‘Baaghi’ Movie Review: Tiger Shroff is a rebel, and so is the script

Directed by: Sabbir Khan
Produced by: Sajid Nadiadwala
Cast: Tiger Shroff, Shraddha Kapoor, Sudheer Babu
Duration: 2 hours 19 minute
Bollywood Bubble Rating: 2.5/5

When you hear the name Tiger Shroff, you can’t get over the aura he left with his debut film ‘Heropanti’. Today after a gap of almost two years, he is ready to strike back on big screen with his new film titled ‘Baaghi: A Rebel For Love’. Tiger reunites with the makers of his debut film ‘Heropanti’, director Sabbir Khan and producer Sajid Nadiadwala, and the film brings you the tale of an individual who turns rebel for a cause, that which is his love for someone. So will this Tiger Shroff’s rebellious act be able to impress you? The answer to this, should we say in his style, “Abhi toh humne Review start kiya hai.”

The plot begins in Hyderabad where Raghav Shetty, a dreaded criminal from Bangkok, abducts Siya from a film set where she is playing the female lead. Getting no help from the police and ministry, her greedy father suggests the producer to contact martial arts teacher Ronny, as their past connect would bring him to save her. Left with no option to gather some money for an important operation, Ronny reluctantly agrees for this work. As he flies to Bangkok, it brings us to Kerala where Ronny had met Siya on a train journey and slowly as time flies with some cute interactions, both of them fall in love. The connecting factor in their love story is whenever they meet, it starts raining! But as love blossoms, Siya is caught in the eyes of Raghav, son of a respected martial arts teacher called Guru Swamy, who coincidentally is the teacher of Ronny as well. Looking at Raghav’s wealth, Siya’s father agrees to marry her off with him, but also informs him about Ronny which makes Raghav fume in anger. So what happened between Ronny and Siya which drew them apart? Was Raghav behind this split? Will Ronny be able to save Siya from the clutches of Raghav? Will Ronny and Siya realise their love for each other again? The answers lie in this film named ‘Baaghi’.

Talking about performances, Tiger Shroff as Ronny is good and acts pretty well. A very sharp improvement could be seen in him while he performs some intense scenes and talking about the action, he has definitely taken it to another level with the martial arts form Kalaripayattu. Shraddha Kapoor as Siya is good and her acting is pretty similar to her previous films. But the transition she has undergone in the second half while performing action sequences, definitely make her special from her contemporaries. She looks stunning in her new avatar. Sudheer Babu marks his debut in Bollywood as the menacing Raghav Shetty. He is superb and undoubtedly, the hidden surprise packet in this film, right from his cunning expressions or the stunt scenes involving Kalaripayattu, he is fabulous.

Stand up comedian Sunil Grover as PP Khurrana provides some good laugh, but for only a couple of scenes as he vanishes in the second half. Special mention for Grandmaster Shifuji Shaurya Bhardwaj who has played the role of Guru Swamy, the trainer of Tiger Shroff. His role is small but quite effective and surely stays with you after the film is over.

Sanjeev Dutta has written the movie, and nothing new is presented in it as the basic storyline of the film seems repeated and predictable. But his screenplay manages to hold you with the visuals and the stunning action sequences filmed. As a writer, his biggest flaw is that he has left many loopholes in the script and few questions which are not answered till the end. For example, why Raghav kidnapped Siya, what had happened between the deal he had with her father, was it forgotten and what was the reason, simply stays a mystery.

Sabbir Khan has done a decent job in his third directorial with some very good shots of the principal cast and he should be credited for bringing in a talent like Tiger Shroff and Sudheer Babu together in this film, which makes this film worth a watch.

The music is composed by multiple composers and visually every track (as per the situations) in the film, leaves an individual mark of entertainment. Among them ‘Sab Tera’ tops the list as you could feel the romance with those beautiful moments between Ronny and Siya in the mesmerising visuals shot at Krabi islands. This follows with the Baaghi Anthem ‘Get Ready To Fight’ which is bound to bring out the motivation in everyone to work hard forgetting the limitations if you have to achieve something in life.

Technically, the prime highlight of ‘Baaghi’ is its action done fantastically by Kecha Kamphakdee and Javed-Aejaz. All the chase and the 17 minute-long climax sequence when Ronny enters the premises of Raghav for the final fight either to finish or die with him and his entire army, is awesome and incredible. Binod Pradhan’s cinematography is the second most outstanding thing in the film, the way he has shot sequences showing Kerala and Bangkok, and the overall film, it speaks volumes of his skills. Julius Packiam’s background score is quite engaging and keeps you connected with the different kind of scenes. Manan Sagar’s editing is just fine, but could have been better.

To wrap it up, ‘Baaghi’ is not something very extraordinary but it is quite a remarkable film for those who would love to see some kickass action sequences. Sudheer Babu’s fantastic debut and Tiger Shroff’s honest performance makes this a worth watching film, plus there is an option of skipping this as well. Overall, a one time watch!

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