Style, Story, Action! This film has everything.. well, almost.
Warning – this will be full of spoilers. Avoid reading if you haven’t watched it yet. Dekh aao fir padhna. Aur agar sirf verdict chahiye toh you can skip directly to the last paragraph. Kyuki, bade bade reviews mein aise chote mote spoilers hote rehte hain seneorita.
Yodha – The Opening
Yodha is a special task force. Arun’s (Sid) father started it, he died and he became a Yodha himself when he grew up. Haan trailer se pata hi chal gaya tha. Basic intro set kar diya starting mein hi. Then came the first action sequence on the India-Bangladesh border, which gives us an insight into our Yodha, jiske liye ticket khareedi thi.
Great execution, loved the close range combat. I could figure-out that it was not a one shot sequence, there were many cuts, masked with the fast panning shots, but it was a nice blend of camera work and editing. You really feel ki haan, ye hai apna hero. Opening ka kaam hi hota hai mood set karna and it does it perfectly. Normally smoke signal ek hi color ke hote hain, lekin inhone Yodha task force ka tirange ka color rakha. Loved that.
Action
Very slick and very well executed. It was a delight to see Sid in action. It is something we do not see very often in Indian cinema and whenever we do, it is not this good. Sid is a natural and I feel he should focus more on action oriented films, while chosing the script and directors carefully, who are able to deliver action like never before. Yodha was a very good choice indeed.
Writing
I think all of us see around 200+ films every year, and we know a lot of stories and story-telling patterns. And maybe thats why it is required for the makers to do something more, and Yodha does just that. Haan hero hai, lekin sirf hero ki tareef karne ke liye film nahi hai. There are multiple characters with important roles. Our Yodha gets beaten up, cut, shot, framed, ridiculed, and yet he keeps fighting.
Twists and Turns
When an action film is backed by good story, it elevates the experience to a whole new level. Yodha is just that. It starts fine, setting the base and we are put right into a highjack and that highjack ends. We wonder what happened coz the movie is based on highjack, maybe they will start with a flashback now? And then it happens, the film has two highjacks and we were not prepared for it. As soon as the second one starts, the interest level sky-rockets to a very interesting point till the interval.
Bhai twist pe twists pe twist. The film keeps surprising till the final fight. It is so well balanced that they are spread throughout the film. Itne acche se mystery banaye rakhi hoti hai ki apka mann laga rehta hai, and aap dekh hi rahe hote ho ki ek aur twist. The excitement in the theatre was visible.
Terrorists be like: Hoga tu Yodha apne ghar pe, we are better masterminds and you are our puppet. Sid karne jata hai ulta ho jata hai. Aur yahi chahiye hota hai hume as audience, jab protagonist ke samne conflict ate hain, tabhi interest bana rehta hai. Stakes badhte hain, threat badhta hai, tabhi feel ati hai.
Bahaut maza aa raha tha theatre mein, people were cheering and clapping and reacting to everything. Acchi audience ati hai toh maza badh jata hai. Enf mein jab blast hota hai lagta hai marr toh nahi gaya and dhue se nikal ke ata hai with tricolor smoke signal, people started clapping. Thoda sa odd laga ki why are they clapping, but wo feeling bahaut acchi thi and I also clapped. Community experience ka maza kuch alag hi hota hai.
Direction
If you are liking a film, it means the writing, the acting, camera work and editing, all are in sync. And that is the job of a director, to bring together all of them and make a perfect blend. Ek bhi cheez sahi nahi hogi toh maza anhi ayega. Aap ne suna hoga, ya khud bhi bola hoga kabhi, action acha tha, story nahi thi, visually bahaut accha tha, but slow thi, first half accha tha, etc. Wo isi wajah se hota hai. Sagar Ambre and Pushkar Ojha, the two director of Yodha did most of the things right.
