Simmba

SIMMBA is formulaic but engaging!

Packing-in all the masala ingredients that make a quintessential Rohit Shetty caper, SIMMBA is yet another edition, which is probably amongst the better works in the universe of this genre of cinema. Its long, but never tiring, and also delivers a good message, but in the most manipulating way possible – eventually catering satisfactorily to the expectations of most of its viewers. Watch it for a decent time at the cinemas and to witness an earnestly massy performance delivered by its lead Ranveer Singh.

As the story goes, Simmba is an orphan from Shivgadh from where our beloved Singham was born and raised. Contrary to the philosophies of Singham, Simmba believes that a Corrupt Officer's life is an ideal life which inspires him to become one. While Simmba enjoys all the perks of being an immoral and unethical Police Officer, a twist in the tale transforms him and forces him to choose the righteous path.

The film exploits all the trappings of a typical Bollywood cop movie that we’ve seen in the 80’s and the 90’s, and places it in the more relevant context of current India. So, it’s mostly predictable and serves no new content. But the whole packaging of humour, action and manipulative emotions is such, that it appeals to the interest of most masses across the nation. The sets are huge, the songs are mounted well, and there’s a pinch of that crowd-pleasing masala in every frame. While I can find a bunch of flaws in every scene, it makes little sense to do that in a film of this genre. My only problem is with the preachy attitude of this film, which makes it look artificially serious with its content.

The performances are hardly a highlight in such films, but Ranveer Singh owns the character SIMMBA like no one else could. He delivers a perfectly massy act, which is riveting throughout. The spark in his eyes brings so much conviction in even the most bizarre of sequences. He’s the perfect hero for the Indian masses and he proves it yet again with SIMMBA. If the film is watchable, about 60% of its credit goes to Ranveer’s convincing corrupt cop act. All others just play out their small roles decently.

To sum up, SIMMBA is a film that unapologetically plays it to the gallery, and with a powerful lead star in Ranveer, makes for a decent one-time watch. Good a for a weekend viewing, this holiday season.