Gray Matters. Review on Vikram Vedha

Indian filmmakers have always been fascinated by mythology & folklore, esp. the diverse interpretations left to the understanding of viewers. However, very few of them managed adapting them to modern context and somewhat succeeded. To name a few popular Hindi films, we had Kalyug(1981), Paheli(2005), Raavan(2010), Rajneeti(2010).

Vikram Vedha is the hindi remake of the tamil original(made in 2017), loosely based on Vikram Betaal(a story adaptation of'Betaal Pachisi', written in the 11th century by Kashmiri poet Mahakavi Somdev Bhatt).

The story sets off in Lucknow with SSP Vikram(Saif Ali Khan) and his team acting on a tip off, enter a building supposedly manifested with criminals and end up encountering them. Vikram is tough cop who doesn’t regret his actions when it comes to extreme punishment, much to the dismay of his lawyer wife Priya. She strongly believes in trials, ethics and procedures.

The subsequent task given to Vikram and team is to nab Vedha(Hrithik Roshan), a dreaded gangster. While the police in process of planning their next move, Vedha surrenders himself. During an interrogation by Vikram, he starts narrating a back story connected with the cops’ investigations. He ends the story with a cryptic clue and gets bailed out by his lawyers. Vikram is frustrated as well as curious what’s next in store. Here begins a cat and mouse chase, followed by surprises and unusual situations.

The narrative initially starts a bit slowly focusing on the personal lives of the characters but gathers momentum once the confrontation between Vikram and Vedha is established. The second half also has a few dips, but then towards the climax things start moving at steady pace. The story though similar to the tamil original, is presented differently suited to a PAN India audience.

Cinematography by P.S. Vinod is remarkable, esp. the shots through narrow lanes, farm fields, etc. Action direction by Parvez Shiekh is good, deserved to be spine chilling for a hardcore entertainer. Same goes with the editing(Richard Kevin), lengthwise and the transition between shots. Dialogues by Manoj Muntashir and Benazir Ali Fida are apt, but the dialect of Vedha’s character needed little more fine tuning.

The humorous portions could have been crisper. Background score by Sam CS perfectly aligns with narrative, the songs by Vishal Shekhar are okay.

Performance wise, Saif Ali Khan does complete justice to the role of Vikram. He balances both emotions and action, pretty well. Radhika Apte performs her part with elan and makes her presence felt in every scene. Other actors who leave a mark include Satyadeep Mishra, Sharib Hashmi, Rishi Saraf, Yogita Bihani, and Govind Pandey.

Hrithik Roshan very intelligently and pleasantly plays on his strengths and portrays the role of Vedha in a very different yet impactful style(much distinct from Vijay Sethupathi’s masterclass in the tamil version). Hrithik’s towering persona adds a unique flavor to the character, though his facial expressions in a few scenes seemed a bit out of place.

Overall, Vikram Vedha brings out the significance of internal conflicts involving one’s own conscience, societal pressures, right versus wrong and official duties, and leaves you thinking. On-the-whole, a decent entertainer which does justice to its original with his strong performances