Bhuj : Ajay Devgan starrer leaves heroic sense of unity; sure to tug at your heartstrings (a bit)!

In the midst of the 1971 Indo-Pak valorous carnage, the IAF airstrip at Bhuj, Kachchh District of Gujarat was demolished like any volatile warfare. To which IAF squadron leader Vijay Karnik (Ajay Devgn), along with 300 women from the local village Madhapar responded with a stealthy yet miraculous reconstruction of the whole airbase. Undoubtedly, Bhuj: The Pride of India is a story that leaves us with a heroic sense of unity that surfaces in our hearts during the ballad of shell-shocked bullets.

But what is it lacking? Bhuj: The Pride of India has all the elements of a commercial film. It is intertwined with a mix of emotional cameo and aerial action scenes that twirls around a mix of action/drama compatibility but what the creators fail to understand is this pitch is great for a theatrical experience but with these over-the-top added components it is tough to impact the audiences on the OTT platform. 

Abhishek Dudhaiya directorial leaves us with a spinal feel of a predicament where destruction was answered with construction, that too under a thick shade of resilience. It showcases an exemplary diary of events that establishes only the bravest frequency out of us. High sung are the praises of all 300 women to not only avoid the suspicion but adhere to a trek of cobblestones riddled with fatality. 

A credit long overdue under blazing patriotism, Ajay Devgn starrer hits every stop of how an act of phoenix-like courage ignites a firm light of hopefulness in the darkest hour. A piece of an art form that transcends its viewers to see the pinnacle of true terrain of a malignant struggle created in the name of bullets and cannons. However, the honest heroism of war heroes that we saw in films like Uri:The surgical strike, LOC, and Border goes completely missing as our war hero here doesn’t portray the indomitable spirit.

The film is hoarded by an exaggerated trail, and Bollywood talents like Ajay Devgan, Sanjay Dutt, Sonakshi Sinha, Sharad Kelkar, Amy Virk and Nora Fatehi tried hard to keep it pinned. But a weak storyline and scattered approach towards the characters fail to create a bond with the audience. Characters are introduced in flashes with a lot of back and forth movement. Thus creating a confusing mess from the starting itself.

After Ajay Devgan, it’s only Sanjay Dutt as Ranchordas Svabhai Ravari ‘Pagi’ who gets a fair bit of the action in the film. A promising actor like Sharad Kelker who plays officer RK Nair too falls prey to the commercial aspect of the film and gets reduced to firing blanks. Sadly, the women in the film did not get an individual space of their own, they were always shown relying on the men to shore up the lackluster writing. Sonakshi Sinha (Sunderban Jetha Madharpaya) who appears in the final 30 minutes goes unnoticed. Nora Fatehi in the role of a spy Heena Rehman leaves you wondering about her presence in the film. 

The cinematography team of the film did some magic and didn’t fail to portray the esteemed image of a brilliant cinematic direction. While the VFX is strictly passable, the sound is competent enough to transport you to the battlefield. 

A sure streamer for all the avid movie watchers that can respire a feeling of confidence not only under the self-improvement section but under a patriotic unity-inducer. With well-sewed dialogues Bhuj: The Pride of India makes it to the must-watch list for this Independence Day. You should probably stop reading this and start watching now.