When we think about Rohit Shetty’s film, we know that there will be high-voltage action sequences with car chases, heroes jumping off planes, exaggerated stunt scenes, and explosions in abundance. Promising a festival bonanza on Diwali, Shetty returned back to celluloid with the much-awaited Singham Again, sequel to his superhit franchise Singham Returns (2014).
Led by Ajay Devgn, the action drama movie is the fifth installment of Shetty’s Cop Universe. Singham Again is set around the life of Mumbai Police officer Bajirao Singham and his team of patriot cops who are up against an evil villain. Let’s find out if the film can match up to the hype and the worth of its previous parts.
Story: One should leave their brains and logical thinking behind when you enter a theater playing a cop actioner, especially when it is directed by Rohit Shetty, as the story will definitely defy all reasonings.
Singham Again starts with Bajirao Singham, played by the ever-fit Ajay Devgn, going all the way to the Kashmir Valley to capture a wanted terrorist, Omar Hafeez (Jackie Shroff), who was seen in Akshay Kumar’s 2021 blockbuster Suryavanshi. The next scene cuts back to Mumbai, introducing Kareena Kapoor Khan as Avni and their grown-up son. However, putting Omar behind bars lands Bajirao into more troubles as his grandson, dreaded terrorist Zubair Hafeez, aka Danger Lanka (Arjun Kapoor), who wants to avenge his family and wants his grandfather back makes a plan to get him back. He operates in Sri Lanka and abducts Avni.
Soon, Singham gathers his superhero cops team, Sangram Bhalerao, a.k.a. Simmba (Ranveer Singh), Veer Suryavanshi (Akshay Kumar), Shakti Shetty (Deepika Padukone), and Satya (Tiger Shroff), to rescue Avni and also capture Danger Lanka. All these characters take inspiration from Ramayana and the storytelling of the film keeps following the path, but the good attempt goes haywire.
Performances: Ajay Devgn appears in his usual brooding self and honestly has lost the touch of the angry police officer, which was last seen in his 2011 movie. The OG Singham, however, comes out occasionally. Akshay Kumar’s entry on a helicopter invited hooting in the theatre and flashed guns in his signature style. Coming to Deepika Padukone and Tiger Shroff, both have really less to offer, and such are their performances.
While the first half of the movie was painful to watch, the movie picks up pace in the second half when Ranveer Singh gets introduced. He literally gives energy to the actioner with him just having fun on the screen and a sleek one-liner, giving life and comic relief to the rather dead audience.
Can we now just do away with Arjun Kapoor? He can’t act, and Bollywood needs to stop giving him roles. He as Danger Lanka completely falls flat and doesn’t evoke fear as a fearful antagonist. Jackie Shroff has almost no screen space, whereas Shweta Tiwari, Ravi Kishan, and Dayanand Shetty too are passable. Kareena Kapoor merely has played a distressed wife and delivers some long over dramatic dialogues. It’s only Ranveer Singh who saves the film.
Technical Aspects: There’s a saying that ‘too many cooks spoil the broth’; this is what seems to have happened with Singham Again. The actioner’s screenplay has been credited to six writers – Yunus Sajawal, Abhijeet Khuman, Kshitij Patwardhan, Sandeep Saket, Anusha Nandakumar, and Rohit, and look, they have made a mess of it. There are too many action sequences, which again goes weary and doesn’t even cause any adrenal rush. The location and VFX visually look good, offering a sense of reality to the story. Meanwhile, the attempt to link the Ramayana that goes in parallel with the screenplay seems unnecessary. Music too is bland, and dialogues aren’t as strong as they used to be in Shetty’s other films.
Analysis: As a masala potboiler, Singham Again delivers in bits and pieces, all thanks to the well-written character of Ranveer Singh. Too much jingoism and reference to Ramayana kills the thrill that a signature Rohit Shetty’s film has. Too many characters, messy plots, extended introductions, fire, car chase, and endless fight scenes are typical of an action movie, but this time it is neither entertaining nor even worth watching. We are all in for a well-made masala movie, but not such a type.
Verdict: Can be skipped
Rating: 2/5
