Dhamaka (2021) :
Movie Review -
Watching a film like 'The Terror Live' in 2013 was one hell of an experience, not because it was too great something like that, but because it tried to break that quintessential thriller notion set in mainstream cinema. In Bollywood, there was Neeraj Pandey's 'A Wednesday' (2009) to set top-level benchmark which might remain unbeaten for years and whatever manages to come close to that, should be termed great. Kartik Aaryan starrer Dhamaka is full-on copy and paste from The Terror Live and that takes away lot of surprises from the audience who have seen the original. But, it has that local-flavoured humor for Hindi audience which is enough to take it safe zone. Ram Madhavani's adaptation is no different from the original because the universal appeal of this content provides it that connect to the Hindi audience. Yes, it has those flaws, which, even the original couldn't defeat but like mentioned above, that connect to the Hindi audience makes it an absolute blasting thriller for our audience. There is a thrill, there is some fun, there are some poignant thoughts and then there's a thrilling ride of explosions and exposures. And yes as expected there are few moderate mistakes too which could have been removed if the art of filmmaking had been mastered.
A successful journalist demoted to radio jockey named Arjun Pathak receives a threat after he exclusively interviewed a terrorist, who blew up a bridge. Then begins a game of TRP, Conspiracies, Politics, Corporation Scams, Relationships, Humanity, and last but not the least- the Human Conscious. Dhamaka is a well-written script if one has to look it from the perspective of the original. It does not offer anything new besides that, but for the audiences who are watching it as a fresh story, every single moment is surprising. The screenplay is engaging and is powered by gripping storytelling. It's almost a song-less film, and that definitely helps it to keep the pace high. Thriller genre never demands useless songs, but hardly few filmmakers in India have understood that and Ram Madhavani acknowledges that fact with Dhamaka. What actually makes it chilling is its Background Score. Not a single conflict or dramatic scene in the film goes without intense background theme. It's too good when you watch in such atmosphere and experience the surrounding tension. An auditorium would have been a perfect place for it than Mobile or TV sets.
Kartik Aaryan has finally come out of his chocolate boy image and not a single soul will disagree to that. The same actor who was happy being a charming boy in commercial potboilers has grown up all of a sudden. It's not that people hated him those roles, rather they enjoyed his youth oriented monologues and friendship motto but it is just that he plays the new innings on a different pitch. Arjun Pathak is a new chapter in Kartik Aaryan's career and will remain a shell-breaker role for him. Yes, he fumbles a bit, like once in a half-an-hour, but he stays in his top form rest of the time which is still praiseworthy. It shows that the right choice can take you to artistic zone which may be remembered for years unlike those one time watch box office hits which fade awa from audiences mind by the time they reach home from theatre. Mrunal Thakur has got a less screen space, but she is fine with those limited scenes. What comes as a big surprise is, Amruta Subhash. She is an update to the original South Korean Thriller. Amruta looks so confident in Dhamaka that you might even forget it for a moment that she was playing the only changed part in this remake. That gives her individual identity, and she is just superb in every single scene. The shooting cast is considerably good.
Whatever Ram Madhavani's thriller offers is quite pleasant considering the social relevance of the context. I mean it does not become a headache if that's what you call watchable. It's more than just watchable. The Terror Live had a messy climax but that was 2013, when making such real-time thriller was itself a big challenge. Dhamaka comes 8 years later but still uses the same techniques and that's questionable because 8 years is a fine long gap for a field like cinema. Things change so fast here that you expect something new every week. Nevertheless, Madhavani has made a terrific thriller that can be viewed without any fear or doubts. His atmospheric brilliance and his secured command over the narration have made Dhamaka "A-Blasting-Thriller", which goes beyond certain boundaries that are created by mediocre films in this very same genre. However, there are some moments where he loses the grip and because it is not a long film, those little mistakes stay in your memory. Overall, one can say that dustbin called Netflix has finally delivered a 'Blast-Of-A-Film' (in Hindi) with the courtesy of Kartik Aaryan and Ram Madhavani but it could have been better. The original was hyped for being made in 2013 otherwise even that film has few moments that can be bashed. And i don't think Dhamaka should be blamed for that, however, it can be slammed for not improvising those mistakes.
RATING - 6/10*
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