When the character of screen is in tension, or sad, or happy or going through any emotion, and we can also feel it, then you know it’s a job well done. The tension in the airline during the highjack, when there is a death, a fight and when the plane loses control, all that is very tricky but it was done extremely well. Even the fight sequence when the plane is side-diving or flips 180 degree, you are so engrossed.
Tension that build’s up while the plane is losing control and is about to crash/explode, is extremely good. Something that I wanted to see in Runway 34 but did not. It was all very lethargic with a mellow BGM. A bollywood dramatized remake version of Denzel Washington’s Flight. I know bahaut logon ko wo film pasand ayi thi (dekhne toh ki nahi gaya tha), but I feel wo isliye kyuki (quoting Lord Sid here) ya toh “90% Indians plane mein nahi baithe,” ya fir aap world ka dusra accha cinema nahi dekhte, toh aapko pata hi nahi hai quality kya hoti hai. Isliye kaafi saari ultra mediocre films mein kuch logon ko goosebumps aa jate hain.
While there are some great things in Yodha, some things were just formula based. Papa ke chota sa flashback to show hero ka motivation to become a Yodha, ek montage gaane to show his relationship with his wife, some cliched dialoguebaazi of the hero, last mein hero marr gaya ka dar aur fir dhue se nikal ke ana, pose marna with dramtic music. Ye kuch cheezein hata do, toh beech ka part Hollywood level ka interest jaga deta hai movie dekhte waqt.
Songs – Kya Keeda Hai Bhai Remake Ka?
Loved the Yodha theme. 2 love song release hue the, dono hi aise jo yaad na rahe. Unme se ek starting mein ata hai, jaha bas montage mein Sid aur Raashii ki life dikhate hain. Koi zarurat nahi thi, it is not always required to do the usual stuff. Then there is a song named Tiranga towards the end, to generate a feeling of deshbhakti and heroism taki uss music pe hero entry mar sake. It feels like they do not even try to do something different.
Remake kyu bhai kyu? And wo bhi itna ganda? Qismat by Amy Virk song comes in when Sid and Yodha task force is in inquiry and Sid-Raashii relationship is in a rough patch. Ek original gaana kyu nahi bana sakte the jo yaad reh jata? It was not just a remake but a very bad one. When the song started, people laughed. Please stop this virus. We understand you need to have songs to sell music rights, but please don’t do injustice to the art and don’t take the audience for granted.
Pakistan Bachao Yojna
The last sequence will remind you of Tiger 3, but the writing and execution was way better in Yodha. Yes, I understand that everyone is tired of the Pakistan angle in all out films, I am too, but here the focus was neither about war with Pakistan (like Gadar 2 or Fighter) , nor about saving Pakistan (like in Tiger 3).
It was more like Main Hoon Na, where one person/organization did not want that the two countries have peace. In the name of Kashmir, they wanted to keep the war going, because it is a business. UN, diplomacy, assassination of a Head of State leading to an all of war. They did not care about India, or Pakistan, dono ke PM ko marne ke liye ready the and uske liye Yodha ki band baja di.
Plus it was also not forced on the audience like they did it in other films mentioned above. It was mostly about the main villain vs Yodha! So that, I liked and I don’t have a problem with Yodha. Inki bas yahi galti hai ki ye baki sabse late aye hain aur hum pakk chuke hain.
But yes, ab na bahaut ho gaya hai. Ye sab films almost ek time pe hi bani thi toh jane dete hain, lekin ab jo bhi ban rahi hain please avoid this. Overdose ho gaya hai ab. Main hath jod ke guzarish karta hu band karo ab.
Acting
Sidharth Malhotra was excellent in action, but I feel he still needs to work on his acting. He is not bad but he should be a lot better as a leading man.
