पठान

full fledged lead role. An actor whom I’ve grown up watching on the big screen and it almost became a part of my film obsessed life to be invested in which movie w’ere going to tune in for next in his career. A 4 year hiatus, an unprecedented break, several debates and discussions on a presumably dwindling relevance, all squashed with absolute fervour on 25th January 2023 as his return back to the cinemas with Pathaan garners the highest advance booking for an outright hindi movie in history. It tells you about the unanimous love the individual still gets showered with and how despite the noise, people have tuned in for his return. Slightly nervous on seeing how everything unfolds, I went for an early morning show of Pathaan, hoping and praying that it delivers the action thriller spectacle we all have been waiting for. Captured, missing and on missions over 4 years, Pathaan played by Shahrukh Khan is called upon by his own brain child intelligence agency to return and protect the country from the threats that are posed by Outfit X, a private terrorist organisation that works solely for monetary purposes led by Jim played by John Abraham. What is the particular threat posed against India by Outfit X? How does Pathaan return back to the force? How does his dynamic work with Deepika Padukone whom acts as an essential part of the mission and finally how does it all culminate into this action extravaganza and whether Pathaan can combat and nullify the threat posed to his country forms the storyline of this spy universe film that gets the ball rolling for it to become a full fledged franchise. Here’s me telling you the good and bad aspects of the film so that you guys can ultimately decide whether to watch Pathan in theatres or not. The Underwhelming Aspects Mid Music & Choreography: Ever since the release of the two songs from Pathan, I may have heard it countless number of times. I have objectively tried to dissect the impact of the music, its form, its choreography and its final packaging and I have to confess that both songs, Besharam Rang and Jhoome Jo Pathaan, the latter coming in as the end credits song so it shouldn’t really matter but irrespective were mid as hell. While Besharam Rang was in the news for possibly the most odd controversies and it benefited from people tuning in to understand what the hype was all about, the songs of Pathaan from strictly an entertainment point of view can be termed as ordinary at best. The thing about the songs in War was that if you just listen to the music without the choreography, it’ll actually pass off as forgettable numbers but the seamless choreography and performances by Hrithik and Tiger in both Ghungroo and Jai Jai Shiv Shankar elevated the quality of the music. You saw it more for the choreography than the music. In the case of Besharam Rang, the odd choreography doesn’t help in enhancing the song and Shahrukh’s stylish ADAAB isn’t enough for it to be imprinted for years to come! When it comes to end credit songs, I think its also safe to say that JHOOME JO PATHAAN isn’t as memorable as SWAG SE SWAGAT and that’s what my perception has been with the music and its ultimate impact even after stepping out of the theatre. Its okay but nothing special! Comedy Hits & Misses & Some Set Pieces: The inconsistent first half of the film is also due to the forced comedy that is placed in the narrative between Pathaan and Rubina, a dynamic that never really fully lands. These characters, play-off one another, We have some good moments, but the comedy infused in their ultimate mission to capture something from a vault, for example, Pathan bribing a Russian escort with not rubles but bubbles and calling those controlling the security, uncle and aunty almost seemed unnecessary. There is also an origin story that is created Deepika’s which doesn’t really connect you more with her character & its flashes almost become redundant in the screenplay. What becomes abundantly clear with the scale like Pathaan is attempting, that Siddharth Anand possibly wanted to cover every element of the world and choreographing an action set piece around it. While its on the ground its exceptional but when it transports over ice and uses jet packs, it slightly gets a little over the top. I saw this film on IMAX 3D and I know that is privilege for most and if you do have the funds and are a film buff, I would highly recommend you see this film in no other format but on IMAX but it definitely delivers the big screen spectacle we all have been craving for from Hindi Cinema but the set pieces done over ice as Jim chases Pathaan on motorcycle and Deepika abruptly enters on skates or probably the most jarring one, the jet pack sequence that have been heavily criticised online from their first look, just don’t pack the punch of exhilarating set pieces. They seem like additions that almost become for the sake of scale more than necessary additions to the screenplay. What’s crazy is when Pathaan is getting his hands dirty on the ground, with his bare fists and kicks or even with his iconic Shotgun, that’s where the things get the most exciting, not so much when its covering the elements of the world. The Good Hand To Hand Action Set Pieces: One of the most engaging aspects of Pathaan is seeing Shahrukh Khan in the flesh get into hand to hand combat set pieces, clearly in some instances you can see its Shahrukh executing the movement from start to finish. I think as an action star, Shahrukh Khan almost goes under everyones radar but there is a nimble and agile presence