AKSHAY KUMAR

Akshay Kumar has had five releases this year.

Bachchan Pandey 

Prithviraj Chauhan 

Both didn't do well.

Now in last 3 months he had

Raksha Bandhan

Cuttputlli 

And Ram Setu

Somehow got to see the final three them Back to Back ..this week

Two on OTT and RamSetu as a Diwali theatre release.

1)RAKSHA BANDHAN :

Akshay Kumar and Aanand L Rai have come up with their next collaboration together after 'Atrangi Re' called 'Raksha Bandhan'.

I found Raksha Bandhan as an initially regressive film that compresses a potentially most interesting plot point of dowry (with unsubtle humour in the first half) into a melodrama turning progressive in the second.

(I could anticipate the interval even while watching it on the small screen).

It was released with Laal Singh Chadda (another flop) and whatnwas common?

Golgappe.

While It’s a life philosophy for Aamir Khan in Laal Singh Chaddha and a business gimmick for Akshay Kumar’s Lala Kedarnath. In a snack stall in Chandni Chowk, Delhi, run by generations before him, Kedarnath continues to feed golgappa's to "expecting" women, perpetuating a myth that they will ensure she has a boy child.

Lala is in Love with Sapna ( Bhumi Pednekar) whose  father wants them to marry.. but...

Akshay Kumar is competent as always..the sisters do well as also Bhumi Pednekar and the other actors do justice to their roles 

The film is just 108 mins but with the songs pitching in the fast forward botton made it smaller.

I don't regret missing this on the big screen.

2)CUTTPUTLLI

A thriller that is a remake of a Tamil hit Ratsasan (2018). it chases a serial killer who brutally targets teenaged schoolgirls in the scenic town of Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh and leaves the brutalised face of Cinderella dolls as his signature. He is pursued by Arjan Sethi (Akshay Kumar), a sub inspector who was once an aspiring filmmaker, specialising in stories of serial killers. 

It's an Akshay Kumar show all the way. The star deserves praise for trying out different variations of the same template, but he is playing them with the intensity of a well-oiled machine that is more efficient than exciting. He is ably supported by Chandrachur Singh. The talented Rakul Preet Singh seems to be using small parts with big stars as an investment for the future.

This film is a link to the chain of films on serial killers.

Raveena Tandon's Aranyak and Vikrant Massey's Forensic, to name a few.

On the whole, CUTTPUTLLI has its share of thrilling moments but turns out to be average fare thanks to its weak climax.

But a good watch.

3) RAM SETU

Ram Setu stars Akshay as an archaeologist, Dr Aryan Kulshrestha, who proudly tomtoms his atheism to the press. The year is 2007. Around this time, the evil shipping magnate Indrakanth (Nasser) finds a project stalled by religious devotees. Indrakanth needs a portion to be shaved off the Ram Setu a.k.a. Adam’s Bridge a.k.a. Ram’s Bridge – a natural formation running between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka – so as to shorten the route to be taken by one of his fuel-guzzling ships.

Dr Aryan is roped in for his expert analysis on a waterborne work station with Gadgets which would fit in to any 007 Bond film. He is assisted by other experts of which one is Jacqueline Fernandez and in an emergency by a surprise element. 

How he goes about his job in an Indiana Jones adventure scenario is to be seen on the big screen.

Altogether, Akshay Kumar's Ram Setu has an interesting premise but the script is weak as also the characterisations.

The special effects VFX are not upto the mark.

RAM SETU is a songless film. The theme track is played in the end credits. Daniel B George's background score is exciting and in sync with the film’s mood.

Director Abhishek Sharma’s thought of making a film based on Ram Setu is fine and his search work is visible on screen. Though Abhishek Sharma’s on-paper ideas are good, the execution part lacks emotional connectivity.