The director took a whopping six years to get his new film off the ground, because he was hell bent on crafting an epic, artistic work that he could unveil in his latest project Dhurandhar. This 3 hour & 30 minute spy thriller is just so long because it lays bare all the grueling stages of undercover misery - the kinda thing that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
The ' Spy-Verses ' project was supposed to make espionage scenes all the more perilous, but Adithya Dhar pulled off something even better, weaving danger into the fabric of his espionage work. Which was created through his earlier 'Spy-Verses' project.
Typical Bollywood espionage types have all but vanished - the flashy gadgets and perfectly coiffed hair just look out of place these days. Ranveer Singh brings to life a character that's been going through a real tough time since the very start of the film - you can almost feel his fatigue with every passing scene. He plays Hamza Ali Mazari - a RAW operative who's sunk so low into the Karachi underworld that he's lost all sense of humanity.
Ranveer Singh brings this to the fore as he portrays the persona of an 'energetic' character, which he then uses to create a 'ghost-like' presence. He hardly speaks at all, but his empty expression says it all in "Bastard King of Lyari," which pretty much tells you what kind of dark vibe to expect - especially with its sombre chapter title.
What really makes this film stand out, though, is that its greatest strength lies beyond the action sequences. Akshaye Khanna plays the film's most powerful component - the warlord Rehman Dakait. He brings so much menace to the role that it's frightening to see - he's a real life threat who controls his own little world. Unlike any mustache-twirling villains you may have seen before, he's a death-dealing leader who's not to be underestimated. The film's epic length may put some off, but the one thing that keeps you hooked is the relationship between Khanna's character and Singh's, which sadly ends in a betrayal that's just so hard to avoid.
The movie goes on and on - for an uncomfortable amount of time. You'll find yourself constantly checking the time as different sections pass by. Mitesh Mirchandani's cinematography has a seriously predatory effect - it draws you in and holds you there. And then you have Dhar making the bold choice of using real 26/11 archival audio. Which makes for a documentary-movie hybrid that's just plain uncomfortable viewing - like most commercial films try to avoid.
Watching Dhurandhar is no 'fun' night at the movies. It's a heavy-handed view on security - one that shows the real costs, but with a healthy dose of cynicism. The first blackout screen gets you ready for a sequel that has already broken all kinds of pre-release records, but don't go in expecting to leave the cinema feeling all happy. You'll be left feeling completely drained. In its own little corner of the film genre, this one gets the highest praise.