 |
| Singham Again review; The film stars Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor, Akshay Kumar, Ranveer Singh, Tiger Shroff and Deepika Padukone. |
The latest entry in Rohit Shetty's cop universe, Singham Again, starring Ajay Devgn, arrives on familiar ground with a weary story searching for some semblance of action-packed mythology. But while there are a few interesting aspects, the movie buckles under the weight of repetitive fight scenes, clumsy religious allegory and overall blandness. Here is a slightly deeper dive on the do's and don'ts of Singham Again, and why it misses out on building upon its predecessors' legacy.
Plot: A Mix of Action and Ramayana Motifs
Singham Again continues the tale of supercop Bajirao Singham, this time stationed in Kashmir as part of a Special Operations Group. His nemesis, Omar Hafeez (Jackie Shroff), re-emerges along with his vengeful grandson, Zubair (played by Arjun Kapoor), setting the stage for a high-stakes confrontation. Zubair, a feared drug lord, kidnaps Singham’s wife Avni (Kareena Kapoor Khan) to lure the cop into a deadly game.
Though Shetty tries to drape the storyline in symbols of Ramayana like the name of a rich businessman called Ravana or a villainous henchman nicknamed Kumbhkaran – such treatment fails more often than it succeeds. The moments that try to connect the struggle of Singham with the epic tale of Ramayana seems forced and integrated unconvincingly. We've seen this approach done more subtly: the reversal of a generic comedy narrative could've worked here too, but instead it feels quite heavy-handed in retrospect and the story is left as somehow not much more than a loosely strung together assortment of genre tropes.
Star Power: Cameos Over Substance
A major USP of the just announced Singham Again is its cast, which sees avatars lands again bolt and shot from actors like - Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Tiger Shroff other than Akshay Kumar. Yet they come off as a distraction rather than an enhancement to the narrative. The rain in the form of Ranveer Singh reprising his role as the fun-loving and cheeky Simmba enters the fray providing some light relief from Puri Jagannadh’s excess of testosterone-laden action and dialogue, but it isn’t enough to save the film.
The cops in Shetty’s universe have always straddled the line of superhero - because quite frankly, Ajay Devgan Singham also exists so a Bollywood-esque skin-breaking embrace is appropriate. But here he comes off even more one-note, taking the whole film with a grave seriousness that lacks subtlety. His performance is slightly stale, mostly due to the lack of levity or evolution in his character both disappointing for a charismatic fan-favorite character.
Forced Religious Symbolism:
 |
| Ajay Devgn in ‘Singham Again’ | Photo Credit: YouTube/JioStudios |
Singham Again declares its religious influences right from the outset. In fact, the disclaimer at the beginning states that although this story is inspired by Lord Ram, none of these characters should be considered as gods. Still, Shetty's Singham is almost a demi-god with an unswerving moral compass and a commitment to the nation that sends conflicting messages. Dominantly saffron flags and Jai Shri Ram slogans have made the film heavily symbolic of kind of majoritarianism many won be comfortable with.
This blatant allegory has been met with criticism, and many feel that it takes a step too far towards divisive messaging as opposed to universal values or narratives. Shetty may even justify these decisions as an evolution in Singham's character, but they play like pandering rather than anything progressive or meaningful.
Action and Visuals: A Repetitive Routine
Over-the-top action: And just like that, the 'Rohit Shetty' effect of cars flying and slow-mo shots which pack a high-energy thrill into his films enters the YouTube realm. But in Singham Again, those aspects simply feel neither thrilling nor inventive enough as was the case with whatever Shetty created earlier. The choreography is flat and there is nothing here for audiences that haven’t already been done in previous Singham or Simmba films.
A climactic showdown with A-list appearances fails to generate the power and coherence needed for impact. Rather than an exciting payoff, fans are treated to a familiar sense of deja vu, as if stumbling upon not-so-new scenes from the past two films on repeat.
What Works: Simmba’s Playful Cameo
 |
| Ajay Devgn in ‘Singham Again’ | Photo Credit: YouTube/JioStudios |
The hilarious, energetic performance of Ranveer Singh as Simmba stands out in Singham Again. His characters carefree, candid demeanor provides a moment or two of respite and comic relief that appeals strongly to the franchise fanbase. Singh and his one-liners are a hint at the assumption of the matter that asackone has come to hold, Aschmel is sort of extra than simply silly-early in Chhatriwala but others should change into downright chaat-from whose source his adolescent mastermind that's been aflutter with ransoms.
Verdict: A Franchise in Decline
All in all, Singham Again is a victim of its own formula without advancement or innovation. All that repetitive business, not only a predictable story but one which also seems to be working along the lines of why change something that's been hit 1,000 times before (and people will always come back for more) and ham-fisted religious iconography add up to nothing more viewer-challenging than cold oatmeal when set against the original Singham pair of heart-pumping excitement.
Amidst all this, Singham Again is a stark reminder that in its desperation to juggle between mass and thoughtful cinema, Bollywood can't be dressed up with just a vintage jacket. But devoid of new visions, the universe it created at a time sounded so complicity exciting runs the risk of reminiscence over imagination. Singham Again still does not engage the viewer, though some die-hard fans of the franchise may be able to fight through for a few moments of entertainment very few and scattered unlike his past fringe crowd pleasers where gimmicky situations squared against common sense at least paid dividends in energy and novelty.
Singham Again might well be a letdown for those seeking effective storytelling and nuanced characters. What had previously jettisoned its franchise with brash and visceral energy now lumbers under the weight of monotonous plot devices and admittedly, some problematic religious iconography. The Cop Universe needs the equivalent of a reboot, and hopefully a refreshing one that doubles down on creativity and diversity, if it’s to maintain relevance and adored status.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Speedculb.com is now available on whatsapp and telegram. Follow today and get important news
Follow Us 👉
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Please wait for 45 seconds...
Post a Comment