that came five years ago. Directors, stories, treatments, and BGM are all the same. So, what is the overall experience like Vikram Vedha in Hindi, let’s know.
Vikram Vedha Review: The Story Plot
The story begins with an honest and tough police officer Vikram (Saif Ali Khan) having an encounter with his associates. He is on the hunt for the notorious criminal Vedha (Hrithik Roshan). Vedha suddenly comes to the police station to surrender. During interrogation, he narrates the story to Vikram, just like it happens in the story of Vikram and Betal. At the end of the story, Betaal asks what will Vikram do in this situation. Here Vedha asks this question to Vikram. The story is about an innocent boy killed in an encounter who happens to be Vedha’s younger brother Shatak (Rohit Saraf). Vedha loves him very much. Vedha is underground, but there are moments in between when she encounters Vikram.
In this way, he tells her three stories. Every story gives some clue to Vikram. Will Vikram finally understand the game behind the encounter? The story is about this. We all have had some time or the other related to King Vikramaditya and Betal hanging on his shoulder. The central plot of Vikram Vedha has come from there. Betal asks perplexing questions. Vikram answers in the light of his truth and honesty. Put these two characters in the modern-day context and you will get super cop Vikram and hardcore criminal Vedha. Vedha has terror in Lucknow. Has committed 16 murders. Vikram believes in the quick elimination of criminals and has done 18 encounters.
He believes his work to be correct and is not averse to tampering with evidence to justify the encounter. This is his version of the truth. On the other hand, Vedha is handed over to some missions. In which all the pieces including Vikram are there for him. What is that mission? Whose truth is stronger between Vikram and Vedha? Where is the line between right and wrong blurred? To know all this, you will have to watch Vikram Vedha.
Vikram Vedha Review and Analysis
Vikram Vedha is a very stylish film, a combination of action sequences in slow motion, well-captured cinematography, and powerful BGM in Lucknow. The biggest reason for the success of the original Vikram Vedha was its story and the treatment given to it. The non-linear narrative of the film slowly unfolds the layers. And like Inspector Vikram, you also get confused in the game of defining right and wrong. Vedha tells stories one after the other and the story of the film progresses interestingly. The curiosity of the first-time watchers will remain. If you have seen it, you will feel completely disconnected.
Despite having seen the original, many people like me will watch Vikram Vedha. I came looking for the job, others will come to see Hrithik. It can prove to be satisfactory for all such people that Hrithik has worked hard in his role. His screen presence is good and he suits well in all the action scenes. In short, understand that whenever he comes on screen, there is a spark in the film. As soon as he leaves, the film starts getting delayed. However, the idea of getting them to call Purabiya dialect is debatable. It sounds coercive and sometimes even ridiculous. Without him, Hrithik would have been more convincing.
Saif Ali Khan looks like an extended version of Inspector Sartaj of Sacred Games. Just no turban here. Some strong dialogues have come in his part but overall the show has remained fuzzy. One of the major problems of Hindi Vikram Vedha is the inefficiency of its supporting cast. The supporting cast that manages to register their presence in the original is just here as a filler. Be it Vedha’s brother Shatak, his girlfriend Chanda, or Vikram’s friend Abbas. His Hindi version is written superficially and no depth is seen in any character. This thing is very disappointing. Only Sharib Hashmi’s character is an exception. His character has got some space and he also makes it feel with his fine acting. Radhika Apte would not like to mention this film in her filmography. Despite this, his character has a lot of importance in the film’s narrative.
Pushkar-Gayatri is the only married director couple in Asia. In 2017, he got a lot of praise from Vikram Vedha. This year, his Tamil web series named ‘Soodle’ has come on Amazon. He was also greatly appreciated. But while taking his most hit project to the Hindi belt, he seems to have missed a bit. Whether it is the selection of Hrithik’s dialogue or the writing of the rest of the characters. The case has been only nineteen from the original. In the matter of dialogue also, the film does not make much difference. Having songs is not equal. The song ‘Alcoholia’ is good in terms of choreography, but where it comes in the film, the story seems to be a hindrance.
Vikram Vedha Review: The Last Words
Overall, the point is the same as what was said in the beginning. If you haven’t seen the original, then watch it. The twists coming in the story will be good. But if you have been watching the spectacular show of R Madhavan and Vijay Sethupathi, then stay away. However, the face-to-face scenes between Hrithik and Saif have become interesting. Nothing special has come on the part of Radhika Apte as Vedha’s lawyer and Vikram’s wife. The duration of the film is also very long. Tight editing could have reduced that. Hrithik has worked hard for the role of a gangster in the cast. He has done a lot of work on his transformation. His character has been described as quite creepy, but he does not look like that on screen. Saif Ali Khan has worked hard on the collision scene with Hrithik. The background music of the film thickens the effect of the story. Sharib Hashmi has got good space here. The actors who came in the rest of the character characters do not leave much impact. They are not written properly.