that he possesses even at 57 that really benefits the film and actually making it believable that Pathan is a force to be reckon with. Pathan trapping the enemy by being vulnerable formulates the commencement of the madness, that gets the show running for the film, something that has a combination of his iconic shot gun and mixed martial arts put into play. The same goes for when Pathan and Jim meet head to head on top of a moving car. Its an exceptionally choreographed action set piece where two helicopters get tied to one another as Pathaan and Jim dish it out! Nothing beats however the train sequence as it again combines his shooting and physical combat skills, really solidifying that our protagonist is the man for the job and someone to root for. The set piece in the train eventually develops into the most badass combination that I will come to later. I could not even hear the dialogues at one point, the cheers were so deafening! The Importance Of Deepika & An Unapologetic John Abraham: I know the bar is low when it comes to women in commercial action movies, but at least you’ve got a girl in this capable who is capable in her field and is a vital element of the plot rather than just being a romantic story line, which is what usually happens to women in mass action films. It is lovely to see Padukone carry out the stunts with precision, looking badass with the dodomama going full throttle against the enemies was really excited to witness, I just wish her character was written better! John Abraham on the other hand as we all anticipated and predicted, is an amazing antagonist. One of my biggest grapes with with war was how weak The antagonist was for Kabir, the plastic surgeries. mess aside, it almost never made the stakes more exciting for me. John, on the other hand as the sinister, no-nonsense, ruthless and deadly villain acts as the villain this spy universe deserved. He doesn’t give a shit about what people think about him, and you know what is even more exciting entertaining about this film, that he has a compelling origin story, believable and expanded exceptionally well , you actually understand why he is on the mission to do anything for a person who offers him a contract and why an individual becomes the monster that he is today. That’s the great part about Pathaan, its well written with respect to its socio political commentary, about identity, about one’s relationship with the nation and this elevates it further to not just be a random commercial action film. The Cameo Delivers & How: The recent trend to talk about when it comes to movies that are presented on such a scale is elevation. Elevation are those moments in films where you lose your voice. You shout so loudly in the theatre for the hysteria that is created that you can’t speak anymore on your voice over. The situation happened here immediately after the interval and the cameo all of you wish for is in its FULL glory. It is so well choreographed that I don’t have enough words to say the actions set piece that is designed around and above the train between the two characters and how they annihilate the goon is exceptional, especially this one long shot with Shahrukh which just shows you his capability in the action genre. We all grew up watching them, and finally combining forces with one another made me actually emotional, I assure you, you will definitely be cheering and clapping in the theatre. I can’t wait for you to experience it yourself! The Baadshah Is Truly Back: They created a narrative that Shahrukh Khan and his stardom had faded, that he had lost touch with what works in the market, oh how bloody wrong were all of them! I remember in 2018 formulating what would be the best comeback for Shahrukh Khan and just seeing him getting integrated into the spy universe makes my heart happy because there could not be better packaging for a comeback other than Pathaan. We rarely see him in the action genre done right, With Don, Ra One and sporadically in Races but to see him in a film that just doesn’t randomly fizzle away was such a sigh of relief. Shahrukh Khan is introduced in the film so well with his scruffy hair momentarily hiding his identity, the light immediately putting his eyes on focus, you knew this was going to be a wild ride. Pathaan is infused with one liners, Shahrukh Khan at his smug and sarcastic best really gets the crowd going with his duels with Jim. One of my biggest fears was that this like most Shahrukh Khan films will get lost in several subplots and forget its core and This is not the case at all with Pathaan and finally there is a cohesion with the Shahrukh Khan action film that actually gets you invested till the final minutes of the film. They created a narrative that Shahrukh Khan and his stardom had faded, that he had lost touch with what works in the market, oh how bloody wrong were all of them! I remember in 2018 formulating what would be the best comeback for Shahrukh Khan and just seeing him getting integrated into the spy universe makes my heart happy because there could not be better packaging for a comeback other than Pathaan. A movie that really finds the balance of star service and mass action, something Hindi cinema was really craving for. Barring some CGI issues and the convenience that comes with the hero persevering, these elements are not overwhelming enough to ruin the experience of this action extravaganza. An inconsistent first half transitions to get into full throttle in the second, leading to setting in stone the fact that The Badshah is truly back!!