I wanted Raashii Khanna’s character to have more shades. She felt like a very normal woman torn between her job and personal life. Even as the negotiator she was just normal. I wanted her to be special. Imagine this, she is normal with her husband and day to day things, but as soon as something serious happens, she flips. Terrorists se negotiate karte hue she was a badass. But aisa kuch nahi tha, she was talking to terrorists as if you or me would be talking if put there. She even mentions ki Arun (Sid) ko personal and professional life ko separate rakhna nahi ata. So what I proposed would have looked great. Male ko hi sara bhav dete hain, female characters ko generally ignore kiya jata hai.
Remember all the martial art training and flipping videos of Disha Patani on instagram? All that came to fruition when he kicks Sid’s ass, that too in a saree! Loved how her character was written and her action scenes. As for acting, I feel she needs to work a lot on her acting. Kaafi logon ko acchi lagi hogi but it felt like bas thode attitude se baat kar rahi hai. Wo cute ladkiya hoti hain na jo gusse mein aur cute lagti hai, aisa feel hi nahi hota ki wo gussa kar rahi hain, waisa hi lagta hai. She needs to work on that, and I also feels it’s high time we see her in action films and a badass character, not just glamourous roles.
Sunny Hinduja is someone who steals the show. What an actor! Ek ek dialogues, har ek scene mein kya presence hai bande ki. This is what I mean when I say Disha could have shined a lot more.
Ronit Roy ka cameo tha bas, Tanuj Virvani as officer Khan had limited role and handled it well. Kritika Bhardwaj as Tanya, the “intern” with 200 flying hours, was a good addition. She felt like a perfect casting choice. Chittranjan Tripathy as Dhingra was a good comic relief, he is a good actor, unko kaafi jagah dekha hoga aapne.
Marketing – the actual Villain of the film
Marketing is truly the real villain of this film. While I liked that they did not reveal much of the plot and it was great to see the event unfold in the theatre, they did not generate enough excitement about the film. Dekho yar, teaser, trailer, poster, hawa mein release karo ya chand par, dekhna humko mobile, laptop, tv screen pe hi hai. And uske baad 2-3 bar theatre mein if we are lucky (kyuki “attach jaisa kuch nahi hota”). City tours, pani ki bottle pe packaging karna, comic book nikalna, hoardings lagana, all that is fine, no problem at all, awareness zarur hoti hai lekin excitement nahi generate hoti isse.
Classic galatiyaan kari hain. Sid ki 13-14 posters nikalne, leading ladies ka ek bhi nahi (I pointed out many times). Character posters nikalne the. Sid ka training BTS nikalna tha.
Iss film ko action film ki tarah becha gaya. Bhai last year bahaut action dekh liya hai. Isko agar Highjack film ki tarah bechte, India’s best highjack film ki tarah bechte (matlab market karte), toh excitement generate ki ja sakti thi. And I truly feel that this is the best highjack film from Bollywood, if not from India, in terms of entertainment and engagement factor. Aap ne apni USP ko hi aage nahi rakha, result dekh lo itni low advance booking, low Day 1 collection, and day 2 pe hi BOGO (Buy One Get One) rakhna pad gaya.
Short promos nikalte, thoda sa Highjack and Aviation se related motion posters, etc nikalte to make people aware, ki 7500 means highjack kya hai, ATC kya hoga, on flight commando ya air marshal kya hota hai. Acche se package karke promo banate, uss eye nahi lagta hi preach kar rahe hain.
Good songs generate a lot of excitement. Jawan, Animal are few good examples from last year. Ab main experts ko kya marketing sikhau, maine koi IIM se MBA nahi kiya hai. Lekin janta ke emotions ko kaise tap in karna hai, wo kya chahte hain, unko engage and excite kaise karna hai, ye definitely janta hu. Agar aap naye ho toh mere instagram account pe aao, aur kuch time bitao.
Verdict
It is a very interesting film with a lot of twists, turns and surprises! Well executed action and the best part is how the film hooks the audience with it’s storytelling. So yes, it is recommended from my side. You should catch it in the theatre. It’s not very long and they have also started BOGO offer from today. Maze hi Maze!
Also check out Fighter and Animal Phone Wallpapers here
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