Aiyaary
Movie
Review:
Manoj
Bajpayee
|
Sidharth
Malhotra
|
Neeraj
Pandey
|
FilmiBeat
Rating:
2.0/5
Star
Cast:
Sidharth
Malhotra,
Manoj
Bajpayee,
Rakul
Preet
Singh,
Pooja
Chopra,
Adil
Hussain
Director:
Neeraj
Pandey
During
a
regular
drinking
session,
a
colonel
tells
his
protege
that
he
always
tosses
a
coin
when
stuck
in
dilemma
because
the
heart
already
selects
the
right
choice
when
the
coin
is
in
mid-air.
Nope,
we
ain't
kidding.
Imagine,
just
flicking
a
coin
and
poof...your
confusion
disappears
just
like
that!
Even
if
it
meant
you
are
stuck
in
a
life-and-death
situation!
Too
hard
to
believe
naa?
But
in
Neeraj
Pandey's
parallel
universe
in
Aiyaary,
everything's
a
smooth
cakewalk.
His
latest
outing
set
against
the
backdrop
of
Armed
forces,
revolves
around
Major
Jai
Bakshi
(Sidharth
Malhotra)
who
goes
rogue
after
stumbling
upon
the
Indian
military's
murky
secrets.
He
isn't
alone
in
this
mission
and
has
his
hacker
girlfriend
Sonia
(Rakul
Preet
Singh)
by
his
side
who
also
doubles
up
as
'I-have-made-some-coffee-for-you' pal.
Meanwhile,
Jai's
mentor
Col.
Abhay
Singh
(Manoj
Bajpayee)
becomes
furious
after
learning
about
his
treachery
and
sets
out
to
hunt
him
down
and
teach
him
a
lesson
or
two.
Amidst
this
cat-and-mouse
game,
there
are
bigger
fishes
in
the
sea
who
have
more
at
stake
and
pose
a
greater
risk
of
getting
exposed.
Neeraj
Pandey
is
known
to
be
a
master
when
it
comes
to
espionage
thrillers.
Be
it
'A
Wednesday',
'Baby',
'Special
26',
the
filmmaker
has
never
shied
away
from
portraying
the
grim
reality
on-screen
in
the
most
realistic
way.
His
take
on
corruption
and
malpractices
existing
in
the
country
has
always
been
bold
and
stark.
Unfortunately
in
Aiyaary,
the
man
has
refrained
from
digging
deep
into
the
dirt
and
played
it
as
safely
as
possible.
While
in
his
media
interviews,
Neeraj
maintained
that
'the
DNA
of
Aiyaary
is
the
point
of
view
of
the
youth
and
not
corruption
or
scam,'
the
commentary
that
he
makes
on
today's
youth
who
are
considered
irresponsible
and
constantly
underestimated,
lack
a
strong
voice.
National
security,
espionage,
corruption,
terrorism,
scams
and
the
clash
of
ideologies
between
two
generations-
Pandey
tries
to
pack
in
too
many
ingredients
but
is
terribly
let
down
by
his
own
feebly
writing.
The
non-linear
narrative
especially
for
a
major
portion
in
the
first
half
leaves
you
with
jumbled
minds
as
you
struggle
to
keep
pace
with
events
happening
at
a
swift
speed.
Neeraj
takes
his
own
sweet
time
to
explain
character
quirks
and
idiosyncrasies
which
induces
a
few
'yawns'.
There
are
several
questions
left
unaswered
even
post
the
rolling
of
end-credits.
When
it
comes
to
performances,
Sidharth
Malhotra
falters
as
Major
Jai
Bakshi.
While
it's
highly
applaudable
of
the
actor
to
step
into
a
different
zone,
he
needs
to
buck
up
when
it
comes
to
emoting
on
celluloid.
Lesser
said
about
his
intense
scenes
here
the
better.
Also
one
question
for
Mr
Malhotra,
what's
with
that
smirking
throughout
the
film?
Thankfully,
his
swooning
looks
might
save
the
day
for
the
ladies
at
least!
Manoj
Bajpayee
relishes
his
role
with
sincerity
and
gives
you
reasons
to
cheer.
The
actor
remains
true
to
the
film's
title
and
keeps
you
hooked
with
his
'shape-shifting'.
Right
from
the
body
language
to
the
mannerisms
of
a
staunchly
scrupulous
army
officer,
he
gets
it
spot
on.
Rakul
Preet
Singh
looks
charismatic.
Sadly,
she
barely
gets
a
chance
to
showcase
her
acting
talent.
But
wasn't
her
character
supposed
to
be
that
of
a
brilliant
hacker?
Instead,
we
see
her
basking
in
puppy
love
and
blindly
follow
her
beau's
intructions
for
reasons
which
are
never
revealed!
Naseeruddin
Shah's
cameo
suffers
from
a
serious
'A
Wednesday' hangover.
Nevertheless,
it's
still
a
treat
to
watch
the
veteran
actor
utter
the
veiled
threat-
'Gareeb
aadmi
ko
na
ungli
nahi
karne
ka
sahab'
and
echo
every
common
man's
sentiments.
Pooja
Chopra
randomly
pops
up
in
a
scene
or
a
two.
Kumud
Mishra's
character
begins
well
but
later
simply
trails
off.
Talented
performers
like
Adil
Hussain
and
Anupam
Kher
suffer
from
weak
character
sketches.
Sudheer
Palsaane's
lens
beautifully
captures
the
intrinsic
details
and
perfectly
builds
up
moments.
Despite
Praveen
Kathikuloth's
editing
scissors,
Aiyaary
makes
for
a
tedious
watch
at
a
run-time
of
160
minutes.
The
song
'Lae
Dooba'
in
Aiyaary
merely
acts
as
a
filler
and
adds
to
the
'forced'
romantic
track
brewing
between
Sidharth
Malhotra
and
Rakul
Preet.
The
film
has
some
impressive
background
score.
There's
a
scene
in
the
film
where
Manoj
Bajpayee's
Abhay
Singh
tells
a
character,
"Matlab
bhi
batayega
ya
google
karoon..."
That
perfectly
sums
up
your
feelings
after
watching
Aiyaary.
Neeraj
Pandey
serves
you
a
half-baked
plot
in
Aiyaary
which
just
beats
around
the
bush
and
leaves
you
apathetic
by
the
end.
Those
carrying
remnants
of
Neeraj's
previous
films
with
them
to
the
cinema
hall
will
be
highly
disappointed!