Wazir Hindi Movie

Wazir is a predictable suspense thriller with superb performances. Not quite worth being seen at on the big screen. Jan 8, 2016 By Shishir Gautam

Wazir arrives finally. Much delayed. But unlike the delay in the release, Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Abhijat Joshi, the writers, do not waste time when it comes to arriving to the plot. And with Bejoy Nambiar handling the director's reigns, things get stylish.

But then a suspense thriller needs so much more...

Wazir is about two men, both going through personal loss. Amitabh Bachchan plays Pandit Omkar Nath Dhar, a handicapped old man who teaches chess and theater to kids to pass him time. Farhan Akhtar plays Danish Ali, a suspended anti-terrorist squad member, who is trying to deal with a loss and subsequent estrangement with his wife. Dhar gets Ali to join him in games of chess to help each other get through. And in process they build a relationship.

Everything from here on is supposed to be a series of revelations. Ones that leave you wondering what's next. And while it would be wrong not to accept that the film does keep you engrossed, it is primarily because of the performances of the two leads and the dialogues given to them. The screenplay leaves enough to be desired. I can't reveal much here for the fear of giving out the 'suspense', but the character of Panditji gets rather convenient while Danish Ali becomes inexplicably powerful despite being a suspended cop. And then Neil Nitin Mukesh and John Abraham are brought in for roles that did not quite need them. Funny how Neil still manages to leave a mark so large in the film it seems he is present almost throughout, despite getting just one scene.

To make things interesting, terrorism and Kashmir is hurled into it. Manav Kaul plays a Kashmiri leader Yezaad Qureshi, who is disliked by Panditji. And throughout the film the director tries to build up to a major twist related to Yezaad, which too becomes one of those flat moments. And that's the problem with this film, which otherwise manages to connect at emotional levels during certain scenes. Aditi Rao Hydari plays a crucial role in making the possible.

Peak of the lot is Amitabh Bachchan. Brilliant as usual. Makes every moment he is on screen worth watching.

But nothing makes Wazir the brilliant film it could have been. What it becomes is a predictable suspense thriller with superb performances that does not quite make the cut to the list of the movies you should watch at the theaters.