Director: Kapil Verma
Cast: Aditya Roy Kapur, Sanjana Sanghi, Ashutosh Rana, Prakash Raj, Jackie Shroff and others
Where: In theatres near you
Rating: 1.5 stars
Director Kapil Verma hails from a film family that has been in the business of action choreography for decades. Seems like Kapil is conditioned to tell a story that is filled with action and thrill, but where’s the logic? With absolutely no narrative and cheap twists and turns, 'Rashtra Kavach OM' fails to ignite a spark even a tad bit. Blazing guns, protagonists are breaking bones, but for what? Just to find out who the real culprit is?
OM aka Rishi (Aditya Roy Kapur), a para commando, along with Kavya (Sanjana Sanghi) and other teammates, set out on a mission to save the Kavach for the country’s protection. Jai Rathore (Ashutosh Rana) and Dev Rathore (Jackie Shroff), the flag bearers of the mission, are real brothers serving the RAW. Murthi (Prakash Raj), who heads the mission, is jointly working with Jai and Dev. But there’s someone in the system who wants to win the race. Later, the film unravels the traitor, and that’s what 'Rashtra Kavach OM' is all about.
Ahmed Khan, who helmed probably the worst film of the decade recently, 'Heropanti 2', has backed 'Rashtra Kavach OM'. With this film, he has proved that he is not only a horrible director but also an unpleasant producer. However, the film is more bearable than 'Heropanti 2', which had no head or tail and even 'Dhaakad', which highlighted Kangana Ranaut’s great action skills and was touted as the biggest action film of the season. At least 'Rashtra Kavach OM' has a story similar to an episode of Crime Patrol.
Kapil tries hard to impress but falls straight on the floor. The first half rises with a slow curiosity, but the second half is filled with twists and turns that resonate with some 90’s suspense television show. He has also played around with the most cliché Maa logic, which always works in single screens. One thing that sets the film apart from other films is that it doesn’t have a romantic track between the leads.
Aditya looks hot and beefy in his first-of-its-kind role. His hard work, from doing high-octane action sequences to his body transformation, is evident. Sanjana is impressive, too, while performing her action stunts. Ashutosh, Prakash and Jackie have been doing similar performances for so many years, but they act as a catalyst to make the film a bit watchable.
'Rashtra Kavach OM' is avoidable, but in case you want to witness Aditya Roy Kapur’s new image as an action hero, then you may still think of buying a ticket.
