Director: Vipul Amrutlal Shah
Cast: Prem Parrijaa, Adah Sharma, Amit Sial, Vaibhav Tatwawadi, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Mukesh Chhabra and others
Where: Streaming now on Disney+Hotstar
Rating: 1 star
Created by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, Commando as a series is the long-format extension of the theatrical franchise that starred Vidyut Jammwal in the lead. While it’s theatrical run alone doesn’t leave much to be remembered for, fans continue to rave about Jammwal’s arresting presence as the central lead. Commando, the series comes across as a pointless digital extension.
A covert mission by Indian officials goes wrong in Pakistan. Commando Virat (Prem Parrijaa) must take charge when his friend gets caught in the hands of the enemy. Amid tense Indo-Pak dynamics, Virat must propel a journey of redemption and grace for his country and himself.
In its entirety, the series is just another unnecessary addition to countless shows that are available on OTT which highlight the volatile relations between two warring neighbouring nations. While we aren’t contesting the makers’ ability and intent to make a show, the question here is, do they have anything new to offer? The beats are familiar. The bad guys from across the border are sprouting inflammatory lines in chaste Urdu against India. A weapon that can prove to be more fatal than an atom bomb is being designed. The intelligence agencies will wait for one man to take charge and save the day for everyone. It’s a done and dusted narrative.
Commando 3, the last installment of the theatrical franchise was released in 2019, a little before the pandemic hit us. Since then, there has been a plethora of shows and movies that have cashed in on extreme nationalist sentiments and delivered mere jingoism in the guise of patriotism. Sadly, Commando isn’t an exception to that either. Predictability is a crucial factor that hugely works against the series. It also doesn’t help that Parrijaa as Virat doesn’t register similar impact to the character in comparison to Jammwal. Adah Sharma reprises her role as senior inspector Bhavna Reddy but she doesn’t get a chance to showcase anything new either. It’s particularly disappointing to watch good actors like Amit Sial and Vaibhav Tatwawadi being under-utilised and saddled with weakly-written parts.
With its length being the only attribute that works in its favour, Commando is nothing more than a checklist exercise ticked ahead of a long, national weekend.
