GADAR 2 works due to strong franchise value, right release period and a patriotic narrative.
Gadar 2 Review {4.0/5} & Review Rating
GADAR 2 is the story of a son and a father. After the events of the first half, Ashraf Ali (Amrish Puri) is slammed in Pakistan, and at the insistence of Hamid Iqbal, he is hanged. 17 years later, in 1971, Tara Singh (Sunny Deol) is residing peacefully with his wife Sakeena (Ameesha Patel) and son Charanjeet Singh aka Jeete (Utkarsh Sharma). The Indian army is preparing for war with Pakistan. Lieutenant Colonel Devendra Rawat (Gaurav Chopra) asks Tara to help a particular army unit that is stuck at the border while fighting the Pakistani army. Tara not only provides the Indian army unit with ammunition but also fights the enemy. The Pakistani army captures several Indian soldiers and truck drivers, who were with Tara. Tara is nowhere and is presumed to be imprisoned in Kot Lakhpat jail in Pakistan. Sakeena is devastated and so is Jeete. Jeete is unable to bear her mother’s condition. He runs to Pakistan on a fake passport to find his father. He meets Gul Khan aka Gullu (Mushtaq Khan) and Ashraf Ali’s brother Abdul Ali (Ehsan Khan) and asks for their assistance so that he can infiltrate Kot Lakhpat jail. As part of their plan, Jeete masquerades as a cook in the house of Kurban Khan (Mushtaq Kak). Jeete gets the job thanks to Kurban’s daughter Muskaan (Simratt Kaur), who falls for him. What happens next forms the rest of the film.
Shaktimaan’s story has all the trappings of a commercial entertainer and is apt for the sequel of a historic blockbuster like GADAR – EK PREM KATHA [2001]. Shaktimaan’s screenplay is decent. He has peppered the narrative with mass scenes. But in several places, it’s unimaginative. Shaktimaan’s dialogues are clapworthy in certain scenes.
Anil Sharma’s direction is fine. He has handled certain scenes like a pro like Tara answering what Jeete’s last wish is, Tara eyeing the hand pump and the shot thereafter and Jeete coming across a benevolent lady. Moreover, the first part is very memorable and the viewers already have a connection with Tara Singh. Hence, the mere appearance of Tara Singh on the big screen is enough to get the audience excited. There’s also a strong patriotic undercurrent that will work big time with the viewers. Besides, the father-son bond is moving in certain places.
On the flipside, the film is too long. The first half gets quite tedious and it might make viewers restless since Sunny Deol is missing from the film at this point for a good 30 minutes. The second half starts with a bang but after a point, it seemed like the makers ran out of ideas. Compare this with GADAR – EK PREM KATHA where though the second half was about Tara and his family running from the Pakistani authorities, there was a lot happening and one didn’t move from their seats even for a second. That kind of effect is missing in the sequel, sadly.
Speaking of performances, Sunny Deol is terrific. His screen presence is electrifying and it’s a pleasure to see him perform so energetically even at this age. Ameesha Patel is hardly there and is wasted. Utkarsh Sharma tries to give his best shot. But his performance leaves a lot to be desired. Manish Wadhwa is over the top but it works for his character. Simratt Kaur is lovely. Ehsan Khan, Mushtaq Khan and Mushtaq Kak are okay. Gaurav Chopra is fine. Aaditya Sharma (Imtehaan; Darmiyaan’s nephew) is there for the heck of it. Lubna Salim (Pakistani mausi) is adorable.
Gadar 2 | Official Trailer | Sunny Deol | Ameesha Patel
Mithoon’s music fails to work and is nowhere close to the outstanding music score of the first part. ‘Udd Jaa Kaale Kaava’, its climax version and ‘Main Nikla Gaddi Leke’ work chiefly because they are recreations. ‘Dil Jhoom’ and ‘Chal Tere Ishq Mein’ fail to impress. The makers should remove one of these songs, ideally. ‘Khairiyat’ and ‘Sura Soi’ don’t have a shelf life. Monty Sharma’s background score has mass appeal.
Najeeb Khan’s cinematography is neat. Muneesh Sappal’s production design is realistic yet appealing. Ravi Varma, Tinu Verma, Sham Kaushal and Abbas Ali Moghul’s action is one of the USPs of the film. Gagan Oberoi’s costumes for Sunny Deol are quite cool. Nidhi Yasha’s costumes for the rest of the characters are passable. Pixelld Studios and Prisca’s VFX is good in the Amrish Puri shot but poor in the rest of the scenes. Ashfaq Makrani and Sanjay Sankla’s editing is not upto the mark. Certain scenes seem disjointed. Also, the film should have been shorter by 10-15 minutes.
On the whole, GADAR 2 works big time due to a strong franchise value, the right release period, and a narrative that instills patriotism. At the box office, it will open huge and break records in the mass belts. The holidays in Week One will help the movie rake in huge moolah.
