Raid
Movie
Public
Review
from
Delhi
NCR:
Ajay
Devgn
|
Saurabh
Shukla
|
Ileana
D'Cruz
|
FilmiBeat
Rating:
3.0/5
Star
Cast:
Ajay
Devgn,
Ileana
D
Cruz,
Saurabh
Shukla,
Gayathri
Iyer,
Saanand
Verma
Director:
Rajkumar
Gupta
'The
hardest
thing
in
the
world
to
understand
is
income
tax',
goes
a
famous
quote
by
Albert
Einstein.
But,
Ajay
Devgn's
Ameya
Patnaik
in
Raid
is
a
genius
when
it
comes
to
this
math.
Based
on
various
true
stories
of
IT
raids
conducted
in
Uttar
Pradesh
in
the
80s,
this
Raj
Kumar
Gupta
directorial
arrives
just
in
time
when
topics
like
'demonitisation' and
'Nirav
Modi'
have
made
their
way
into
the
common
man's
discussion.
Of
course,
the
maker
packs
in
some
dose
of
fiction
to
make
it
palatable
for
the
masses.
But
that
doesn't
dilute
its
impact
and
is
exactly
what
makes
it
a
wholesome
entertainer.
What's
in
the
plot?
We
give
you
a
sneak-peek!
The
year
is
1981.
An
honest,
scrupulous
IT
officer
Ameya
Patnaik
(Ajay
Devgn)
gets
transferred
to
Lucknow,
Uttar
Pradesh.
Such
are
his
ideals
that
he
'drinks
only
what
he
can
afford'
even
when
invited
to
parties
and
is
a
strict
believer
of
rules.
At
one
point
yo
see
him
telling
someone,
"Sarkari
naukar
ke
liye
tohfa
rishwat
hoti
hai." His
wife
Malini
(Ileana
D'Cruz)
is
an
epitome
of
a
dutiful
wife
and
his
pillar
of
strength.
One
day,
Ameya
knocks
the
door
of
political
leader
Rameshwar
Singh
aka
Tauji
(Saurabh
Shukla)'s
palatial
mansion
to
conduct
an
IT
raid
after
receiving
an
anonymous
tip
about
his
illegal
assets.
When
Tauji
chides
and
throws
him
a
challenge
that
he
will
never
find
single
penny
during
the
search
operation,
he
cooly
gives
it
back,
"Main
sirf
sasural
se
hi
shaadi
wale
din
khali
haath
lauta
tha
...
varna
jiske
ghar
subah
subah
pahuncha
hoon
kuch
na
kuch
nikaal
kar
hi
laya
hoon."
Soon
Ameya
discovers
that
Tauji's
'White
House'
is
literally
built
on
420
crores
of
black
money
as
gold
biscuits
and
currency
notes
pop
out
from
walls
and
other
unlikely
sources.
What
follows
next
is
a
clash
of
ideals
and
egos
with
one-liners
that
leave
you
hooting
and
cheering.
Mounting
real
stories
on
celluloid
isn't
an
easy
task.
But
Raj
Kumar
Gupta
convincingly
whips
up
an
offering
that's
hard
to
resist
and
keeps
you
invested
till
the
very
last
minute.
Ritesh
Shah's
crisp
writing
is
the
backbone
of
Raid.
His
dialogues
pack
a
solid
punch
and
add
interesting
layers
to
the
plot.
The
scenes
of
verbal
duel
between
Ajay
and
Saurabh
pique
your
interest
as
you
try
to
decipher
the
character's
next
move.
On
the
flip
side,
the
second
half
of
the
film
gets
a
little
predictable
and
the
narrative
slows
down
at
few
places.
A
hint
of
melodrama
too
seeps
in.
Thankfully,
Gupta
has
a
firm
hold
over
his
directorial
reins
and
things
soon
fall
into
places.
Other
sore
point
is
the
last
10
minutes
where
you
feel
the
script
staggering
a
bit
with
an
'unnecessary' song,
followed
by
a
tad
'unconvincing'
scene
which
just
seems
to
have
been
packed
in
a
hurry.
However,
the
filmmaker
makes
sure
that
there
are
no
string
left
loose.
Talking
about
the
performances,
Ajay
Devgn
plays
Ameya
Patnaik
with
great
conviction.
He's
not
a
superhero
who
flexes
his
muscle
in
the
battle
of
good
vs
evil.
Instead,
his
character
is
calm,
composed
and
someone
who
chooses
brain
over
brawn.
Ajay
brings
in
the
intensity
with
his
brooding
eyes
and
deep
baritone
which
the
film
demands
and
convincingly
pulls
off
those
powerful
dialogues.
Every
villain
is
a
hero
is
his
own
mind
and
Saurabh
Shukla's
Tauji
is
no
different.
The
talented
actor
brings
in
his
own
quirks
to
his
role
and
makes
sure
that
he
is
a
robust
nemesis
to
Ajay's
heroic
act.
Ileana
D'Cruz
looks
replescent
in
her
bindis
and
sarees
and
shares
an
affable
chemistry
with
Ajay.
Unfortunately,
her
character
lacks
meat
and
fails
to
catch
your
eye.
Instead
her
scenes
with
Ajay
heavily
dipped
in
syrupy
romance
just
deviates
you
from
the
main
plot.
Last
but
not
the
least,
it's
octogenarian
Pushpa
Joshi
as
the
'ammaji'
with
kidney
stones
who
leaves
you
asking
for
more.
We
bet
you
won't
be
able
to
escape
fher
charm;
she's
that
good!
Alphonse
Roy's
cinematography
is
praise-worthy
in
a
few
shots
and
adds
drama
and
depth.
Bodhaditya
Banerjee's
editing
is
edged.
Raid
doesn't
have
much
to
offer
when
it
comes
to
music.
Sanu
Ek
Pal
Chain
is
hummable.
The
rest
of
the
tracks
just
add
minutes.
In
a
nutshell,
Raid
makes
for
a
compelling
watch
despite
a
few
hiccups.
There's
a
scene
in
the
film
which
has
a
dialogue
that
goes
like,
"Ameya
Patnaik
na
kabhi
khaali
haath
aate
hain,
aur
na
kabhi
khaali
haath
jaate
hain."
With
Raid,
Ajay
Devgn
brings
with
him
a
film
that's
quite
relevant
in
today's
times
and
gives
us
enough
reasons
to
say
a
big
'No'
to
black
money.