Baadshaho movie review: Ajay Devgn's heist drama is full of mysteries but lacks thrill

Star cast: Ajay Devgn, Emraan Hashmi, Ileana D'Cruz, Esha Gupta, Vidyut Jamwal, Sanjay Mishra

Director: Milan Luthria

Ratings: **

After the high octance action thriller Shivaay which did wonders at the box office, Ajay Devgn has come up with his next movie Baadshaho. Helmed by renowned director Milan Luthria, the mvie happens to be a multi-starrer heist drama.

Shot in the locales of Rajashtan, Baadshaho starts with a backdrop of 1975 emergency and revolves around a hidden treasure full of gold with some powerful people having their eyes on it -  Sanjay (a look alike of Sanjay Gandhi, played by Priyanshu Chatterjee), princess Geetanjali (played by Ileana D'Cruz), her bodyguard Bhawani (played by Ajay Devgn) and his friends Dalia and Guruji (played by Emraan Hashmi and Sanjay Mishra respectively).

The trailer had indeed left the audience intrigued about the movie and it was expected to be one of its kind. However, the first half ofthe movie left me disappointed as director seemed to be a in hurry covering up all the major aspects of the story, including the character introduction, the plot, romantic chemistry between Ajay and Ileana etc.

Undoubtedly, Ileana has justfied ever bit of her role of a Maharani and she looks ravishing as the Rajasthan princess. On the other hand, Ajay baosts his evergreen intens look and his brilliant performance is backed by powerpack dialogues making his entry a grand one. In fact, the way he introduces himself with his mantra of life: 'Char din ki zindagi hai, aur aaj chautha din ha, yehi sochkar zindagi nikaal li', indeed makesthe crowd go crazy over his fearless attitude.

While everything looks so simple going, the first half of Baadshaho makes you feel deprived of all the thrill and adventure, focussing mainly on Ajay and Ileana. But as you get to loos all hope from the movie, the second half comes up with a bang. Soon after the intermission, the movie takes up an altogether different turn leaving you on the edge of your seat. 

The post intermission story of Baadshaho has some interesting sequences which will keep you glued. But while you dive into the story looking for more, the climax comes as a major disappointment.
Cinematographer Sunia Radia has done a great job in capturing all the major moments with her camera. However, amidst the chase for the treasure, Milan had failed to relate the story to the 'emergency' backdrop.

On the other hand, Emraan Hashmi seemed to have struggled a lot to get into a Rajasthani street guy and finds it difficult to adapt the local accent. However, he did gave a passable performance when it comes to his usual flirty image. Besides, Ileana and Ajay, it was Vidyut Jammwal and Sanjay Mishra who have managed to won the appreciation. While Vidyut looks terrific as the army officer, Sanjay Mishra's humor and one-liners does give you some light moments in the movie.

Talking about the music of Baadshaho, well, the first track of the movie 'Rashke Qamar' has already been a chartbuster. The song along with the track 'Socha Hai' was a recreation for the film by lyricist Manoj Muntashir and composer Tanishk Bagchi has been the new love anthems lately.

Overall, if you are looking for a thrilling heist drama, Baadshaho might come as a disappointment for you. But you can afford to bear the two hour movie, if you are a fan of Ileana D'Cruz and Ajay Devgn, you can give the movie a chance but make sure not to expect anything big out of it.